Darcy Pearce Walters
Darcy (Pearce) Walters, 32, of Corcoran is a past Col. J.G. Boswell Scholarship winner. Walters won the scholarship, which provides four years tuition to any university in the United States, in 2008.
At Corcoran High Darcy was the Valedictorian, FFA President, American FFA Degree recipient and she also played varsity basketball as well as participating in other extra-curricular activities.
She attended University of California, Davis where she received her Bachelors of Science degree in Animal Science with an emphasis in Livestock and Dairy.
While attending UC Davis, Darcy was a part of the Livestock Judging team and worked in the Ag Services Department; she was also a member of the Aggie Ambassador club.
Currently, Darcy is the Research and Development Site Manager for Perfection Pet Foods which is located in Visalia.
“After graduation from college I worked in a few microbiology labs, before finding what I truly wanted to do. I always wanted to get back into animal nutrition and a position with my current company was created for me to start my career path in nutrition for companion animals–dogs and cats,” Darcy said. “While dogs and cats were not my focus in college, I still have a strong passion for animal health, no matter what species I am working with.”
In 2020 Darcy was awarded a top 30 under 30 award for the International Production and Processing Expo for the feed and manufacturing industry for her involvement within her company. As a Research and Development Manager, she gets to be involved in the entire process of the creation of a new item.
“Being able to be part of a process from conception to a store shelf is a humbling experience. Our products help feed the animals that make families happy and that is always my goal and thoughts since I currently and have always had dogs and cats,” Darcy added.
Darcy is the daughter of Alane Pearce of Corcoran. She is married to husband, Dustin Walters and they have a son, Dorian Walters who just turned seven months old.
“Our menagerie of animals is a little long to list but we have two dogs–Tucker-Corgi and Riely-German Shepherd and three cats–Chloe, FatCat, and Chicken,” she commented.
In her spare time, Darcy has participated on the Ag Advisory Committee for Corcoran FFA and is also a Judge for their annual Cotton Contest.
Darcy says that winning the Boswell Scholarship has given her opportunities she may not have otherwise had.
“The money from this scholarship really allowed me to go to a college that I may not have been able to afford otherwise. My mom was a single mother of three kids, all needing to go to college and did not have the means to support us financially through those journeys,” Darcy noted. “Having graduated from UC Davis with my BS in Animal Science is something I take a lot of pride in, it wasn’t easy. If I didn’t have the backing of a scholarship like this I do not know if I would have been able to graduate in four years, because of financial stress that a lot of my peers had to deal with.”
Darcy went on to say that she wishes more students would pursue the things that would help them earn the Boswell scholarship.
“Please, please, please, take advantage of the opportunity and branch out of your comfort zone. Majority of people who go to college do not have time to focus on classes full time and do not have time to really enjoy themselves. Join a club, participate in an intramural sport, or do the extra fun classes you may have time for,” Darcy added.
The annual Col. J.G. Boswell scholarships are provided to Corcoran High School seniors by The James G. Boswell Foundation. The foundation began offering the scholarships in 1956.
