05-03-2025
A Diploma without literacy? US student sues her high school
Published March 4th, 2025 - 11:34 GMT
ALBAWABA - A 19-year-old student named Alicia Ortiz has made news after disclosing that, despite graduating with high honors, the school system has not given her the help she needs, leaving her unable to read or write. Also Read Ramadan huge crescent stolen in Jordan, sparking public outrage
At a Hartford City Council meeting in May 2024, Ortiz, who was awarded a scholarship after graduating high school, told her tale, highlighting the stark deficiencies in special education programs. Since then, her story has spurred discussion about accountability and pedagogical negligence in the American educational system.
Knowing that she still lacked fundamental reading skills, Alicia felt anxious before graduating, in contrast to most students who experience joy.
"I've been in school for 12 years—now it's my time," she said when school authorities offered her an extended education program to help her develop her abilities just two days before she was about to graduate.
Alicia has filed a lawsuit against the Hartford Board of Education and the City of Hartford, claiming that they have failed to offer sufficient learning assistance, after years of neglect.
Tilda Santiago, the director of special education, is also named in the case, which claims that she suffered mental anguish as a result of inadequate support. — Notifactor4 (@factor4noticias) March 4, 2025
The case has heightened conversations about the shortcomings of special education programs and the need for systemic change, even if municipal authorities have declined to comment.
Alicia was born in Puerto Rico, but her mother, Carmen Cruz, brought her to Connecticut when she was five years old in the hopes that she would have better educational assistance. She still suffered from unidentified learning disabilities, however.
She received diagnoses for speech difficulties, anxiety disorders, ADHD, and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) throughout the years. She was also recently diagnosed with dyslexia, which made reading and writing much more difficult for her.
Alicia's lawsuit aims to bring justice to kids who are going through similar difficulties. She wants to make sure that other kids with learning challenges get the help they need and hold school administrators responsible.
Her story has rekindled conversations about special needs assistance, educational fairness, and the pressing changes required to avoid future occurrences of this kind.
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