This article was written by Public Relations Intern John Thompson.
Amber McClanahan is a wife, a mother, and an assistant band director of the Buchanan County Band. Since starting a family, she has bolstered community through working and volunteering in musical programs. From there, Amber felt called to complete a degree in music education at Bluefield University, where she is currently a junior taking part in the music ensembles at BU.
This chapter of her story began with a conversation with Dr. Andrew Necessary, a music professor and band director at Bluefield.
“Truthfully, God led me here because I had no idea there was even a music department at Bluefield,” Amber shared, “and lo and behold, I was working with the county band I work with and seeing Dr. Necessary at the all-district event, and he sold me, and it just happened.”
That wasn’t the only thing she was sold on, however. Amber’s love of music and desire to inspire more people to become musicians have led her to not only complete a degree in music education but also take part in the marching band, concert band, and jazz ensembles. The spring 2026 semester will be her second semester with the ensembles, but her love for music goes back farther than that.
“I played saxophone from the time I was in fifth grade—I think, 11 or 12 years old,” Amber said, noting how she “kind of put it down after I graduated high school, but then I came back to it when I started volunteering with the county band I worked with.”
“I’ve missed it, and coming back to something like this, it’s a wonderful feeling,” she added.
Amber’s college career didn’t follow the typical progression. Bluefield University wasn’t her first stop. Before her time at BU, she earned an associate’s degree in education from Southwest Virginia Community College.
“I’m 26 years old. I’ve lived life a little bit. When I graduated high school, I went to another institution, and then I worked for several years. I met my husband, got married, had my daughter, and then returned to school to Southwest,” Amber explained.
Bluefield won’t be her last stop, Amber said. She plans to stick to her roots and further the Buchanan County musical programs and her own musical abilities, using her education to help develop and support the next generation of young musicians.
“My goal is to go back towards Buchanan County, where I grew up, and pursue a music education career there—if not there, stay local to Southwest Virginia, where I grew up,” she said.
Building up to that goal, Amber has made Bluefield University her educational “home” until she graduates with her bachelor’s degree in the spring of 2028.
“I like the closeness. It feels like home,” she said. “The professor to student ratio is small. You get on a personal level with your instructors, and it makes, in my opinion, learning so much easier.”