For a select few, attending class every day from kindergarten to 12th grade is a major accomplishment. For Megan Hockman, it was just a start.

When Hockman received a master’s degree June 19, it capped 21 straight years without missing a day of class.

Not at Palmetto Elementary School, not at Fontana Middle School, not at Fontana High School. Not at Cal State San Bernardino. And not at UC Riverside’s Graduate School of Education.

“For me, it’s a motivator,” said Hockman, 26, of Rialto. “Especially as a special education teacher, it motivates my kids to be on time. When they hear my story, they think they can do it, too.”

The whole Hockman family made it through high school without missing a day, her sister Kayla Hockman said.

“My mom and I both made it all the way through high school, but she just kept going,” said Kayla, 25. “When I was in college, I just needed a mental break. I was still able to keep my grades up, but I’m so proud of my sister for not giving up.”

Since many professors don’t take attendance, Hockman’s perfect attendance at Cal State San Bernardino and UC Riverside is unverified. But she attended every day in high school and middle school, which is as far back as Fontana Unified’s records go, said Michael Garcia, director of Family and Community Engagement at the district.

Megan Hockman said she hadn’t heard complaints that she might have spread germs to other students by attending school while sick and had only been sick a few times.

The closest she ever came to missing a day was in middle school.

“One day I was severely sick to the point where I was throwing up and I had to get taken to the nurse,” she said. “My mom said, ‘My daughter has perfect attendance. Will this affect it?’”

Since she’d made it through fourth period, the day counted.

Hockman doesn’t plan to pursue a doctorate, but she will keep attending class every day as a teacher.

“It gets me anxiety really bad to break that bond or that habit that I’ve been creating for so long,” she said. “I just can’t.”