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Podcast: S8 Ep. 10
Date: April 16, 2025
Title: Embry Robles builds a foundation at LU
Host: John Rollins

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JOHN ROLLINS: Welcome to the LU Moment, where we showcase all of the great things happening with ËÄ»¢Ó°ÊÓ faculty, staff, students and alumni. I'm John Rollins, associate director of community relations and public affairs here at LU, and I want to welcome you all to this week's show. My guest today is a ËÄ»¢Ó°ÊÓ senior majoring in construction management with a minor in business. He's highly involved on campus and has spearheaded construction projects in the greater community as well. It's my pleasure to welcome Embry Robles to the show today. Embry, welcome to the podcast, and thanks for joining me today on the LU Moment.

EMBRY ROBLES: John, thank you. I was very surprised when you sent an invitation, but I was also excited. So, you know, thank you for having me. It's a unique experience.

JOHN: It's funny because I remember – it's probably been a couple years now, 2023 or so –  a story coming out about you being involved with a Wendy's restaurant, and we'll get to that in a little bit. But I remember the marketing coordinator at the time, Josh, he mentioned that you might be a great podcast guest, so you had been on my radar for a little while. But then a new marketing coordinator, Josh Romero, brought you back up. So, I was like, “Okay, I’ve got to reach out,” so I think we linked up on LinkedIn, and now you're here in the studio, so glad to have you.

EMBRY: Yes sir, yeah, Josh Wilson and Josh Romero, those are both of my friends. Really good guys. You know, I met them at different events and different stuff. So yeah, great guys.

JOHN: Beyond that, you were involved with this big local project, like I said, I believe it was 2023 serving as the site superintendent for the construction of a new Wendy's restaurant. So, let's hear more about that.

EMBRY: I could talk about that restaurant all day, but here are just a couple key points. The most meaningful part for me was that it was my first project—start to finish. And what made it really impressive was that we completed it in just 90 days.

JOHN: Wow.

EMBRY: From the moment we broke ground to handing the keys over to the owner, it was a fast-paced project. We had five to six different contractors on-site at any given time. I was only 19 years old, and I had 35-year-old men asking me what to do. I just thought, “Well, we need to figure it out.”

 

JOHN: Is that typical to complete a project like that in three months?

EMBRY: A lot of those contractors asked me, “Hey man, how long is this job going to take? We're trying to schedule our other work.” Most of them guessed maybe a year and a half. And I just told them, in plain terms, “We’re doing this in 90 days.” They were like, “No way.” But we made it happen.

JOHN: Okay, 90 days. Who knew? So were you out there working with them, like you were part of the construction as well?

EMBRY: As the superintendent, I'm technically supposed to be hands-off. My role is to manage the crews, coordinate who’s on site, who has access to what space, and make sure everything is organized—like making sure plumbing goes in before concrete, things like that. But at the time, I didn’t have much experience—and honestly, I still have a lot to learn. On that job, though, I made up for it with hard work and my knowledge of the trades. A unique fact about that restaurant is the outdoor patio—I actually welded that myself. I was up at 3 a.m. with another guy, and we welded the entire patio just to stay ahead of schedule.

JOHN: How cool is that? And what a unique part to your college experience too, to say hey, I did this. Okay, remind me, is this the Wendy's on College Street?

EMBRY: Yeah, it's right next to the Layne’s that was being built at the same time we were building the Wendy's. And I actually got to be slightly involved with the Layne’s as well—helped them and gave them some unpaid consultation about their indoor remodel and kitchen equipment.

JOHN: Oh, wow—very cool. So, for anyone listening, if you want to go check it out, I know I’ve driven past it about a million times, probably on my way to Chick-fil-A or something. But yeah, it’s right next to Layne’s Chicken Fingers. Go check it out. That’s fantastic. Well, kudos to you, especially at the age of 19.

EMBRY: Thank you.

JOHN: That is impressive.

EMBRY: Thank you. It was tough but we got it done.

JOHN: For sure. So Embry, something you sent me over in an email really caught my interest—the way you worded this. I asked you why you chose LU, and you said it was because it was a personality match over other universities. So, tell me what you mean by that. I'm very intrigued to hear more.

