Pahrump Valley High seniors honored at scholarship ceremony

Pahrump Valley High School seniors were recognized Wednesday, May 27, as families, staff members and community supporters filled the school’s annual Senior Awards Night and Scholarship Ceremony to celebrate the Class of 2026.

The evening centered on more than scholarship dollars alone. Seniors received graduation cords and honors stoles that marked achievement in academics, extracurricular activities, leadership, community service and participation in school organizations and programs, turning the ceremony into a public acknowledgment of work that often stretches across all four years of high school.

At Pahrump Valley High, that recognition carries added weight. The school at 501 E. Calvada Blvd. serves 1,333 students in grades 9-12, and the Nevada Accountability Portal lists the campus with an 89% graduation rate for 2024-25. Principal Desiree Veloz leads a campus that sits at the center of one of Pahrump’s biggest annual milestones, with the Class of 2026 graduation ceremony scheduled for Friday, May 29, and expected to draw hundreds.

The awards night also pointed to what comes after graduation. For many seniors, the cords and stoles reflected a path toward college, work, the trades, military service or another postsecondary track, with teachers, counselors, local organizations and private donors all helping to open those doors before diplomas are handed out.

Last year’s ceremony showed how broad that support can be. The Scholar Athlete Awards, funded by Double M Construction, went to Sasha Strain and Antonio Veloz, while the Outstanding Senior Athlete Awards, supported by the Wulfenstein Family Scholarship, were presented to Sasha Strain and Matthew Lopez. The AngloGold Ashanti NA scholarships, originally planned for two recipients, expanded to five because of the strength of the applicant pool.

That 2025 program also included the Death Valley 49ers scholarship, Southern Nye County Conservation District award, Rotary Club of Pahrump scholarships, Desert View Hospital Community Scholarship, Kinthiseng Family Scholarship Fund, and Floyd Elementary Student Council scholarships. Michael Keyes received the largest Desert View Hospital Community Scholarship award, $2,000, underscoring how local institutions and families continued to invest in the students leaving PVHS for their next step.

For Pahrump, the ceremony served as a reminder that graduation season is built on community backing as much as student effort. At PVHS, the celebration was not just about what seniors had already done, but about how Nye County was helping prepare them for what comes next.