College of Southern Nevada Student Adrian Edward Bell earned the coveted Regents’ Scholar award today from the Nevada System of Higher Education’s Board of Regents.
Bell, who will graduate this year with an Associate of Business Degree and has maintained a 4.0 grade-point average, is a Nevada Promise scholar who is the first in his family to attend college.
“Adrian is an incredible student and an example of the difference that educational opportunities can mean for Southern Nevada’s students,” said CSN President Dr. Federico Zaragoza. “I congratulate him on earning the Regents’ Award, and I thank the Board of Regents for recognizing and honoring his hard work.”
Bell’s parents are his biggest inspiration. “They taught me to work hard and my father in particular instilled a sort of ‘don’t stop, don’t quit’ mentality in me that has figured prominently in my pursuit of academic success,” he said.
He explored his entrepreneurial instincts early by selling Little Debbie Honey Buns before ever leaving elementary school. Bell attended Advanced Technologies Academy for high school, and created the school’s first student store which provided the school with income to help students directly. He had spent the summer before high school in Utah learning how to operate a successful small business in a town with less than a thousand people.
Bell plans to continue his education at a four-year institution after graduation while he continues to hone his business skills. He is currently serving as a facilitator for the Nevada Promise Scholarship program at CSN, helping increase the number of Nevada residents who pursue a college education.
Each year, the Sam Lieberman Regents’ Award for Student Scholarship is given to an undergraduate student from each university and community college and the state college, as well as to one graduate student at each of the public universities in Nevada. The award includes a $5,000 cash stipend, and is based on academics, leadership, service contributions and the recipient’s potential for continued success.
In addition to the Regents’ Scholar award, the Board also honored CSN Nursing Professor Ronald Gonzalez with the Nevada Regents’ Teaching Award.