Bryton Legree, FAMU King of Orange and Green 2017-2018 (middle)
Photo courtesy of Bryton Legree
Bryton Legree was at the peak of the social pyramid during his time at Florida A&M. He served as Mr. King of Orange and Green during the 2017-2018 academic school year.
In the summer of 2018, he published a tweet claiming that he wouldn't have attended FAMU if he’d received a scholarship offer from a better school.
His tweet received backlash from the FAMU National Alumni Association, students and former royal court members. He lost the majority of his support from the campus and friends after the one mistake.
In an effort to do right by the university, he offered to relinquish his title to his runner-up.
Most of his reign as king of Orange and Green, he was trying to rekindle the relationship that he lost sight of, along with what was important to him. He focused solely on his involvement instead of academics.
His decision to rekindle relationships played a role in his delayed his graduation to summer 2018.
Legree describes his time as King of Orange and Green as pivotal because of the ups and downs of his reign.
“My time as King of Orange and Green was a great and humbling experience,” said Legree. “It was a pivotal moment that shaped my college career. In the blink of a tweet, I lost a lot of support from friends and from the university. A lot of that support led to emotional and mental dispair that led to shortcomings in my grades.”
Despite the misunderstanding, Legree’s legacy is defined by that one mistake. Andre Bradley, a close friend of Legree’s, believes his friend’s legacy at FAMU is felt through his service.
“Bryton showed me the true meaning of serving my community,” said Bradley. “Regardless of his tweet, I think his reign showed that he cared for the whole student body.”
Yet, his grade point average affected him in his job search.
According to Legree, he had the potential to be a better student, but he only produced C’s on his transcript. The effect of his grade point average was the reason for him not securing an internship with a Fortune 500 company.
Regardless of his campus involvement, his current job search is limited because of employers questioning his work experience.
“If I could tell my younger self, go on different internships,” said Legree. “Ultimately, I’d try to find a internship that would lead me into the career path I want.”