SPRING VALLEY
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Through 13 years, two well-timed cases of strep throat and a particularly tempting senior skip day, a Spring Valley teen has gone from kindergarten to high school graduation without missing even one day of school.
Jayme Jarvis, a senior at Steele Canyon High School, said she got the idea to try for a perfect attendance record from a news story she watched at her grandparents' home when she was 5.
“I just remember thinking, 'Wow, that's really cool. I want to try that,' ” she said.
And for 13 years, Jarvis, 17, never gave up. The hardest day in 13 years came recently when many seniors cut school for the annual “senior ditch day.”
“I did not want to be the only senior at school that day,” she said. “I was really willing to give it up. It's traditional. Every senior wants to experience it.”
The catch was that there was a softball game the same day, and Jarvis – an outfielder for the Steele Canyon Cougars – calls softball her “favorite thing in the world.” To play, however, she had to attend at least one class that day so she did not receive a formal absence. So she went to one class. Even without the softball game, Jarvis figures that her mother, Debbie Jarvis, would have persuaded her not to give in so near the finish line.
Debbie Jarvis is proud of her daughter's accomplishment, but says there were times when Jayme probably should have taken the day off.
“I'm sure there were a couple times she shouldn't have gone to school, but it wasn't anything serious,” Debbie Jarvis said.
Jayme recalls dragging herself to school while she had a bad cold, but said she didn't think she was contagious. Debbie Jarvis said Jayme also endured two cases of strep throat. The ailment is highly contagious and most people who catch it miss some school or work. Jayme, however, had one case during a winter break and the other during a spring break.
Jayme, who has a 3.8 grade-point average, said most of her classmates are unaware of her attendance record. Those who do know have never picked on her about it beyond affectionately calling her a “nerd.”
“I've never been harassed or teased about it,” she said. “People who find out about it just say, 'Wow. That's crazy.' ”
She thinks it would be nice if her attendance record motivates someone else not to miss school.
“If anything other than shocking people, it would be cool to inspire someone else to do what I did,” she said. “You don't have to be a nerd to enjoy school. I'm not a bookworm. I'm involved in sports and I have a very active social life.”
After graduation, Jayme will attend Chapman University on a partial scholarship and continue to play softball. She said she doesn't plan on cutting any classes.
Alan Schnepf is a San Diego freelance writer.
