Rodney Harrison
Listen to the interview (approx. 57 min.) or download it.
Graduated in 2011 with a major in Music Business. Principal instrument: voice.
Position: Case Manager at The Treehouse, a rehabilitation facility that helps people suffering from substance abuse and/or mental illness. As a case manager Rodney processes paperwork, guides clients through their orientation and lines up resources during and after their stay, but he also is an open door where people come with any issues.
Overview: Rodney finished Berklee and went straight into a 1-year Masters program in International Business from Hult University San Francisco campus. Graduating in the spring of 2012, he decided to move home to Houston, Texas where rents were lower and he could save money. Rodney also decided that he really wanted a career more related to helping people, so rather than work for a business consulting firm or an oil company, he used a family connection to get a job as an academic counselor at Houston Community College. The pay was modest, but the work was very satisfying. “People at HCC. Many people at HCC were the first person in their family to go to college, and often never thought they’d be in college. We got to push people to do things they never thought they could do.”
Rodney worked at HCC for 3 years, gigging on the side. Then in mid-2016 an good friend became director of operations at The Treehouse and encouraged Rodney to become a case manager, as Rodney’s job as an academic counselor was very relevant experience. Rodney visited the facility to make sure it was a good fit, but concluded that it was and took the job, where he has been since September, 2016. On the side, he has music gear all set up in his home and is working on an EP.
You can see Rodney’s (somewhat out-of-date) LinkedIn profile here.
Choice Quotes: “We talk to families, to therapists. It’s whatever they need. I’ts fun, because there’s a lot of clients telling us we saved their lives. Alumni come back and are staying sober and holding it together.”
“I’m the friendly face. I’m the door that never seems to shut. The therapist can only do so much; for everything else they knock on my door and I see to their needs. We officially have four meetings (one/week) with clients, but they come by nearly every day.”
“When I got to The Treehouse clients thought it was cool that I went to Berklee. I got to start an informal music therapy program there that meets twice/week, where we’ll talk about songs.. The group has gone from 6 clients to 40, and has changed people’s lives.”
“I have zero regrets about going to Berklee. I met the best people, had the best teachers, and had the best experiences of my life there. You take that with you and keep on rolling. That’s it.”
Rodney with his wife, at their summer, 2017 wedding. “We musicians do what we do because we love it. Life is like music: first you want to sound like someone else, then you figure out what you are. Sometimes money buys happiness but sometimes happiness buys happiness.”
See the full index of successful Berklee alumni.