So, who am I?

I’m Levi Briggs, currently located in Denton, Texas, where I live with my fiancé and our two cats. I graduated from the University of North Texas in December 2023 with a Bachelors in Geographic Information Systems and Computer Science. I have a variety of hobbies and interests, including but not limited to music, video games, cooking, hiking, houseplants and gardening, and photography. Growing up, I was active in Boy Scouts, achieving the rank of Eagle Scout in 2019. I was also very involved in marching band throughout high school and college, where I was in the front ensemble and played numerous percussion instruments over the years. Nowadays, in my free time you’ll probably find me playing Minecraft, watching TV shows, or on a rare occasion, reading.

How did I get into GIS?

I’ve always had a love for maps. When I was little, I would stare at my parent’s road atlases and regional maps from the 80s for hours. On family trips I was usually the ‘map person’. One of my favorite activities in Scouts was orienteering. At the same time, I’ve also had a passion for computers and technology. In high school I built servers so I could play video games with friends. I took classes on coding and computer repair, and taught myself how to build circuits on breadboards. In college marching band, I was even an audio technician for a year. However, when it came time to go to college I wasn’t really sure what I wanted to do with my life, but because of my background with technology I chose to study Information Technology. I enrolled in UNT’s IT program, and landed a part time job at the IT help desk for UNT’s College of Music. A few years into it though, I eventually became burnt out and wanted something more. On a whim, I signed up for an intro to GIS class (after googling ‘what is GIS?’). I immediately fell in love, and promptly changed majors the next semester. The stars aligned, and I was able to graduate with honors in 3 1/2 years, and within two months of graduation, obtain a job where I can use the tools and skills I love on a daily basis. Even though I’m out of school now, I’m always learning and adapting and implementing new ideas. My life-long passions allow me to improve the lives of those around me, in always changing, but always exciting ways, and I couldn’t be happier.