Millennium scholars praise Guinn for creating education program
By Lenita Powers, Reno Gazette-Journal
When Jared Townsend wrote the thesis for his doctorate in biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of California, Davis last month, he gave Gov. Kenny Guinn credit for much of his success in college.
“I never met Gov. Guinn, but I always felt I definitely owed something to him,” said Townsend, who now works at Sierra Sciences, a Sparks biotechnology company researching ways to halt and reverse the effects of aging.
Townsend, a Las Vegas native, said his siblings never graduated from high school. But he became the first in his family to graduate from college by earning a combined bachelor’s and master’s degree from the University of Nevada, Reno in 2005, thanks to the Millennium Scholarship.
Established in 2000, the program provides $10,000 to academically qualified Nevada high school graduates to attend an in-state college or university.