Discipline to carry success from old school to new

WEINER -- Kaci Mack was determined to make the best of an unpleasant situation.

When the school she had been attending all of her life closed its doors after her junior year, Mack did not protest or pout. Instead, she made it a point to help two communities adjust to an unusual situation.

Mack is the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette's Female Academic Athlete for 2014.

"It's hard to pinpoint just one thing that makes Kaci so successful," said Jenna McDaniel, a social studies teacher at Harrisburg High School who also had been Mack's teacher at Weiner High School. "She is such a great leader and has always had a great work ethic, but she is also kind. She treats everyone the same, and I think that's why she is so respected by everyone."

The Harrisburg School District (Poinsett County) had annexed the Weiner School District in 2010, but the smaller school's campus remained open until the end of 2013 school year.

Kaci Mack had just completed her junior year at Weiner. A few months earlier, she had helped the Lady Cardinals' basketball team advance to the Class 1A state championship game. A few months later, she and 17 of her Weiner classmates were thrown into new surroundings.

"It was kind of surreal," Mack said. "I didn't think it would ever happen. We talked about it. We talked about it when my [older] sister was in high school. It was a kind of a thing that they always talked about in Weiner, but it never seemed like it was ever going to happen."

It did.

Two days after the Lady Cardinals suffered a 51-31 loss to Nevada in the title game, the Arkansas Board of Education voted to close Weiner High School.

"We didn't do anything that day," Mack said. "We went to our classes, but no one was able to do anything. It was weird. ... It was one of those things I didn't know how I would deal with, but I think I dealt with the transition as best that I could. I just had to get over the fact that [the school] would not be there anymore."

A new school made for some interesting changes. At Weiner, she lived less than a mile from the school and could walk to her classes. Attending Harrisburg meant waking up earlier and enduring a 20-minute drive. Mack also was used to knowing everyone who attended Weiner.

"I would see somebody new every day,"she said of Harrisburg.

Whether or not she intended to make an immediate impact on her new classmates, it was obvious that she did. Two months into her new school, Mack was voted Harrisburg's homecoming queen.

"I thought it was cool that I was nominated, but when I was named queen I really didn't know how to react," Mack said. "That's something that's very competitive. It was awesome to be named homecoming queen, but it was also a little awkward."

Mack also made an impact for the Lady Hornets' athletic programs. She and doubles partner Peyton Craft (also of Weiner) reached the semifinals of the Class 3A tennis state tournament and Mack became a starter for the Lady Hornets' basketball team, which qualified for a rare regional tournament appearance.

When she wasn't playing a sport, Mack was a leader in the classroom. She finished as Harrisburg's valedictorian with a grade-point average of 4.22.

This fall, Mack will attend the University of Arkansas and plans to major in finance and minor in biology.

"I love numbers, and some day I'd like to run my own business," Mack said.

McDaniel said no matter the situation, Mack has brought enthusiasm and character into every challenge.

"It wasn't easy for her, but she handled [her final year of high school] in the best way possible," McDaniel said. "She knew it would be a hard transition, but I could not be more proud of how she handled it."

Mack credited the teachers and students at Harrisburg for making the transition as easy as possible.

"I think the transition went well because the kids at Harrisburg were a lot like us," Mack said. "They were very studious. I knew that we would mix well with them."

Sports on 07/20/2014