Brian Tewes ’14: Young Alumnus Establishes Endowed Scholarship Sooner Rather than Later
Above, Brian Tewes displays his signed contract indicating that the Tewes Family Endowed Scholarship is now a reality. The 2014 graduate of the College of Business looks forward to helping ease the path to graduation for other UCF students.
With the mortgage brokerage business he started in just its fourth year, 32-year-old Brian Tewes is proving he is old enough to shape his own future, but young enough to do it differently than other thirtysomethings. While he cuts his teeth as president of Tewes Lending, the UCF graduate has chosen to help aspiring entrepreneurs take the steps needed to build their own careers.
Brian established the Tewes Family Endowed Scholarship, which provides financial support for students in UCF’s College of Business to create opportunities and pursue their ambitions. Philanthropy is destined to become a cornerstone of Tewes Lending, which Brian founded shortly after he left the safe confines of the corporate world, obtained his mortgage license and took a position as a loan officer with his father’s brokerage company before venturing out on his own.
“I was taught by my family and my peers that nothing compares to the feeling you get from giving back,” says Brian, who leads an Orlando-based team of loan officers, processors, and assistants charged with helping consumers purchase or refinance a home. “It’s amazing that when you give back, things come right back to you. It’s just how the universe works.”
That philosophy, combined with his passion for UCF and an appreciation of the support system he developed as an undergraduate, convinced Brian to make a gift to his alma mater sooner rather than later.
“I try to be the best person I can be and rub off on others. Being able to give back was an opportunity I wanted to jump on, even before I was anywhere near in an OK financial place,” says Brian, who isn’t far removed from the days when he made his mark as a campus DJ, Student Ambassador, or member of the Environmental Club, Salsa Club, and Mu Alpha Theta, the mathematics honor society.
Taking Care of Business
Whether he was performing in front of the student union as a member of Knightcast, UCF’s student-run radio station and DJ service, or storming the basketball court after a Knights victory, UCF had such a significant impact on Brian that campus involvement became a criterion for the scholarship he created.
“One of the biggest rewards that I got from UCF was being involved on campus all four years,” says Brian. “The main thing is that the scholarship goes to a student who engages in campus in some way or form – not just showing up for class and that’s it.”
Since graduating, Brian continues to do his share of “showing up” as an advocate for the homeless, tailgater at UCF football games, real estate professional in the College of Business mentorship program or frequent guest speaker who shares with students the highs and lows of starting a business. As the owner of his company, Brian tells students he relishes the ability to manage those swings and dictate his personal and professional growth.
“I have the freedom to choose which way the company should go,” says Brian, who has seen Tewes Lending grow to some 10 employees while gaining a larger influence in Central Florida and Florida Keys, where the business originated. “It’s made me force myself to have to go out and make more connections to expand my business and meet people that I would have never, ever in my life have met if I was still sitting in that same cubicle.”
