LeTourneau University Development

10/29/2026

At LeTourneau, we know the value of student presentations, especially in the business department.

This first photo depicts three business students standing at the front of the class for their formal presentation in 1997. The second photo features a similar sight- a business class group presentation.

The backdrop of the first picture is that of a normal classroom, whereas the second picture is taken in the Center for Free Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Leadership located in Longview Hall and specifically created for upper level business courses. In the difference in backdrop alone, one can visibly see the intentional development and growth in one department over the past 30 years.

While they are different in this way, the passion for excellence, professionalism, and dedication are clearly found in both. While the facade and background may have changed, the goals and values have not. While LeTourneau may look different from year to year, it is still a home, a community, and a faith-based university to and for all who have come and will come to LeTourneau.

While change may abound, the heart and purpose remains the same.

10/28/2026

At LeTourneau, we pride ourselves in being able to offer hands-on premier lab experiences and environments for our students.

As we watch the technological world develop at a rapid speed, we are strategically moving and growing so that we can continue to provide state-of-the-art labs, which prepare our students for the developing industries they will be graduating into. This is one priority of our Build With Purpose Campaign.

One way we will be executing this is through our new Burks Center. Within this building will be 25+ premier laboratory spaces across multiple disciplines, thus serving multiple industries. There will be an Entrepreneurship Lab, Finance Trading Lab, Mixed Reality Simulation Lab, and a Cyber lab, just to name a few.

Through these labs, we plan to develop students with the skills, knowledge, and experience they need for the industries they will be entering. Additionally, through the presence of the many subjects of study located within one building, we hope to foster faith, innovation, and partnerships across disciplines.

This space will do more than house a few new classrooms. This space will be home to departments, community forming environments, and laboratory spaces that develop and grow our students to continue to be the most well-rounded, innovative, and skilled students we can produce. This is how we Build With Purpose.

Learn more about our Build With Purpose campaign here: https://www.letu.edu/development/build/index.html

10/27/2026

Look at that steel!

More and more beams are being added as floors take shape. This building will be amazing!

We can’t wait to see it completed and filled with students learning, creating, and gaining hands-on experience in a premier new space.

10/24/2026

10/23/2026

In 1979–1981, LeTourneau’s growing enrollment was beginning to outpace available student housing. The university needed new residence halls—and the Mabee Foundation provided an opportunity that would help make that possible. Three of them!

The foundation pledged funding for one new dorm, provided LeTourneau could raise the money for two more.

LeTourneau accepted the challenge.

Friends in Pennsylvania, then one of the leading states sending students to LETU, began raising support for what would become Pennsylvania Hall. At the same time, friends of Evelyn LeTourneau rallied around the idea of a residence hall honoring the university’s co-founder as her 80th birthday approached.

As the Mabee Foundation’s deadline neared, however, LeTourneau was still short of the amount needed. The university shared its progress with the foundation and requested a six-month extension. It was granted—and before those six months were over, the remaining funds had been raised.

The result was three new residence halls: Mabee Hall, Pennsylvania Hall, and Evelyn LeTourneau Hall—better known today as Mabee, Penn, and ELH, or collectively, the Trinities.

From the Mabee Foundation’s challenge, to friends in Pennsylvania, to those who wanted to honor Evelyn LeTourneau, the generosity of many made these residence halls possible.

Stories like this have helped shape LeTourneau for generations—and remind us that building with purpose has deep roots here.

10/22/2026

What was once the science building when it was built in 1965 is now the education building for LeTourneau students of today. One building, home to two very different subjects and courses.

For over twenty years, as the Science Building, it was home to lab spaces, chemicals, and equipment. Now, as the Education Building, it is home to the School of Education on the second floor and the Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity on the first floor.

At LeTourneau, we see the value in and the possibilities of what we have been given. Thus, we strive to steward these resources well for God's glory. As we do so, change is inevitable. The inside and outside might change, but the vision remains.

While the years may have gone on and the times seemed to change, the heart of LeTourneau is the same.

10/21/2026

At LeTourneau, our goal is to cultivate and provide a uniquely Christian education and experience for our students, faculty, and staff.

Striving to protect our uniquely Christian identity and offerings is one of the priorities of our Build with Purpose Campaign. We seek to do this by intentionally integrating faith into all aspects of life and education at LeTourneau and through choosing staff and faculty who are aligned with our mission and identity.

Our objective in protecting our identity is not to merely keep it the same. Rather, our objective is to anchor and deepen it in this place.

If we were to do otherwise, we would give up who we are as a university. We would give up R.G.'s original vision for LeTourneau. To do otherwise is not on the table.

Help us to protect, maintain, and deepen our uniquely Christian identity by supporting our Build with Purpose Campaign here: https://www.letu.edu/development/build/index.html

10/20/2026

Abbott Aviation Center is rising!

Structural steel continues to rise across the new hangar addition, with rafters and purlins being installed and the mezzanine structure now underway. Elevator masonry is also progressing, and crews have completed piers and spread footers for the Outdoor Learning Lab.

Over the next few weeks, crews will begin installing exterior wall panels, hangar door tracks, entrance steel, and mezzanine decking—bringing even more visible definition to the expanded facility.

With each new beam, wall, and structural element, we're getting closer to expanded spaces where LeTourneau Aviation students will gain hands-on training and prepare for their future.

Thank you to everyone whose generosity is helping make this next chapter for LeTourneau Aviation possible.

10/16/2026

Oftentimes, for growth there must be change.

In 1981, LeTourneau witnessed this firsthand as its historic red water tower was demolished to make way for new buildings.

Students of that day mourned their water tower and all the traditions connected to it. Yet, even then, they knew that this loss was making room for something new.

Today, it is hard to pinpoint where this tower once stood, however, it was likely near where the Trinity Dorms and the Quads are now. The tower's removal made way for the creation of new homes and communities for students to live, learn, and flourish within!

Students of today join those of the past as they look toward that same future with the Burks Center now in construction!

This red water tower, along with the many other buildings that have made way for new campus growth, are all reminders of LeTourneau's dedication to building with purpose.

10/15/2026

Over half a century of change and yet LeTourneau is still the place where Christian artists come and praise the Lord.

In 1975, LeTourneau hosted two Bob Cull concerts, in which he performed "love songs to the Lord." His concerts blessed the students through his music and ministry. Bob Cull was a former member of the band Love Song, which was influential in the formation of the Jesus Movement music and contemporary Christian music.

Now, in 2026, just a few weekends ago, Crowder performed in LeTourneau's Belcher Center, blessing and uplifting students and Longview residents alike through his music!

The years may have changed, but LeTourneau is still the place that hosts Christian artists who come to praise the Lord!

What a joy it is to know that the Lord continues to be proclaimed in this place!