She earned the highest ACT test score in Carter County, then tested again and scored higher. She placed third in a state writing competition and earned a seat on the Washington Youth Tour, as well as a $1,000 scholarship. And, to the satisfaction of her band mates, she still makes time to eat cake outside.

Desirae Clark is valedictorian and first in her class academically at Cloudland High School, and while she said her parents did have expectations of her, she said she has always been driven to succeed.

“I was always a perfectionist,” she said.

And what’s her recipe for success? She said it’s a combination of a great work ethic, a lot of luck, and a lifelong love of learning.

Naturally, her parents Jerry and Jenny take pride in her performance and continued dedication to learning.

“We’re extremely proud of not only how she has kept her faith, but of her academics,” her father said. “She’s always scored on the highest level and will go for perfection if it kills her.”

He explained how she would bring home a week-long homework packet as a child and would insist on completing it on the first day.
“We would play school, and she would be doing double digit addition and subtraction while the other kids were still learning the basics,” he said. She always brought home awards and the highest grades and never made a B, he added.

Not only has she consistently excelled academically, but she joined the school band out of curiosity, fine-tuned her skills playing the mellophone and later became an award-winning drum major. She was awarded first place overall in two local competitions, and second place in two others. The band itself has won all of its competitions except one, she said.

Aside from her focus in academics and band, she was also a founding member of the knitting club, which made hats for babies born prematurely and others who spent their first days in the hospital.

As one of three Mountain Electric Cooperative winners in the writing contest, she was granted the opportunity to give a speech in Nashville. She thanked representatives and board members for the opportunity to attend the 50th anniversary Washington Tour and to meet congressmen and representatives. On the tour, with about 1,700 students — 140 of whom were from the Tennessee electric cooperative — she visited historic and political sites like the White House, presidential memorials, museums and veterans’ memorials. She brushed elbows with U.S. Rep. Phil Roe, Sen. Bob Corker and President Thomas Jefferson — well, his statue.

Perhaps the most interesting detail of her winning the writing competition, is not that she was featured in The Tennessee Magazine four times, including having her photo on the cover, but that she wrote the winning story while ill with mononucleosis.

Her parents were not surprised by this, saying she never gives up and always goes the extra mile. Her parents said many of her projects at school were retained by her instructors as teaching tools, like a racecar made out of a mousetrap that went more than 30 feet further than the second place car.

“It’s been an interesting year,” she said, noting a recent pig dissection, and bridge building out of toothpicks.

While participating in the Youth Leadership program offered by Milligan College and the Elizabethton/Carter County Chamber of Commerce, she volunteered as a tutor at West Side Elementary. She has also completed a chemistry internship with East Tennessee State University’s Upward Bound program. After four years in the program, she feels confident that she will pursue a career in chemistry or pharmacy, following an education in both.

Desirae looks to the future, with plans of completing summer classes at ETSU this summer and then attending Lincoln Memorial University full time for her undergraduate degree.