If Bryson Moses is not studying, he is probably cruising around Longview with his girlfriend, grabbing a quesadilla from the Hive, watching a movie with friends, or running what he calls “a quick errand” that somehow turns into an adventure. Growing up only twenty minutes away in Diana, Texas, Bryson laughs about how tiny his hometown is. “The best part about Diana is it is really small. We do not even have a city hall,” he said. That small-town freedom shaped him, and it is a big reason he feels at home at LeTourneau. “You could really do whatever you wanted growing up because of how small it was. That is why I really like LeTourneau. You have the smallness, which is what I really like.” His connection with the university actually goes back to third grade, when his school visited campus for an elaborate puppet show. “I remember coming here and thinking, ‘What is this place?’” he recalled. Even after hearing about LeTourneau for years, he did not consider it seriously until his official visit. “I had the stigmatism of the ‘It is the close college, can it really be that good?’ Then I toured LeTourneau, and it switched my opinion,” he said. Conversations with professors helped him discover a major that fit perfectly. “I liked coding and building things, but I thought there was no degree for that. Then my professor said, ‘Oh, there is a degree for that.’” Now a senior in computer science and engineering technology, Bryson spends his days balancing classes, friendships, and leadership while still finding time for grocery runs, video game nights, and intramurals.
What Bryson treasures most about LeTourneau is not the academics, even though he values the small classes and intentional professors. It is the people who have shaped his college experience. “I will forget what I learned in a class, but I have never forgotten the memories I made with my friends here,” he said. Those memories range from late-night Mario Kart tournaments that started with two players and grew to twelve, to spontaneous YAC events, to evenings spent studying in the student center. As an RA, he has been surprised by how natural the role feels. “As an RA I have learned how to interact with people like that, and it has not been as tough as I thought it would be,” he said. He often meets with freshmen to remind them not to worry too much. “We all struggle with this. We all make mistakes. Just because you messed up does not mean you failed,” he tells them. As graduation gets closer, Bryson finds himself appreciating the small moments more than ever, from chapel in Belcher to late-night conversations in the halls. “The closeness here is something special,” he said, and it is that sense of community he knows he will carry with him long after he leaves.
