Every day, Jason Bennecke ’01, MBA, wakes up at around 4 or 5 a.m., “guzzles” down his first cup of coffee, “then I dive into my writing,” he says. “My goal is to get those 1,000 words, if possible. Some days, the creative juices aren’t flowing, and I fail. But other days, I find myself cranking out thousands of words. My record is 8,000 words in a single day.”

That energy, enthusiasm and determination has resulted in the publication of three novels and a novella by Bennecke, with another novel under review by his agent. A civil engineer by profession, entrepreneur and author, two of his three published novels, “Civil Terror: Gridlock” and “Waterborne,” are on the Amazon Bestseller list. Several scenes in “Civil Terror” even take place on the Cal State San Bernardino campus.

As Bennecke will attest, the CSUSB campus has been a steady backdrop in his life ever since he can remember.

His parents were among the first class of students at California State College, San Bernardino when its doors opened in 1965. His mother, Linda Bennecke, graduated in 1969 with a bachelor’s degree in sociology. His father, Richard Bennecke ’67, political science, was the first ASB president, and after graduating, he went on to work for the university in various capacities for nearly 20 years, including as director of the alumni association. 

Bennecke recalls first setting foot on the CSUSB campus with his father in the 1970s when he was a child. “He worked a lot on weekends for various events,” Bennecke said. “He’d haul my two brothers and I up there with him and let us run around the campus. I remember playing Frisbee and catch on the huge expanses of park-like lawns and the scent of freshly mowed grass mixed with sage scrub from the surrounding foothills. Growing up with Cal State was like having a sixth family member.”

His parents also instilled in him a deep respect for education. "For the first 18 years of my life, the only two schools ever mentioned in my house were: University of Redlands and Cal State San Bernardino. CSUSB was consistently mentioned in the air of greatness," he said.

After graduating from high school, Bennecke attended CSUSB off and on in the early 1990s and met his future wife, Tammy, during a volleyball class in spring 1991. "To say that class changed my life is a monumental understatement,” he said. “We were married in fall of 1991. Tammy graduated from CSUSB in 1996, the same year I finished with a degree in civil engineering at Cal Poly Pomona. She’s my life partner. From an impact standpoint, everything I’ve accomplished has been with her at my side, and vice-versa." (Their daughter, Carley, graduated from CSUSB in 2015 with a degree in communications.)

Through the years, Bennecke’s connection to the university remained strong, and he eventually returned in 1998, earning an MBA in June 2001. "During my three years there as an MBA student, it was truly a home away from home, and I’m grateful for the opportunity given to me to plant the intellectual seeds needed to grow into the businessman I’ve become,” he said. “The CSUSB MBA created a foundation of business knowledge that has allowed me to be successful at multiple businesses I’ve started, owned, managed and sold over the years."

Today, Bennecke is the CEO/CFO of Southstar | DCCM, a Riverside-based firm that focuses on public works and infrastructure projects.

It’s his career as a civil engineer that provided the technical foundation for his foray into writing. “They say aspiring authors should ‘write what you know,’” he said. “Well, I took that advice to heart when I wrote my first novel, ‘Civil Terror: Gridlock,’ which has a civil engineer protagonist who helps save the day from terrorists hell-bent on weaponizing the self-driving car network he designed.”

His novels, penned under the name J. Luke Bennecke, often tackle real-world issues through the lens of an engineer, weaving technical expertise with thrilling narratives. His latest book, “Waterborne,” explores the theme of bioterrorism, inspired by the California drought and Bennecke’s musings on how science and engineering could address such crises.

The transition from engineering to writing was fueled by Bennecke’s love of and desire to share compelling stories. He describes the process of writing his first book as a significant learning experience. "Writing is rewriting. Every time I took another writing/craft class, I went back through the 400-page manuscript and made edits. I hired multiple editors, who flooded me with zillions of recommendations. I made more edits. I learned from them, honing my writing style and voice."

In addition to his professional accomplishments, Bennecke and his wife, Tammy, co-founded Red Apple Reading, an online platform designed to teach children ages 4-8 how to read American English. The program features more than 1,000 educational videos and games and has helped more than 66,000 kids in all 50 states and 38 countries worldwide. "We offer it to individual teachers at no cost and have a goal of helping 1 million students," Bennecke said. Tammy handles the educational side of the operation, while he oversees the business aspects, once again leveraging his MBA skills. 

Bennecke's advice to current CSUSB students aspiring to be authors is simple: "Take advantage of the amazing talent teaching at Cal State San Bernardino by enrolling in at least one creative writing class. Remember, nobody knows everything about writing/publishing, and each author is on their own journey. Unlike sports, creative writing is not a competition, so you’ll find the entire author community abundantly pleasant when it comes to helping/mentoring you."

As for those pursuing careers in civil engineering, Bennecke emphasizes the importance of a well-rounded education. "I always advise young adults to pursue an education in something they’re passionate about and to take some business classes. Any private-sector employee will bring more value to their employer if they work through the lens of knowing something about how the bigger picture operates."

What does Bennecke most enjoy about his career as a novelist? “Knowing that my story writing is in alignment with one of my life’s goals: to entertain people,” he said. “By publishing extraordinary tales, I feel like I’m helping people live their lives with an ever-so-slightly heightened and joyful existence.”