EMBRY: Yes, sir. So, where I grew up kind of backs into all of that. I grew up in Alvin, Texas, and it can be a very country area—or, you know, it’s 30 minutes south of Houston, so it can also have kind of a ghetto culture or environment. It’s not the worst place, but it just has that kind of mannerism. And just a few people from Alvin had gone to Lamar, so I had kind of seen their experience. The two other universities I was considering were A&M and—well, not UT—Texas Tech. Texas Tech was a bit far out, and their degree plan didn’t exactly match what I wanted to do with my career. Then with A&M, I didn’t make the Top 10% until the last nine weeks of high school. Once I did, they sent me the acceptance letter right after. But I was like, “Nah.” Lamar had texted me straight off the bat—like a day after I applied. So I was like, “You know what? I’m going to go with Lamar,” and I saw it through. And I can say that I’ve enjoyed my time here—not just because of the personality match, but also the environment on campus. I feel like it’s a gritty campus—you could say you have to work here. But it’s also a tight-knit environment. Then, you know, on the logistics and numbers side of things—the degree was cheaper. And I really enjoyed the student-to-teacher ratio. I liked that Lamar, when I applied, was classified as a teaching university, while A&M was a research university. Professors knew my name when I was a freshman. It wasn’t 300 people in a class where they wouldn’t know my name until I was a senior or something. Yeah, that’s what I have to say.

JOHN: Well, you know, every time I have students on the podcast, I feel like that topic always comes up—the tight-knit community feel and easy access to professors. It's almost like having built-in mentors, which you might not have access to at some of these larger universities. So, I love that y'all bring that up because it really sets Lamar apart.

EMBRY: It does, it truly does. Yeah, you wouldn't have that at other universities, but we do. We call it our Cardinal Village and Cardinal Community, and I think that's in place for a reason because that's really how it is.

JOHN: You recently received a Leadership Award in Construction Management. Could you tell us a little more about that?

EMBRY: Yes, so this year is the first time that award has been given out. It was also awarded to two other individuals in our program, Kylie Moore and Lorena Jakes. They’re starting their own organizations within the CM program, which is awesome. It’s great to see that culture growing, but it wasn’t always like that. When I was a freshman, we had the president of the organization, Gavin Zummo, and he was doing his best, but sometimes we’d have guest speakers, and it was disheartening to see only five or 15 people show up, especially when the speaker was an industry professional, sometimes even a president or CEO of a company. It felt like we were wasting their time or giving a bad impression. By sophomore year, the organization had completely died down. But in junior year, we started bringing it back up, and by senior year, we went from having meetings with five to 15 people to regular meetings with 40-plus people, even without guest speakers.

JOHN: Wow, what a turnaround.

EMBRY: I would say we have a 'good problem' now—we run out of chairs, and people have to stand in the back.

JOHN: That’s the best problem to have, right?

EMBRY: It gets me excited, and I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished. There’s an organization in Beaumont called AGC (Associated General Contractors), a national organization with a Southeast Texas chapter. They’ve taken us in since the CM program started. We used to go to their events, and maybe two people would show up to volunteer. Now, when they have a golf tournament or washer tournament, we can bring 20 students. It gets the community excited, the employers excited, and it’s a great way to get involved. For example, we were part of the LU Big Event, where we went to the Tugboat Island Park for a volunteer project. We helped with the final stages of a job site cleanup, and we had guys on skid steers using tools and doing some construction work while volunteering.

JOHN: Y’all were probably the volunteers they were looking for, right?

EMBRY: Yeah, exactly. They were like, “Man, if y’all stay all day, I’ll buy you dinner, I’ll do everything to keep you here.” So yeah, a big turnaround in our organization. It’s great to see. The numbers have jumped from 20 members to 70, and 50 of those are very active members. It’s a huge turnaround for the program, and it’s only going to keep growing.

JOHN: Yeah, that's fantastic. So, do y'all have plans to maybe go back to bringing in some of these speakers now that you've got your built-in crowd?

EMBRY: Definitely. So, I met with the CM program board—not the senior state board, but the board made up of presidents and CEOs who invest in the program for our students. They’re the ones who provide funding and sponsorships, and they’ve got a vision for what they want to see from the program. I was able to sneak into a meeting with them and talk about the program. They were excited, very excited. They made a lot of connections and are looking forward to coming back this semester and next semester. It’s fantastic.

JOHN: Okay, so since we're on the Lamar involvement kind of train here, let's keep going. What else are you involved with on campus? I know you sent me quite a list, and so instead of me listing it off, I want to hear from you. What all do you partake in here on our campus?

EMBRY: So, I’m going to try my best to remember this list and say it in chronological order. Starting from freshman year, we have the ËÄ»¢Ó°ÊÓ Fitness Club, or LUFC. The next organization is Man Up, which is a gentlemen's organization. We started out by teaching young men how to tie ties, change tires, and some basic life skills—just helping them step up in life. We also focus on volunteering on campus, and that organization has grown a lot since I was a freshman. Next, we have Chi Alpha, which is a student Christian organization, and then Helping Hands, a volunteering organization here on campus. Relentless is another student Christian organization. Caleb Buse, who was previously on this episode, started the Future Entrepreneurs Organization (FEO) a few years back, and I was happy to be a part of that and support him in that venture. Then, we have CAFE, the Catholic Adult Faith Experience. Last, but definitely not least, is the Construction Management Student Association.

