US: High school graduate who can’t read or write sues school officials

Aleysha Ortiz, a 19-year-old high school graduate, has filed a lawsuit against the Hartford Board of Education and the City of Hartford, United States alleging negligence after completing her education without the ability to read or write.

Despite graduating with honours from Hartford Public High School in June 2023 and earning a college scholarship, Aleysha says she remains functionally illiterate. 

Her lawsuit also names her former special education case manager, Tilda Santiago, for negligent infliction of emotional distress, alleging she subjected Aleysha to “repeated bullying and harassment.” 

School officials, including Board Chairperson Jennifer Hockenhull and City of Hartford Chief Legal Officer Jonathan Harding, have declined to comment on the case.

Hartford Public Schools issued a statement reaffirming their commitment to addressing student needs, but education expert Jesse Turner suggests Aleysha’s experience reflects broader systemic issues. “America should be asking a question: Do we really care about our children — all of our children?” he asks.

Born in Puerto Rico, Aleysha moved to Connecticut at the age of five with her mother, Carmen Cruz, who hoped for better educational support for her daughter’s learning difficulties. 

However, Aleysha’s struggles persisted. Her lawsuit states that by sixth grade, she was reading at a kindergarten or first-grade level, yet she continued progressing through the system.

High school brought further challenges, with teachers recommending dyslexia testing only in her senior year. Testing completed on her final day of school confirmed she required explicit phonics instruction—something typically taught in kindergarten. The evaluation also confirmed she has dyslexia, in addition to previously diagnosed learning disorders.

Despite her limitations, Aleysha secured admission to the University of Connecticut, where she relies on text-to-speech and speech-to-text technology to complete her studies. 

She said these tools “gave me a voice that I never thought I had.” However, college has been difficult, and she has been on leave since February 1 for mental health treatment.

Read Also: Anike Agbaje-Williams, Africa’s first face on TV, dies at 88

Aleysha insists she is suing because school officials “don’t know what they’re doing and don’t care.” Seeking compensatory damages, she hopes her case will hold educators accountable and prevent others from enduring similar struggles.

As she reflects on her time in Hartford’s public schools, Aleysha remains determined to advocate for better education. “I’m a very passionate person and I like to learn,” she says. “People took (away) that opportunity for me to learn, and now I’m in college and I wanna take advantage of that. Because this is my education.”