Academic Achiever of the Week: Rylee Harner

PARKERSBURG, W.Va. (WTAP) - This week’s Academic Achiever is a star student and a leader on the court.

With a 4.01 GPA and two years as captain of her basketball team under her belt, Rylee knows how to perform under pressure.

She said, “Even from when I was little in elementary school I just remember always wanting to win and wanting to succeed so that’s definitely where my competitive nature in sports comes in.”

Rylee’s feet may be on the court but her eyeline’s always been set on the future.

Like the dribble of the ball, it’s a part of her daily rhythm.

“I think about it daily - working towards my goals - and it’s something that really keeps me motivated with my school work and all other aspects,” she said.

The visions Rylee has for adulthood aren’t centered around slam-dunking. Rather, she hopes to help people through medicine.

“I’ve known since I was little I’ve wanted to do something in the medical field because I’ve always wanted to help people, whether it be physically or mentally, and I just think I’ve been leaning more towards the mental side of things because sometimes it can kind of get pushed down - mental health - and I think it’s just as important as physical health,” she said.

In fact, Rylee is one step closer towards her dream job as a psychiatrist.

She was accepted into West Virginia University’s School of Medicine, where she will major in exercise physiology and minor in psychology.

Looking back at high school, she is most proud of her work ethic.

“I think it would just be how I have pushed myself because a lot of people will be like ‘oh it’s senior year I want to have an easy senior year’ which like that’s no issue at all but I made my schooling progressively harder because I wanted to be more prepared when I got to college.”

It sounds like Rylee is ready to channel her fierce independence into carving out a new path for herself.

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