Senior achieves 13 years of perfect attendance

Highland senior achieves 13 years of perfect attendance

Highland School of Technology senior Madison Watson has never missed a day of school in her 13 years as a student, a milestone few achieve from kindergarten through senior year.

Watson, a student in the school’s Graphics Pathway, will attend the University of Alabama this fall. She plans to study news media with the goal of working for a sports or political news organization.

Her time at Highland has included both classroom learning and hands-on experience. This past year, she interned with the Gastonia Ghost Peppers in the social media department where she gained real-world experience supporting her local team and creating content for fans.

Watson said her goal of perfect attendance became more intentional as she entered high school. She first realized she had perfect attendance after second grade and decided she wanted to keep the streak going. As she entered her senior year, she made it a priority to continue showing up every day and finish what she started.

“It’s very rewarding,” Watson said. “I am very excited. I am happy I was able to do it. It was not always easy. There were days that I did not want to come in, but I am most proud that I accomplished this goal.”

She said showing up every day has been important to her success.

“Coming to school is very important because this is where you get your education, and more importantly, you don’t fall behind in your classes,” she said.

Looking back, Watson said she is pretty sure she still has a stack of those early perfect attendance awards tucked away somewhere from elementary school and middle school.

Congratulations to Madison Watson, one of our “perfect” seniors in the Class of 2026!