Jacob McMillan earned top honors in the Pre-veterinary Medicine Degree Tract May 6th at the annual Agriculture Department Awards making him the second Newcastle High School alumni to have earned this honor. 2018 NHS graduate Kelsey Shields also earned The Outstanding Senior in Pre-Veterinary Medicine Award at the Paul Engler College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences at West Texas A&M University in 2022.
Both students were top achieving students while at NHS, participating in FFA competitions, sports, OAP, and Academic UIL earning trips to Regional and State contests. Shields was ranked first in her class in 2018 and McMillan ranked second in 2020. These former students credit the excellent academic rigor and the opportunity to be involved in many extracurricular activities for their ability to thrive at the collegiate level.
The Pre-Veterinary Degree tract is a demanding program. Students are expected to maintain excellent grade point averages, be involved in activities, and earn clinical hours with a veterinarian. Shields worked with local veterinarians in Canyon. She was a member of the Rogers Leadership and Education Development Program, The Pre-Vet Club, Block and Bridle Club, just to name a few. She was even able to study veterinary medicine abroad in South Africa. She earned many honors as top student and outstanding leader along the way to her ultimate goal of attending Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine - VERO. McMillan worked with veterinarians in Hereford and Portales, New Mexico, and also participated in many other college programs including being a member of the International Champion WTAMU Meat Judging Team in Australia, a member of the WTAMU Livestock judging team, and other collegiate judging teams. He was a member of the Pre-Vet Club, and a founding member of the Alpha Gamma Rho Fraternity at WTAMU, serving as Vice President of Finance. After graduation, McMillan will continue his passion for the meat animal industry as a Graduate Research Assistant while pursuing a Masters in Animal Science, Meat Science at Texas Tech.
It is exciting to know that these two exceptional alumni will appear on a plaque in the Agriculture College, two years apart, representing Newcastle ISD. We are proud of these two alumni and their accomplishments and the role NHS played in laying the foundation for their future successes.
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