Professor by day, rock star by night
It’s now the middle of the semester, and many students get left behind within the first month from disinterest and boredom.
However John Devitry captures the attention of his students every day, he lets his energy flow into his students who absorb the refreshing goodness.
“I feel obligated to have good stuff for my students,” Devitry said. “You pay a lot of money. You deserve a teacher who can deliver the goods.”
His students assure he does exactly that.
“I love the environment in his class,” said Amanda Grow, a junior in mechanical engineering who is taking Devitry’s Engineering Graphics class this semester. “He has such a passion when he’s teaching and he makes it fun to learn.”
Derrick Jensen, also a student of Devitry’s this semester and a sophomore in mechanical engineering with an emphasis in aerospace said, “He is very inspiring. He makes sure every student’s question is answered. And even though he makes us work hard and think, he works just as hard to see each of us succeed.”
Although his students can testify to his success inside of the classroom, Devitry has found equal success off campus.
Devitry said he grew up in a small town in Australia and joined up with a rock band called the Turncoats in the 1980s as a guitarist.
He said they were quickly picked up by an agent and soon became one of the most popular rock bands in Australia. But being in a rock band was not all it was cracked up to be, Devitry said.
“It was like being married to five lunatics,” he said.
He said he eventually realized that he wasn’t where he wanted to be. He ended up graduating in engineering from BYU five years after leaving the band, which he said was a surprise to people he knew back home.
“I wasn’t that good at math,” he said, “but I just stuck to it.”
After Devitry had graduated, he said he studied guitars more, not to play them, but to create a new kind of innovative design especially for traveling musicians. He said he came up with dozens of designs that just didn’t work. Finally, he said he got the idea for the “Stump Preacher.”
“I put it together in 20 minutes,” he said. “Simplicity is beautiful.”
He said the Stump Preacher is the smallest full-scale guitar in existence, being only 24.75″ in length, so it’s easy to lug around.
Mays said he’s had books and essays published as well and owned his own company for the guitar he designed.
“But John’s not one to talk about himself,” she said. “Quite the opposite, actually. He takes a great interest in other people.”
“I’m a living legend in my own mind,” Devitry said while laughing. But he said he’s had his fair share of rejection in his life. “You can really get down on yourself,” Devitry said. “You hang your head and say, ‘oh, I’m such an idiot, I’m such a loser.'” He said you have to just roll with the punches and realize what you can get out of rejection down the road.
“You’ll look back on this after a while and say, ‘I’m so glad I failed at that because I would’ve never ended up here.'”
He tells his students this, too. Mays said, “his example of going out and doing what he wanted to do, and being good at it even when a lot of times it is hard, inspired me to go after my own dreams, and work through the hard parts.”
Sometimes, he said, especially at this time in people’s lives when they’re starting out at college, it’s hard to follow the path they’ve laid out for themselves. He said classes are difficult and kids get “blown out of the water” for the wrong reasons. People get confused with what they really want to do in life.
“You have to think about it like this,” he said. “If they stuck you on a deserted island and they had all the resources in the world for you, what would you choose to do? What would you be drawn to?”
Even though Devitry loves engineering and believes anyone can be a part of it, he knows everyone has their own place.
“I have changed my major since I had John’s class,” Mays said, “but when I see him around campus he always has something positive to say about myself and what I’m doing.”
Jenson agreed that Devitry is a very genuine person. “He really does want to see us succeed. He believes we are the future of tomorrow and pushes us that way.”
Devitry believes that everyone can succeed. He said all you have to do is tap into whatever it is you love and find that niche.
“You have the capacity,” he said.
He said he has put his words and inspiring nature into lyrics and song on a compact disc he’s been trying to perfect for years.
With his new CD, “There is a Place,” he said he is trying to send the message to people who feel lost and confused about their position in life.
“It’ll work out!” he said. “You’ll find your place. And when you do, you’ll have tremendous happiness and peace.”
Devitry’s CD is on sale at the bookstore in the TSC located on the first floor.
“Half price for engineers and potential engineers,” he said.
-marylour@cc.usu.edu