Student Spotlight
Rachel Eves
Rachel Eves is a Student Laboratory Assistant at the Desert Research Institute currently attending the University of Nevada, Reno. Rachel graduated with her Associates of Science from Truckee Meadows Community College in spring of 2024. She is working toward her Bachelors in Environmental Science with a specification in Biogeochemistry (Soil Science).
Rachel learned about the Nevada Water Resources Association (NWRA) from previous mentors as well as a friend’s recommendation last year. As a student, she plans on attending conferences and symposiums put on by NWRA to become more involved with the water resource community. She hopes to get more involved with some of the committees NWRA organizes in order to stay informed, up to date, and more plugged in with Nevada’s water resources.
Earlier this year at the 2025 NWRA Annual Conference, Rachel won second place for the Undergraduate poster competition! Her project Understanding the Litter Under the Surface of Lake Tahoe Beaches made for great conversation and contributed to the wealth of knowledge among NWRA members. Rachel also received second place for the Floodplain Management Association College Scholarship.
Rachel shares that being involved in NWRA has given her the opportunity to make meaningful connections with those working in the hydrologic field. She has been able to learn so much from attending conferences and events put on by NWRA about the local hydrologic landscape and the challenges that Nevada faces. Rachel looks forward to the continuing education and networking opportunities NWRA provides. She feels truly grateful for the opportunity to be involved with this organization.
To students, Rachel advises to take full advantage of the opportunities NWRA offers by showing up with curiosity. She says there are so many amazing, knowledgeable people involved in the organization and feels NWRA gives students so many opportunities to learn—from a friendly conversation at a networking event to prepared talks given at conferences and symposiums, the chances for personal and professional growth are all around. Rachel feels the most important thing is to be engaged in finding the knowledge that’s important to you. She advises that it’s the student’s job to show up ready to engage with professionals, especially since everyone is friendly and excited to impart their wisdom to students interested in this subject.
Rachels final advice for students is to get involved! She emphasizes the various events and resources NWRA offers to students and the opportunities for students to contribute to water-related issues. In particular, she highlights the committees focused on Nevada-based challenges wanting to hear from students – and she’s right!
Rachel believes NWRA does an amazing job of reaching out to students to help educate us as well as providing opportunities to get involved in the NWRA community. She says it might be helpful to have mentor-style meetings available for students to sign up for where they are able to speak to a professional in the field for more specified guidance toward their goals. She feels it would be valuable to assist students in learning to foster professional relationships past initial introductions and thinks it would help students want to be more involved if they were able to find meaningful connections more easily.
Keep the ideas flowing! Congratulations again to you, Rachel, for your poster award earlier this year. Your hard work into the research does not go unnoticed. NWRA is excited to hear from such an engaged student and look forward to your future contributions to Nevada’s water resources and NWRA. Good luck with your remaining courses and launching into the next phase of your career.
