Musical Miracles

Apr 2019

Photo by Scott Winterton, Deseret News

As Henrique Souza Santos neared the end of his program at LDSBC, his plans suddenly changed because of a car accident. “I was accepted into the organ performance program at the U, and I had begun taking the preparatory class and received a scholarship,” says Henrique. After the accident, Henrique had to drop the class at the U so he could pay for medical expenses, but he was able to stay enrolled at LDSBC to finish his degree. “Thank goodness I’d received the Pathway Scholarship, or I would’ve had to drop out of school completely,” he says. “It’s saving my life because I wouldn’t have had money to pay for tuition.”

After BYU-Pathway Worldwide was created in 2018, LDS Business College president Bruce C. Kusch felt strongly that there was a place within the college for PathwayConnect graduates. To help make attending LDSBC possible for more students, he created the LDSBC Pathway Scholarship Fund to assist students who have completed the PathwayConnect program in the United States. Henrique is one such student. He still plans to attend the University of Utah after graduating from LDS Business College with an associate’s degree in social media marketing.

With scholarship funds made available by generous donors, not only can students like Henrique continue to attend LDS Business College, but they can attend for the same cost per credit they paid while attending BYU-Pathway Worldwide. This is typically about a 50 percent savings and has made higher education available to students who previously couldn’t afford the cost of attendance.

The number of students using the Pathway Scholarship has grown from seven in the first semester it was offered to currently 62. President Kusch expects the number of students blessed by this scholarship to continue to grow as more people learn about its availability.

Henrique is so grateful for the opportunity he has to attend LDS Business College, because where he came from in Brazil, he had no hope for a better future through education. He plays the organ for college devotionals as well as for the BC Choir. “I play piano for [Brother Decker’s] classes and also the two choirs at school, the institute choir for everyone, and the auditioning choir,” says Henrique. “I also work for [Brother Decker] in the library recording all the music. I make rehearsal tracks for him, and right now I’m also doing some social media campaigns for the choir. I’m creating all the accounts and building campaigns.”

As if that wasn’t enough to keep Henrique busy, he is also finishing an internship for the BC Lions Social Media Marketing Agency. “It’s been fantastic to work with real clients and see that I actually know what I’m doing, as I’m able to apply all the knowledge I’m learning at school,” he says. “This is my fourth semester working at the agency, but this time it’s counting as an internship, so I’m actually writing papers and stuff for the class credit. It’s been fantastic and a lot of fun to learn while I’m doing real work. The knowledge and experience I’m gaining has been amazing and has really prepared me for my future.”