JOHN: So needless to say, you're one of our busier Cardinals.

EMBRY: I’ll take that, thank you. And one thing I wanted to add about my involvement here at Lamar is that when I was 17 years old, before coming to Lamar, I had a mentor tell me that the greatest thing you can do is something greater than yourself. It was perfectly timed—graduating high school and coming to Lamar, and he told me that. I’ve definitely kept that mindset throughout college, and it’s a quote I had to include here.

JOHN: That's a good one. That's really good. You also mentioned in an email that your brother graduated from A&M with a civil engineering degree and has been a huge mentor to you. Who are some mentors at Lamar? Are there any here on campus that come to mind?

EMBRY: I think it was sophomore year when Dr. Titus started seeing me at a lot of events and different organizations. I was at an event with Man Up, and he approached me and said, “Hey, man, I see you, and I like what you're doing. I like seeing a young man doing things, we're going to keep this going.” So, throughout my junior year and beyond, he continued to support us, give us advice from his own experiences, and share some inside information about what the campus was facing and how we should respond.

JOHN: Yeah, Dr. Titus is a great example. He's really good at spotting those qualities in people. He'll notice things like, “Hey, I see you volunteering. I see you're consistent, you're on all these committees, you're part of these groups on campus.” And he's really good about letting you know, too. I can't quite remember the exact quote, but I saw something recently that said, “If you see something in somebody, let them know.” I feel like Dr. Titus really lives that out.

EMBRY: That is exactly something I want to bring up later, and if it's alright, I'll bring it up now.

JOHN: Bring it up now.

EMBRY: Yeah. So, I also want to give an honorable mention to Paul Howell, who has been a mentor to me and provided a lot of insight and a different perspective on life. He taught me something about what he calls “lollipop moments” and showed me a video on it. Paul Howell and Dr. Titus both do this. A lollipop moment is about making sure the little things are communicated. Showing appreciation through a lollipop moment can emphasize how powerful they are. So, that’s something Dr. Titus or Paul Howell will do—they’ll see somebody, acknowledge it, support them, and it just makes them feel more powerful, and they feed off of that.

JOHN: That’s fantastic. I've never heard that before, but I really like it. So, tell me this: I know you mentioned you’d like to potentially offer some advice to current or future LU students. What would you tell them?

EMBRY: So just a couple of things I’ve thought about. I would like to say that the degree is worth it. Come to school, come try—it’s worth it. A lot of people from Beaumont would laugh at this because they call Beaumont “Big Money Beaumont,” right? Leading up to this point, there’s a quote I really enjoy, and it says, “An investment in education pays the best interest,” from Benjamin Franklin, who’s on the $100 bill. So, big money has to appreciate that. There you go. The degree is definitely worth it, and that’s something I want to emphasize. Another thing is just to be optimistic about your experience here. Not everything’s going to be ideal. You know, the glass is half full, right? So just be optimistic about things. But also, sometimes a perfect, ideal situation might not even be the best. If there is some adversity on campus, don’t run from it. And since we’ve been quoting all day, here’s another one: “Adversity introduces one to themselves.” I believe that was Albert Einstein. So, I would like to say that if there’s adversity on campus—whether it’s the living situation in the dorms that you don’t like, or just challenges with school—learn from all of that. Maybe school is hard when you’re a freshman, but by senior year, you’ll see how much easier it gets. There’s just a lot of life skills and things you can learn from the adversity you face being out in a college environment.

JOHN: Great advice. We certainly appreciate it, especially coming from a current student. So, I want to ask you this before we wrap up, when do you graduate?

EMBRY: Here in May. So here soon – May ’25.

JOHN: Oh, I’m glad I had you in before you go off into the world to do great things. So, Embry, thank you so much for joining me today on the LU Moment to share your story, and huge congratulations on your upcoming graduation.

EMBRY: Thank you, and thank you for having me.

JOHN: Of course! As we wrap up another episode, please make sure to search for LU Moment wherever you get your podcasts to keep up with the events, activities, programs, and people right here at ËÄ»¢Ó°ÊÓ. Don’t forget to follow us on our socials so you can see for yourself all the great things happening at LU. This is John Rollins, your host. Thank you for listening, and we’ll talk to you next time