LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Most people can probably recall a peer from their school days who never missed a day of class for an entire year.
But few can say they've done what Hailey Hurst has.
Hurst is set to graduate in a few weeks from Borden Jr./Sr. High School with perfect attendance. The star pupil has never missed a day of class in 13 years, since she first enrolled in Kindergarten.
"I didn't really like missing school, and it was easy just coming. Then in 6th grade, I got a plaque, and I was like you know what I'm going to keep doing this," said Hurst.
Now, the student is just nine days away from completing her goal of never missing a day.
"It feels great. I'm just hoping I can keep going and get it over with and at the end of this I'm just going to feel really accomplished," she said.
Hurst said her friends don't share the same goal, and at times, that has meant going to class completely alone.
"They look at me like I'm crazy! They're like, 'You never miss like half days, doctors appointments?' I'm like, 'Nope, everything is after school. They miss all the time and I'm just like, 'Welp, I'm here by myself!' We had senior skip day, and I was like the only person here."
When asked if she was ever tempted to play hooky, Hurst said "I've thought about it, but I was like, 'What's the point of missing school? I have so much to do here.'"
"She's a very good student. She's very bright, she works hard in class and she expects very high things of herself," said Hailey's math and science teacher Joe Oakes. "I do not know of any of my students in my 22 years that has never missed a day, she's the only one."
Oakes said Hailey's perseverance is inspiring and recalled a time she was willing to miss a family vacation, if it meant staying committed to her goal.
"Our schedule kind of changed this year, and potentially the first week of Spring Break was going to be snow makeup days. And she already had a cruise planned and she pretty much told me, 'Well, I guess I won't go, if we have too many snow days.' Just that dedication to that goal of not having any absences has always really impressed me," said Oakes.
Even during the pandemic, Hurst's principal Charlie Gardner said the student checked in with her teachers every day during e-learning to ensure her attendance was counted.
Adding to her already impressive feat, Hurst maintained her perfect record while playing three sports and overcoming the loss of her home as a child.
"We lost our house in the Henryville tornado," explained Hailey's mother Heather Hurst. "We moved to my sister's home and we came all the way from Memphis, Indiana to here to drop them off and then we had another kid in kindergarten up at Pekin. Then I would go all the way back down to work in Jeff, so that was a lot for a while."
Hailey's parents said they're proud of their daughter's desire to stay committed to her plan even after disaster struck.
"Seeing her determination through this, the next step when she goes to college and whatever she decides to do with her life, she's going to set the best foot forward," said Hailey's father Josh Hurst.
Hurst said she plans to attend Ball State after graduation to follow in her mother's footsteps to become a nurse.
When looking ahead to college courses, Hurst joked, "I'm definitely skipping a couple classes. I don't think I can do this anymore!"
The final day for seniors is May 25. Graduation is June 4, 2023.
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