For Dr. John Pierce, giving back is not simply a gesture of goodwill; it is a moral obligation from within to make life a little easier for those who can use the help.
“After all, isn’t that what we are supposed to do?” Pierce, ’98 BS Kinesiology, replied when asked why he is a UNLV donor and volunteer. “Whatever time we have on this Earth, you want to make an impression. There is no prize for whoever gathers the most stuff when our time is done.”
Pierce is the medical director at and is the current chairman of the School of Integrated Health Sciences’ advisory board at UNLV. He serves as a tactical physician with the Las Vegas SWAT team and is the medical director of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.
In 2019, he established the Dr. John Pierce Endowed Scholarship, which supports undergraduate student veterans enrolled in the School of Integrated Health Sciences.
“I created this scholarship for student veterans because I want to help those who have helped themselves while also helping others,” Pierce said. “That’s why I do it. Our veterans have already suffered, so why not help them?”
Growing up in Syracuse, New York, from a family of lesser means, Pierce never could have imagined a life where he had the opportunity to give to others.
“We had a roof over our heads, and I had food in my belly, but it wasn’t until I got older that I realized others had much more than we did,” he recalled. “But I was always very appreciative of the things I had, and it drove me to work harder.”
After he graduated from high school, Pierce enlisted in the U.S. Army where he worked as an “airborne infantry guy” as he describes it. He served in Fort Kobbe, Panama, from 1986 to 1989 before returning to New York after receiving news that his father had died.
For more than a year, Pierce helped support his mother while re-adjusting to civilian life. But after visiting Las Vegas with some friends in 1990 — the same year the Runnin’ Rebels won the National Championship — Pierce sold everything he owned to relocate here. He arrived in Las Vegas with a high school diploma, $700, and a suitcase.
From Serviceman to Rebel
Pierce began his studies at College of Southern Nevada (then called Community College of Southern Nevada) before enrolling at UNLV as a kinesiology major.
“When I got to UNLV, I loved absorbing all of the information. In kinesiology, we learned anatomy, exercise mechanics, physiology, all of it. It was fun for me,” Pierce recalled. “I had a professor who told me that I had what it took to get into medical school. When I got that confidence from outside, I knew medical school was the path for me.”
Pierce went on to attend the Western University of Health Sciences-College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific, in Pomona, California.
He returned to Las Vegas to practice medicine and continued his involvement with UNLV. In 2018, he was recognized as the School of Integrated Health Sciences’ Alumni of the Year. The following year, he established the endowed scholarship that bears his name to assist student veterans in the School of Integrated Health Sciences.
Amar Radden, a recent graduate from the Department of Kinesiology and Nutrition Sciences and a sergeant in the U.S. Army, was the latest recipient of Pierce’s scholarship. Radden graduated in the spring and plans to enroll in Army-Baylor’s master’s program while serving as a U.S. Army dietitian.
“Dr. Pierce’s scholarship allowed me to devote more time to my coursework as well as spend time with my family during my most challenging semester,” Radden said. “I’m inspired to one day offer aid to students to help them succeed. I am very, very grateful.”
When Pierce walks into work, he is adamant that he doesn’t actually go to work. Instead of a job, he views it as an honor to help his patients improve their lives each and every day.
He looks back fondly when remembering his parents, too — his mother having passed away a few years ago at the age of 97 — and remains grateful for the foundation and the life lessons they instilled in him when he was younger: to work hard and to take care of others.
“Giving back, to me, fulfills what I think we are all here for,” he said. “My life is a fairy tale. And if giving back helps somebody get to the place where I am, then maybe they can pay it forward to help someone else. That’s what makes it so beautiful."
