Alec Briggs’ journey to Alfred University, where he is a first-year electrical engineering major, began a decade ago, when he was a third-grader at nearby Canaseraga Central School.
Alec Briggs, first-year electrical engineering major, outside McMahon Engineering Building.
Alec is the son of Lowell and Kristi Briggs of South Dansville, NY. His mother, Kristi, is a computer teacher and education technology specialist at the Canaseraga Central, where she also serves as coach for the robotics club. In 2015, she brought a group of her students to Alfred University to take part in a robotics program led by Xingwu Wang, professor of electrical engineering. Because the class was after school hours, she brought a young Alec with her. Wang, Alec recalled, gave him a tool box containing small components he could put together.
“It was something I could fiddle with to keep me occupied,” he said. “I think that kind of got the ball rolling with me coming to Alfred.”
Alec developed an interest in robotics, eventually joining the robotics club at Canaseraga. He participated in it throughout high school, taking part in state, national and world VEX robotics competitions.
“That’s what got me into engineering,” Alec said, noting that Alfred University’s proximity to home, and the experience he had there as a youngster, helped draw him to Alfred.
Alec Briggs is shown here working on a robot he entered in the VEX Robotics world championship competition during his senior year at Canaseraga Central School. Alec is a first-year electrical engineering major at Alfred University.
Alec aspires to be a hardware engineer, researching, designing and building computer hardware. He hopes to add a minor in materials science or ceramic engineering to help him along his educational and career paths. “I want to focus on electro-ceramics,” which he said can be applied to work as a hardware engineer.
He said he was also influenced in his chosen career path by a cousin, David Briggs, an Alfred University alumnus who earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering in 1996. He is a hardware engineer who ran his own business and now serves as strategic sales executive for Group CBS, a Denton, TX-based provider of complete electric power system life cycle solutions for the power distribution industry.
Alec has enjoyed his brief time at Alfred, noting that he has developed “a good friend group” while immersing himself in a number of activities. He is a member of the men’s rugby team, despite having never played the sport before coming to Alfred. “Chevy got me into it,” he said, referring to Chevy Adriaans, a junior electrical engineering major and member of the rugby team, who served as Alec’s tour guide when he visited campus.
His favorite class thus far is the Fundamentals of Dance course taught by Air Law. He attributes his wide range of interests to Emilie Carney, former assistant dean of the Inamori School of Engineering who served as his BOCES New Visions engineering instructor, who encouraged him to broaden his horizon by getting involved in hobbies.
