1980s grad built "strongest relationships" at CSUB

50th anniversary alumni spotlight: Ken Haney

By California State University, Bakersfield

September 8^th, 2020

While plenty has changed over the 50-year history of California State University, Bakersfield, one constant has been its ability to prepare students for the future, even one that looks far different from what anyone could imagine.

Ken Haney might have graduated in 1984, but the geology degree he earned through CSUB’s School of Natural Sciences, Mathematics, and Engineering (at the time called the School of Arts and Sciences) is still paying off. As a project manager at California Resources Corporation (CRC), his time at the university was key to building a foundation that would serve him well throughout his career.

“I look at all the steps I’ve taken in my life, and all the moves I’ve made and all the organizations I’ve been involved in and the people I’ve worked with, and the strongest relationships I’ve had in my life were established at CSUB,” Haney, 59, said. “A lot of them continue to this day.”

Originally from Surrey, British Columbia, Haney came to CSUB on a scholarship, competing in both track and cross-country. An interest in science led him to major in geological sciences. Haney said managing academics, athletics, and a social life wasn’t always easy.

“Being involved in both track and cross-country, pretty much year-round I was involved in athletics,” he said. “Also, I lived in the dorms for four years, and the dorms at that time were very active socially, with lots of athletes in the dorms – a lot of friends I still have today I met at Cal State in the dorms. It was kind of a three-way balance of life there.”

Going from the mild climate of Vancouver to the heat of California’s Central Valley took some adjustment, Haney said, especially as a runner. But it wouldn’t take long for him to establish himself, winning a team conference championship and earning two All American honors in his years on the team.

“My coaches on the track and cross-country team (Charles Craig and Bob Coons) were very influential in me understanding my future career path and developing and maturing as an individual,” Haney said. “I spent a lot of time, probably more time with coaches than I did with professors.”

Following his graduation from CSUB, Haney earned his master’s degree in engineering from the University of Southern California and took a job with Texaco, which moved Haney, along with his wife, Laura, and their two children, to Texas and New Mexico for assignments.

In 2003, Haney accepted a job at Occidental Petroleum, which in 2014 became CRC. Currently, Haney is working on enhanced oil recovery and carbon capture and storage. The goal of the project is to capture carbon dioxide emissions given off by CRC’s electrical power plant, use it to recover additional oil reserves, and store the emissions underground.

“This assignment in particular has been very challenging and rewarding in that it’s tapped into basically every experience I’ve ever had in the industry and in education as well,” Haney said. “It’s great. It’s one of my favorite work roles I’ve had in my career.”

As management at CRC, Haney has been able to hire CSUB graduates as interns and full-time employees.

“I think it just makes sense for us to have a synergy with Cal State when it comes to our workforce, and CRC is very much behind that concept as well,” he said. “Now that CSUB has the engineering programs, we’ve brought some of (those graduates) on board and they’ve proven themselves and moved up the organization; some of them have moved on to other oil companies, but I think the pipeline is established at this point.”

With CSUB an important part of his career’s foundation, Haney believes it’s important to give back. He’s been an active alumnus, donating to the school, working with the geology department on projects, and meeting with students for career day events.

“It launched me on the path to where I am today, which has been a pretty successful and rewarding career,” Haney said of CSUB. “I just think it’s an opportunity for me to pay back a little.”