Tessa Barrett
Abington Heights High School
Impact Statement
Barrett claimed both the Footlocker Girls’ National Championship and the Pennsylvania Class AAA state title.
Biography
Tessa Barrett of Abington Heights closed out her senior season by capturing both the Footlocker Girls’ National Championship and the Pennsylvania Class AAA state title while going undefeated during the 2013 season.
Barrett accomplished all of the above while suffering from a rare neurological disorder known as migralepsy, which can cause severe migraine headaches followed by epileptic seizure. A number of factors can trigger migralepsy, but the primary provocation is prolonged exposure to the flickering of fluorescent lights. Because Barrett cannot spend her days inside a school building with those lights—incandescent, natural lighting is fine—she takes an online cyber program at home through the Pennsylvania Leadership Charter program.
With honors and A.P. classes, Barrett has achieved a 4.0 GPA. Barrett will attend Penn State in the fall. She is the first girls’ cross country runner from Pennsylvania honored by the NHSCA.
Barrett qualified for the NCAA Championships and earned All America honors twice. After graduation, Barrett attended Providence College for her last year of eligibility.
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