12-year-old wins car for perfect school attendance

New Delhi: A Chicago Public School (CPS) student won a 2008 Dodge Caliber for three straight months of perfect attendance and some luck.

The car was an incentive that CPS officials were offering to children as a reward for attending school daily.

Nearly 190,000 students achieved perfect attendence for three straight months this year, but it was Ashley Martinez who won the lottery. Ashley studies at the Eberhart Elementary on the Southwest Side of Chicago.

CPS Chief Executive Officer Arne Duncan said the district has been trying to make it exciting to go to school. "There's nothing more important than showing up for school every day, it's critical."

Duncan also said that there were more prizes on the offer including vacations and gift certificates, all to keep students in the class.