'All I want is to graduate'

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Mike S.

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'All I want is to graduate'

By April HuntSentinel Staff Writer May 4,

2002 ST. CLOUD --

Since August, Meyer has awakened with the vision of walking triumphantly

across the stage this spring and grasping his high-school diploma. His

parents had struggled to motivate their 17-year-old son with Down syndrome to

enjoy school. So they prodded him to do his schoolwork by reinforcing how

proud he would feel balancing a mortarboard on his head and donning the

maroon-and-golden gown along with the rest of the St. Cloud High School Class

of 2002. kept up his end of the bargain, but school district officials

say there has been an unfortunate mistake -- he doesn't have the credits to

graduate. They say his parents misunderstood the requirements, and the school

regrets it didn't catch the mix-up sooner. The bottom line: won't be

marching to " Pomp and Circumstance " on May 20 at Disney's Wide World of

Sports. Now, disappointed and bewildered, has been sitting in a lawn

chair under a beach umbrella on his front lawn across from East Lake

Tohopekaliga and protesting the turn of events. A homemade sign pleads " Let

Joe Graduate " and urges passing motorists to " Honk for . " When they do,

he waves and smiles, but the smile is a dimmer version of the one in the

photo of him in graduation garb. " All I want is to graduate. It has been

hard, " said , who sips iced tea to ward off the heat and takes breaks to

play with his skateboard. Many cars that stream past his Lakeshore Boulevard

home blare their horns. Others stop in front of the historic 1914 home to get

the full story. When he is feeling hopeful, yells to supporters, " Vote

for me. " His parents Bob and Sharon Meyer have assured him he is not being

punished for something he did wrong. Still, doesn't understand what has

happened. His parents paid the $40-plus to rent the cap and gown. His photo

in graduation attire will appear in the Bulldogs' school yearbook, and his

name is included on the T-shirts listing the senior class. " In his eyes, we

lied to him, " said Bob Meyer, who made the sign when originally wanted

to picket at the school. " He is so hurt by this whole thing. " Osceola County

School Superintendent Blaine Muse said he is sympathetic and admitted that

school officials are partly to blame. Last fall, the district sent home a

standard letter to 's parents, reminding them that special-education

students who attended school for four years, earned the required credits and

were at least 18 could participate in graduation in the spring. Bob Meyer

sent the form back, saying , who turns 18 on May 14, would graduate this

year. School officials, however, didn't realize until two weeks ago that

didn't qualify because he is four credits shy of the 22 required credits and

has only been at the school for three years. Muse said because of that, the

school and 's parents share the blame. But, he added, it isn't enough to

persuade him to alter school policy for just one student. " The other students

are walking because they met the requirements. He did not, " Muse said. The

Meyers argue that an official could change their son's individual education

program so he could participate in the ceremony. After all, they said,

doesn't need the diploma. He isn't going on to college or applying for any

jobs where he will need those credits, they said. That is why they support

their son when he says he won't go back to St. Cloud High next year. It will

be hard enough to get , who has been out sick twice this week with a

virus, to finish this year, his parents said. That response doesn't surprise

Sylvia , an official with the Advocacy Center for Persons with

Disabilities in Tallahassee. , who is reviewing a complaint from the

Meyers against the school district, said it is critical for teens with

disabilities to be able to plan for their future. All teenagers are still

defining how they will fit into the world at large. But for a student like

, that work requires a lot more planning by parents and the school, to

make sure they realize they will have a place by earning it. " It is such a

critical time, " said. " It sounds like a cruel practical joke. " has

been so sick and upset that his mom and dad fret he may not feel better for

tonight's prom at the Wyndham Palace Hotel, even though some of the girls in

his class have promised to save dances for him. And his parents worry that

will refuse to attend graduation to see his sister , who has

cerebral palsy and has been in the special-education program as well, get her

diploma. " They're taking from him something that is so important, " said Bob

Meyer, who then asked his son what he thinks. " I want to graduate, "

answered with a shrug. " I just want to graduate. " April Hunt can be reached

at 407-931-5940 or ahunt@.... Copyright © 2002, Orlando

Sentinel

Mike Savory

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