From CSUB alumnus to community leader

50th anniversary alumni spotlight: John Nilon

By California State University, Bakersfield

September 14^th, 2020

“My whole life is about this campus, is about Bakersfield, is about the things they’ve offered me,” said John Nilon, California State University, Bakersfield Foundation Board chair and CSUB alumnus.

It started as a temporary, 10-week stay at CSUB (then called California State College Bakersfield), for John Nilon, a political science major, but it didn’t stay that way for long.

It’s almost as if the campus chose him.

He’d spent two years attending a college in Denver, Colorado, but wanted to come back to his home state of California to complete his degree.

His plan was to go to the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB). However, he missed the deadline to apply.

He knew where Bakersfield was on a map, and while he had never visited, they were still accepting people into the college.

“But I was only going to be there for 10 weeks, so what the heck? Have some fun, enjoy your time,” he told himself.

And then, his ten weeks at CSUB were up.

He applied and was accepted into UCSB, and was cleaning out his dorm, when there was a knock at his door on a Saturday morning.

On the other side was one of his professors, Dr. Charles Kegley.

Nilon had turned in his final paper and the staff member signed off on it, but they couldn’t place it.

“So, here's a professor on a Saturday. He found out where I lived. I don't know how he did it, but there he was. He said, ‘Let's go take a walk.’ I said, ‘Okay, let's walk,’” Nilon recalled.

They walked around the campus for 40 minutes and talked, circling back to Nilon’s dorm room.

Dr. Kegley had asked him all of the questions that were on the final paper and told him he would get an A in his class.

This would have been unheard of at another college or university.

Nilon decided to stay at CSUB.

Did he ever regret it?

“Here I was going to the University of California, Santa Barbara. I was so excited to go there. I had filled out all the paperwork. I was accepted, ready to go. I had dorms, my best bud in my entire life, still is my best bud, lived there. I could not believe I was going to the coast to live my life, and yet because of my experience in Bakersfield, I decided to stay another 10 weeks in Bakersfield. 43 years later, I have never regretted that decision,” said Nilon.

As he prepared to enter the real world, Dr. Ray Geigle presented him with an opportunity that would change the course of his life.

Dr. Geigle, a professor on campus, knew of someone with temporary jobs in county government and asked Nilon if he would be interested.

Nilon applied, Dr. Geigle helped him get on board and the rest, as they say, is history.

Throughout his career with the County of Kern, Nilon went on to serve as the public health director, child support director, the employment director, the county administrative officer (CAO) and for a brief period of time the interim chief executive officer (CEO) of Kern Medical Center.

Over the last three decades, Nilon has also served on over a dozen community boards and currently serves on the boards of the Network for Children, First 5 Kern, Kern County Foundation and Kern Health Systems.

He was not only committed to giving back to his community, but the university who had served him so well.

“I'm just a guy. The university gave me all these skills and tools and relationships and taught me how to engage people so they would consider taking a chance on me. I mean, it's incredible. And to be able to give back through service, well, that is paramount to me,” Nilon explained.

Former President Mitchell, CSU Chancellor White, John Nilon, Dia Poole, Lou Monville

As Nilon finished his career and retired at the county, former President Horace Mitchell asked him to serve on the statewide CSU alumni council. He happily accepted and in less than a year, the same body elected him to be a trustee on the CSU Board of Trustees.

In fact, Nilon notes his role as trustee as the highest honor.

“I have told all the people close to me I have never been more honored than to have that role. To be able to say, I represent not only CSU Bakersfield but the entire state as the sole alumni representative,” said Nilon.

“But more specifically, to listen to the voice of our local community, our Valley, our city. And to be able to help design programs and funding to make sure that who we are never gets forgotten in the system.”

He is most proud of leading the search committee for current president, Dr. Lynnette Zelezny. Nilon credits Bakersfield and the opportunity it gives for that.

“Take a deep breath and go with it, because you can be whatever you want to be. CSU Bakersfield will guide your path. They will help you make that happen,” said Nilon.

To Nilon, the university and the community that came with it was more than just a period of his life. It became his life.

“I set up my life here, I raised my family here, I worked here, and I served here because this university helped me obtain the experience and relationships necessary to be successful. To me it's a Disney storybook,” she said.

Nilon is just one of the many students who graduated from CSUB and found success.

“This is a campus of extraordinary employees helping students become extraordinary. And that's just what they do. Frankly, they did that to me. They’ve also done that for 50,000 other students, including my wife. Extraordinary employees helping students become extraordinary. And they give their all to make that happen,” he said.

After a 35-year career in the community, why is it still so important to Nilon to stay part of the CSUB family?

As a student, he said he didn’t understand what it all meant – professors asking him to participate on campus and to join committees, but now he understands it as the university driving everything.

“I realized that even in just the little ways that I could help, the university may be better. And so I served on a lot of committees and participated in a lot of efforts, and I just have to say the more I was involved, the more I felt that this campus is integrated into our community and is striving to be even more integrated,” said Nilon.

As the university celebrates the 50th anniversary, Nilon hopes students and the community realizes the “greatest gem we have in Kern County, in all of our city, and in all the things we do, is our university.”

He encourages everyone to “embrace it, love it, follow it and engage it, because this is our future.”

“I will forever and continually be thankful to our college, now university, who allowed me to meet the right people, get the best education, have the opportunity to find success at work, and in aggregate, strive to attain a meaningful life. I shudder to think how drastically different my life would have been without CSUB” said Nilon.