Rich Joiner Gets the Grades and the K's

He is a four-year member of Jordan's baseball team, and a player who has earned everyone's respect.

"He doesn't look it, but he has the heart of a lion," says Jordan coach Dave Davis. "He is just an outstanding kid. He's a leader, but very quite in doing it. He's the type of kid that when he asks somebody to do something, it's not going to be something that he wouldn't go out there and jump on and do himself, and those guys recognize that."

Academically, Joiner is a tremendous student with a 4.7 grade point average (GPA), and ranks ninth in the Jordan senior class. His SAT score is 1560.

"When he does something, he does it well," says Jordan teacher Bob Hellwig. "He does not do things halfway."

"My philosophy is 'if you're going to do something, then do it right," Joiner said. "I just try to focus on a couple things in my life and just do those as hard as I can."

"To me, it has just been a great pleasure to be a part of this four years of his life," Davis said.

"It's intrinsic in him that you only do your best, and it's inconceivable to think of him doing anything else," Hellwig said.

"I want to be seen as somebody who worked hard at everything," Joiner said.

"He's just been a great influence on the kids here and on the coaches," Davis said. "He's a great kid."

Rich Joiner of Jordan High School in Durham is this week's winner of the Extra Effort Award.