Chelsea DeMoss

Gig Harbor High senior a well-rounded student with a passion for learning, community service

Chelsea DeMoss is a student who combines a “delightful personality” and “extraordinary intelligence and motivation,” her teachers say.

A self-disciplined and confident student, she has a 3.98 grade-point average, including 16 advanced-placement and honors courses. In fact, when Gig Harbor High School ran out of AP offerings, she took up independent study, including AP Latin and AP chemistry.

“Chelsea DeMoss is a student whose love of learning, fervent determination and passion for critical discourse will allow her to meaningfully affect any change she may choose to influence in the world,” GHHS English teacher Molly Pugh said.

DeMoss recently was part of a team from Gig Harbor High that traveled to Washington, D.C., to compete in the national “We the People” competition. The team won the state championship earlier this year.

DeMoss said that success is one of her highlights, because she originally resisted taking the AP government class and “begged” her parents to let her off the hook.

The We the People competition requires knowledge in such areas as history, current affairs, government and philosophical ideas.

“(The championship) was a big achievement because I wasn’t into government and it was unexpected,” she said.

DeMoss’ academic excellence parallels her achievements as an athlete, leader and volunteer. The captain of the Tides’ diving team, she also has been a member of her school’s varsity track and field team.

A youth group leader and Sunday School teacher, DeMoss has been an active community member. She’s an officer of several school clubs and a reading mentor for elementary school students. She participated in four mission trips with her church, and her volunteer work has been recognized by the United Way, which awarded her a varsity letter for community service.

DeMoss said she has tried to explore many areas of interest while making sure she built strong relationships with her family and friends. She plans to attend a four-year university, then medical school to pursue a career in medicine or bioengineering.

“As a young woman with goals and dreams, she knows how important it is to be hard-working, compassionate, and (she is) a person whose energetic and outgoing attitude are contagious,” Pugh said. “Her passion and conscientiousness are the strong backbone of her character.”

Chelsea DeMoss

Education: Senior, Gig Harbor High School

GPA: 3.98

Parents: Kelly and Brent DeMoss

Activities/achievements: 16 AP/honors courses, AP Scholar with Distinction; National Honor Society treasurer; We the People state champion; community service letter from United Way; track and field; swimming and diving; diving team captain, second in league; SADD president; Sunday School teacher; Calculus Club president; youth group student leader; elementary school mentor; mission trips; volunteer for Humane Society and political campaign; Presidential Award in community service.

Favorite teacher: Mr. Johnson, “because he is not only funny and a great teacher but also always willing to help, including with independent study,” DeMoss said.

Best thing about high school: The teachers. “I’ve had so many incredible teachers who’ve all helped me grow as a student, an athlete, a leader and a person,” she said.