Super Kid: Alyssa Woodard, Lynnwood High School senior

Time flies: It’s hard for Alyssa Woodard to believe how quickly her senior year of high school is passing by. “It doesn’t seem like senior year at all. I think maybe part of it is being at a new school. Senior year doesn’t feel real. I still can’t believe it’s December already.”

Nice digs: That’s not to say she’s complaining about the new $100 million campus. She likes the feel of the building and improved technology. She also likes the fact that the new school is a lot closer to her home. “I can sleep in later.”

Career goals: She’s undecided but is interested in nursing, teaching or being a school counselor.

College hopes: Alyssa would like to attend the University of Minnesota. Her father lives in Minnesota, and she said it would be nice to live near her dad.

Taking initiative: Alyssa lost a bid for student body secretary but has taken the role of ASB event coordinator in which she helps plan schoolwide events. It has been a big step for someone who describes herself as a bit shy.

Plunging in: One of the school events she looks forward to is the Pursuit of the Power Plunger, which features students and faculty racing across a gym floor while lying on their stomachs on boards with wheels. They propel themselves across the floor using plungers. Top placers will compete against students from rival Mountlake Terrace High School.

Fond memory: Alyssa always liked the movie “101 Dalmatians” as a child and had a pair of Dalmatian pajamas that included a hooded sweatshirt with dog ears.

Play ball: Persistence paid off when she landed a job at the Mariners gift shop at Alderwood mall. A fringe benefit was occasional free tickets to Mariners games.

Small ball: Alyssa also is a member of her school’s golf team.

Inspired: She said her history teacher, Sharon Shaull, “is part of the reason I started thinking about becoming a teacher. She really cares.”

Happy travels: She was one of about a dozen students taking French at her school who traveled to France last summer. Her favorite stops were the small towns and the Palace of Versailles. The group bonded over shopping for clothes when their luggage turned up missing for most of the trip.

Helping hand: Alyssa is a member of the school’s anti-tobacco club as well as Key Club, a service club linked with the local Kiwanis Club. This will be her fourth year of helping with Relay for Life efforts to raise money to combat cancer.

More help: Alyssa also is in her third year of volunteering twice a week in a classroom at Martha Lake Elementary School. The experience has made her realize just how different kids are. The first year the fourth-grade students were boisterous and social, often asking her personal questions; last year’s fourth-graders were pretty quiet. It also has given her insight into the teaching profession. “I didn’t realize how much work there was until I saw how much the teacher does behind the scenes.”

Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446, stevick@heraldnet.com.