The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

DAYTON – Matthew Warren is an 18-year-old with a goal, one he has worked hard to realize and is on the brink of reaching. This Dayton High senior hopes to work someday as an agricultural commodities trader with an emphasis in Chinese language and business.

"I see a lot of opportunity in studying Chinese," he said. "China is a developing country that has the largest market in the world yet still has a lot of third-world conditions waiting to be improved."

Warren wants to study international business and finance at the University of South Carolina. This school has an International Business and Chinese Enterprise program, which would allow him to study Mandarin Chinese for two summers in Hong Kong and Beijing while earning his bachelor's degree.

"No matter what happens with the business side of things," he said, "Chinese is a difficult language, and knowing Chinese would allow me to support myself."

But having a plan is one thing; seeing it come to fruition is another. Warren, however, is not a person to stand idly by and wait for opportunities to come knocking. He is a young man of action; and his hard work is beginning to pay off.

This life-long Bulldog has applied for a host of scholarships – and with his 4.0 GPA and involvement in everything from Boy Scouts, Knowledge Bowl and FBLA to soccer, basketball, track and skiing – it's no surprise that he's won many.

He's a 2015 wheat ambassador for Washington wheat farmers and recently won a $2,500 scholarship for his speech on the growing disparity between youth in agricultural communities and their urban counterparts.

As the son of Bill and Kristine Warren, well-known local farmers and owners of Warren Orchards on North Touchet Road, it's no surprise that Warren has an interest in agriculture.

He has also been awarded a Samsung American Legion Scholarship for $1,100. This scholarship is awarded to students who maintain high grades, are involved in their schools and communities, and have a family member who served on active duty during wartime. Warren's grandfather served in World War II.

He is also a semifinalist for a study-abroad scholarship administered by the U.S. Department of State and the American Councils for International Education called the National Security Language Initiative for Youth program.

NSLI-Y scholars receive funding to participate in an immersion program where one of the seven emphasis languages are spoken. Warren, naturally, would like to go to China for the year.

And finally, Warren will soon learn whether he is to be a 2015 Coca-Cola Scholar. This award, given to just 150 scholars annually, offers $20,000 to help pay for college each year for four years – for a total of $80,000 per scholar.

He learned in November that he was a semifinalist for the award, chosen along with approximately 2,000 others, including 47 students from Washington, out of 103,000 students nation-wide who applied. Since then, he has submitted additional information including an official transcript, answers to a biographical questionnaire, several essays and recommendations.

He will hear later this month if he's been chosen as a regional finalist.

Just 250 regional finalists are selected – and selection for this stage of the award process guarantees scholars a $1,000 stipend. An interview in early February will determine whether he becomes a 2015 scholar.

Coca-Cola scholars are announced in the spring and are flown to Atlanta in April to meet each other and learn more about their reward.

To learn more about the Coca-Cola Scholarship, visit http://www.coca-colascholarsfoundation.org/.