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Porter's perfect attendance
AUSTINTOWN
For 2,340 days of the last 13 years, Fitch senior Alyssa Porter earned her rightful position as perfect attendee.
“I have really high standards for myself,” she said.
Porter not only has perfect attendance, but does so while maintaining a part-time job at Austintown Bounce, sitting on the National Honor Society, keeping her 3.8 grade-point average, lettering for two years on the softball team, helping lead the French club as vice president and volunteering in Junior Achievement – a mentoring program for older students to help teach younger ones.
“I’m always nonstop – I never take a day to chill,” she said.
“I like to be doing stuff all the time.”
She joked that grades come easy to her because when she doesn’t miss school – so she never misses anything.
Outside of academics and extra curriculars, Porter said she has a large group of friends to keep up with and four brothers who share her drive for perfection.
“I try to make time for everyone and everything,” she said.
Harold Porter, Alyssa’s father and a board of education member, said perfect attendance is kind of a family tradition.
“I went 13 years and my brother went 13 years. We never missed,” he said. “None of my kids have. I have five of them.”
Alyssa said it serves as a challenge to live up to her dad, despite always having the option to stay home.
“There were days she didn’t feel well, but nothing was contagious and she wanted to go,” he said.
Alyssa said a lot of motivation came from the momentum of doing it for so long.
“I would always think like I made it so far, why miss a day now?” she said.
Perfect attendance not only serves as a talking piece for her, but also as a learning tool to stay motivated in everything she does.
“I learned to always keep going toward my goals, whatever they are,” she said.
For her efforts both in school and involvement in extracurricular activies, Alyssa has received various scholarships from Fitch’s French club, the Austintown Growth Foundation and the Junior Women’s League.
Commencement on Sunday at noon will complete her never-missed high school days at Fitch High School.
Alyssa plans to attend Youngstown State University in the fall and pursue a degree in business.