Mom, Dad, Uncle, and both Sisters all have their bachelors from California State University, Bakersfield. Now it’s Music’s Outstanding Award Recipient Samuel Devin Mcgee’s turn to add to the family Runner alumni.  

 With a family full of teachers McGee wanted to follow in his family’s footsteps, so at the beginning of college,

he majored in music education. That soon changed to just Music and include economics.  

 “As much as I enjoy teaching that’s not what I want to do for a career then later I stumbled into economics and fell in love with that too. I decided to be a music major because I wanted to be able to appreciate music at a higher level and be able to understand the complexities and be able to compare and contrast different styles of music in a way that is thoughtful,” said McGee.

 The music program here at CSUB has been nothing but helpful and caring toward McGee. He started singing at CSUB two years before attending the school. The journey has been an eye-opening experience for McGee. When asked how his experience has been in the music program he said, 

 “The music faculty is very intentional with the students and I think one of the benefits of the CSUB music program is you get a lot of individual time with professors, where they can pour into you as a student,” said McGee.

  The main professor that made an impact on McGee was Dr. Vazquez Ramos. He has known him since he was in high school and their college relationship has grown even stronger throughout the years. “He just took me underneath his wing and he has done a lot to pour into me and give me so many opportunities,” says McGee.

 Throughout Mcgee’s college experience, his biggest accomplishment has to have been his final music project for his senior seminar class. He decided to do a 45 Minute recital singing multiple songs. McGee is a Tenner 1 and sang songs in German, Italian, English, and French. He invited family and friends to come to watch him perform. He expressed his gratitude for the love and support he was shown throughout the process.  

 Being involved on campus can really help you build better connections throughout the university. For two years he tutored music theory and music history for a year. Now McGee has an internship with the oil and gas corporation Truitt. He helps them with accounting and database building.  

 McGee didn’t know that the Outstanding graduate award existed until last spring when a friend of his got it. Now that he is a recipient he has his own personal set of feelings that he has, especially when he found out he was nominated.  

 “It feels rewarding to be recognized for the hard work. I have put in a lot of time and sacrificed a lot and those experiences have been valuable,” says McGee. 

 The next chapter in his life looks promising and he can embark on new journeys along the way. He hopes all continues to go well with his internship and it opens up more opportunities. McGee wanted to leave CSUB students with this message  

 “When the opportunity arises jump on it, be looking for the next thing that propels you forward”. – McGee