A Connecticut honor student is suing the district, stating that she is illiterate.
Despite graduating from Hartford Public High School in June and earning a scholarship to the University of Connecticut, Aleysha Ortiz claims he is illiterate.
The 19-year-old, who spent 12 years in the Hartford Public School District, testified at a city council meeting in May, explaining her unique circumstances and how her education system failed.
“I decided, they [the school] Ortiz, from Puerto Rico I told CNN. “Now, that's my time.”
Ortiz is suing Hartford, Hartford and her special education case manager, Tilda Santiago, for negligence.
According to her lawsuit, she began to have problems with “recognition of letters, sounds, numbers” early on, and as those issues were not addressed, she began acting at school.
“I was a bad kid,” she told the outlet.
Ortiz argues that when she was in sixth grade she was reading at the level of just kindergarten or first grade.
When Ortiz was a sophomore at Hartford Public High School, Santiago was assigned to her special education teacher and case manager.
Santiago bullied, harassed, stole Ortiz and was later removed from the role, the lawsuit alleges.
Although she speaks little English, Ortiz's mother, Carmen Cruz, did her best to defend her daughter, speaking to the principal and other school officials.
“I didn't know English very well. I didn't know the rules of the school,” she told the outlet.
“There was a lot they had to say to me, and I let myself go by what the teacher did.
I didn't understand anything so please let me know. ”
By 11th grade, Ortiz began taking problems in his hands and speaking for himself.
Just a month before graduation, she began receiving tests, which wasn't completed until the last day of high school, the lawsuit states.
The test concluded that Ortiz was actually dyslexia and “explicitly taught phonics, fluency and reading comprehension.”
District officials told Ortiz she could accept her diploma and receive intensive services, she claims.
“While Hartford Public Schools cannot comment on the pending lawsuit, they are deeply committed to meeting all the needs students have when they enroll in school.
Hartford Public Schools said in a statement to CNN.
Dreaming of becoming a writer, Ortiz is currently attending the university's Connecticut state as a full-time student, but has not been to class since February 1st to receive mental health treatment.
To complete her college assignments, she relies on apps that translate texts into speeches and speeches, as she did in high school.
The app “gives me a voice I didn't think I had,” she said.
