Bryant ventured from his hometown of International Falls, Minn., on the U.S. and Canadian border and traveled the 400-plus miles southeast to Viterbo where he majors in engineering and plays baseball for the V-Hawks. In high school, he shared his talents with his basketball, football, and baseball teams.

Engineering is a natural fit for Bryant – he enjoys math, science, and solving problems. He looks forward to strengthening his skills and contributing to projects and teams

during his summer internship with Inland Packaging, a large label and packaging printer in La Crosse.

Viterbo’s engineering program is a unique collaboration between the university and regional organizations across a number of industries ranging from heating and cooling, packaging, marine construction, fastener distribution, environmental, health and safety, and more.

Because every engineering course at Viterbo includes lab components that emphasize design thinking and hands-on experiences, Bryant feels ready for the challenge. He can contribute the systems-thinking and analysis skills he gained in his engineering courses while he builds upon important communication and leadership skills through his internship.

“It’s a clear way to apply what you are learning,” says assistant professor of engineering and applied mathematics Emily Vanderfleet. “The internships fulfill a need for employers. They want to hire engineers with the skills to be customer-facing. We provide the technical curriculum and a solid foundation of engineering skills.”

Vanderfleet shares that employers appreciate the quality of a Viterbo education and the values and ethics that Viterbo students and graduates bring to their organizations.

Bryant and his peers can look forward to an interdisciplinary senior capstone project, where students from several majors work together on an ambitious project that might include market research and design, production, and sales, for example.

Jobs at the Amie L. Mathy Center for Recreation and Education and Bryant’s work as a math tutor at the Academic Resource Center round out his college experiences. He hopefully can kick back and relax with his three roommates in their campus apartment at McDonald Terrace.

"I chose Viterbo for engineering because it was a relatively new degree and the class sizes are smaller. Professors know my name and who I am."  

Bryant will graduate in 2025.