When Hannah Moyles graduated from Wake Forest-Rolesville High School, she did what many valedictorians do: She headed off to a university – in Hannah’s case, Duke University. She chose neuroscience as her major, but something was missing. She didn’t enjoy it as she had hoped she would. So, after two years, she left Duke and enrolled at Wake Tech to pursue her true passion: cooking!

“It just wasn’t for me,” she says. “I could never see myself in a career in that field.”

Hannah had always loved to cook and often made dinner for her family; at some point, she realized it might just be her calling. She enrolled in Wake Tech’s Culinary Arts program and says, “It was the best decision I’ve ever made. There is never a day that I dread going to school. I look forward to coming to class now. That’s the difference!”

Many of Hannah’s credits from Duke transferred to Wake Tech. Her academic achievements and her leadership and community service activities helped her earn the title of 2016 Scott Scholar. As such, she receives up to $3,500 to cover tuition, fees and books for the year along with a laptop computer, a summer internship placement, a senior-level administrator to serve as a mentor, and regular one-on-one sessions with President Scott.

“I'm extremely honored to be chosen as the Scott Scholar,” says Hannah, “and very thankful for this opportunity. I'm very excited to represent Wake Tech and to be able to work with college faculty and Dr. Scott throughout the year.”

Hannah plans to make the most of her leadership and academic opportunities at Wake Tech. In addition to Culinary Arts, she’s pursuing degrees in Baking and Pastry Arts and in Hospitality Management. “I want to do it all!” Hannah says – and no doubt, she will.