BEND, Ore. — Two local high school students have earned highly competitive scholarships through the U.S. Navy’s Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC) program, securing a combined award valued at $420,000 each.
Matias Gomez, a senior at Summit High School, and Hailee Rainwater from Mountain View High School, were both named recipients of the NROTC scholarships, which cover full tuition and fees, provide a monthly stipend, and include additional benefits such as book allowances and summer training cruises.
Rainwater expressed her excitement about the scholarship, saying, “I felt so special getting that check because it was just like something I’ve never experienced before. I was just like, this giant check is for me.”
The scholarship is awarded to only 1,900 students nationally each year, making it a rare and prestigious honor. Rainwater shared that she and her mother had researched the scholarship and were amazed by how few are selected. “So I was really excited when I did,” she said.
Gomez, who plans to attend Virginia Military Institute, described the scholarship as a major relief from financial stress. “I was happy for sure. It was a lot of stress taken away because it’s college paid for, basically,” he said. Gomez believes he might be one of the first in Central Oregon to receive the NROTC scholarship, adding to his sense of pride.
Both Gomez and Rainwater will be pursuing degrees in nuclear engineering, preparing for careers with the Navy after college. “I can either be working on submarines, nuclear submarines or aircraft carriers as a nuclear engineer,” Gomez explained. “That’s something I can’t choose — it’s something you have to interview for. They say wherever you want to be. Either way, on both of them, I think the job is going to be really cool.”
Rainwater, who will attend the University of Hawaii, reflected on how the scholarship has made her dreams attainable. “I am really appreciative of the scholarship because if I didn’t get the scholarship, I would not have been able to go to Hawaii and live out my Hawaiian dreams,” she said.
Upon graduation, both students will fulfill service commitments in the U.S. Navy, embarking on promising military and engineering careers.
