Local high school graduate receives scholarship for UNR

One hard-working Pahrump Valley High School graduate’s work paid off when one of the world’s largest fast food chains awarded him a scholarship to continue his education.

Derek Moore received $1,500 from the Ronald McDonald House Charities, which he will use toward his education as he’s set to begin attending classes at the University of Nevada, Reno at the end of the month.

Moore graduated first in his class, boasting a 4.76 GPA and took part in a multitude of extracurricular activities, ranging from the National Honors Society and the science club to being a member of the varsity golf team. “When I got it, I was excited,” Moore said. “It’s money that is going to help me through school.”

Moore learned about the scholarship in his junior year when he saw a few of the seniors at PVHS receiving the award and figured it would be worthwhile to apply for the scholarship himself during his senior year.

“It was fairly easy to apply. I just went online and filled out the information like volunteer hours and grades, those kinds of things,” he said. “Then there were four short essays.”

Moore volunteers his time with various efforts, including being a referee with AYSO and donating his time at the Path of Hope Food Bank.

Being interested in science as long as he can remember, Moore will focus on the subject while attending UNR. “I choose to go to UNR because, first of all, it’s in state, so it lowers tuition and they also have a really strong science program, which is definitely what I’m interested in going into,” he said. “I’m planning on working in chemistry, physics or maybe even medicine, so it’s a strong school for those subjects.

“I like understanding what’s going around me, so science is a way to understand the world we live in.”

After he graduates from UNR, Moore said, he wants to be in scientific research in some capacity.

Aside from the scholarship from the Ronald McDonald Charity, Moore has other financial aid will help with the financial burden going to college presents.

“I have the millennial scholarship… I also have some from various organizations in town like the Kiwanis Club, from the Rotary Club and then UNR itself is giving me some scholarship money,” he said. “I’ll be pretty good.”

Moving away a few hundred miles to the north, Moore said initially it might be awkward to be away from home, but he’s ready for a change.

“At first it might be a shock, I mean I have never been away from home for so long,” he said. “I do already know a few people that are up there, so it will be good once I get used to it.”

The RMHC scholarship programs are designed to provide financial assistance to eligible graduating high school seniors who face limited access to educational and career opportunities. Since 1999, the RMHC Scholarship Program has awarded more than $3.8 million to students from Clark and Nye counties in Nevada.

Contact reporter Mick Akers at makers@pvtimes.com. Follow @mickakers on Twitter.