John Ascuaga, president and founder of John Ascuaga’s Nugget, is living proof that education and hard work will take you far in life. Ascuaga opened the Nugget with only a 60 seat coffee shop and a handful of slot machines in 1955. Today the Nugget boasts more than 1,500 hotel rooms, eight restaurants, 110,000 square feet of meeting space, more than 1,100 slot machines plus endless gaming options.
Today, Ascuaga and his daughter and CEO, Michonne, his son and COO Stephen and the rest of the Nugget Scholarship Committee will award 25 local student scholarships to help them obtain a college education and become the future of our community.
The Nugget Scholarship program began in 1956 and has helped 675 students by contributing more than $625,000 in educational funding. “Students need these scholarship programs now more than ever,” Ascuaga said. “Our scholarship program has a great success rate because of the personal input we give.” Ascuaga personally reads every application and decides on the recipients with the input of a small committee.
The 2012 recipients of the Nugget Scholarship are:
McKenzie Comba, Carson High School; LaurelAnne Ward, Churchill Co. High School; Nicholas Pavone, Damonte High School; Veronica Scott, Dayton High School; Sedona Schat, Douglas High School; William Marshall, Eureka Co. High School; Rose Alauria, Fernley High School; Sean McGinley, Galena High School; Diana Tabares-Avila, Hug High School; Brandon Eastman, Lowry High School; Terisay Abdouljalil, McQueen High School; Tasha Vazques, McQueen High School; Maddison Jaureguito, Manogue High School; Kianna Thomas, North Valleys High School; Claudia Dennler, Pershing Co. High School; Michael Lee, Reed High School; Nicholas Aparcio, Reed High School; Juan Ponce de Leon, Reno High School ; Sage Pommerening, Smith Valley High School; Shane Lawson, Spanish Springs High School; Jose Rodarte, Sparks High School; Kurt Lynch, Virginia City High School; Lucia Sanchez, Wooster High School; Tyler Peeples, Yerington High School and Rosa Martinez, TMCC High School.
