TSTC diesel equipment student receives nationwide scholarship

(WACO, Texas) – The work that Joseph Briseno is doing in the Diesel Equipment Technology program at Texas State Technical College’s Waco campus is getting him national recognition.

Briseno, of Lingleville, recently was one of three college students nationwide to receive a $5,000 scholarship from the Independent Equipment Dealers Association. The other recipients are from Illinois and Wisconsin.

“The scholarship helps,” Briseno said. “I am consistently applying to get more.”

Briseno is in his third semester in the Diesel Equipment Technology program. He is pursuing associate degrees in the program’s Heavy Truck and Off-Highway specializations. He is scheduled to graduate in spring 2025.

“Being from a farming community, I was always around farm equipment and got into the performance side of diesel vehicles in high school,” he said. “It led me here (to TSTC).”

Briseno said his favorite classes so far have focused on electrical systems and hydraulics.

“What motivates me is getting through it and thinking of the future once I get in the field (after graduation),” he said. “I cannot be lazy. Money motivates me a lot.”

Jerod Brock, an instructor in TSTC’s Diesel Equipment Technology program, said Briseno is a class leader in keeping his classmates focused.

“He is always on time,” Brock said. “He pays attention and does his work and asks good questions.”

Hayden Acosta, of Kyle, is a Diesel Equipment Technology student who met Briseno in the early days of the fall 2023 semester. Acosta said they share a passion for performance vehicles.

“He has a good work ethic,” Acosta said. “We usually work on a lot of stuff together. We can bounce ideas off each other very well.”

Briseno is a graduate of Lingleville High School, where he earned a welding certificate through dual credit with an area two-year college. He said he is glad to have welding skills because when a part needs to be fabricated for heavy equipment, he knows he is up to the task.

Briseno is getting hands-on experience outside of class by working as a paid intern at the Texas Department of Transportation in Waco. He recently helped technicians there prepare snow plows for winter.

“What my shop supervisor does is ask what classes I am in, and if something comes up in the shop that is what I am learning, he tries to give it to me with another mechanic to work on,” Briseno said.

Briseno is interested in pursuing a career troubleshooting and maintaining off-highway equipment, including bulldozers, excavators and road graders.

“I would say for sure he will be a solid mechanic,” Acosta said. “I think he has a good mindset and determination.”

For more information on the Independent Equipment Dealers Association, visit https://iedagroup.com.

Registration continues for the fall semester at TSTC. For more information, go to tstc.edu.