Sybil’s and Adam’s Scholarship Stories
Engineering Excellence
No scholarship program has had a bigger impact on the LSU College of Engineering and its students than the S & B Engineers and Constructors Scholarship.
In celebration of the extraordinary career of the late William Alfred “Bill” Brookshire, PhD, and his legacy of supporting engineering students, the S & B Engineers and Constructors Scholarship remains a cornerstone of support and provides life-changing financial relief to junior and senior LSU Engineering students.
Since being established in 2010, the scholarship has been awarded more than 2,000 times – and that number is growing as a direct result of the Brookshire family’s dedication to continuously strengthening the thriving program.
For senior mechanical engineering major Sybil Pun, an S & B Scholar, the journey to LSU began with a dream of pursuing a career in engineering.
“I was born in Miami, but I grew up and lived in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, for most of my life,” Pun said.
“Growing up in Haiti pointed me toward the direction of being a problem solver. It’s a third world country and is vastly underserved, where the infrastructure itself is completely nonexistent. Being an engineer is essentially a way of life.”
— Sybil Pun
Pun, who recently accepted a job with Shell USA, Inc., where she’ll focus on alternative energy sources, said the scholarship is what made it possible for her to pursue two minors – aerospace engineering and nuclear power engineering – in addition to her major.
“One of the things that is essential, that drives civilization, is energy,” she said. “This scholarship has been able to afford me the time to learn the different concentrations, and through my aspirations with Shell, I hope to start researching into more sustainable energy resources to then bring to third world countries.”
The program has also been an anchor for senior construction management major Adam Herrera, offering not just support but also a sense of belonging and mentorship in navigating the complexities of higher education.
“It has always been a dream of mine to come to LSU,” Herrera said.
“I served in the military for eight years … so I ended up taking a different route. I always wanted to do something bigger than myself, to serve a bigger purpose. Joining the military was a big positive for me, seeing different walks of life, and it also led me to the opportunity to come here and pursue construction management.”
— Adam Herrera