The board of trustees of Montana’s largest school district has voted to allow students additional time to graduate after a public campaign by the family of a student with Down syndrome who otherwise would not have been allowed to attend her senior year with her classmates.
Under the policy passed Monday by a 5-3 vote, any student who does not turn 20 before Sept. 10 will be able to enroll in classes at Billings high schools. For students receiving special education services, enrollment will continue as long as the student hasn’t turned 21 before the Sept. 10 deadline, The Billings Gazette reports.
The family of Emily Pennington had urged the school district to take advantage of a law passed by the Montana Legislature in 2021 that offered some state funding for students who are receiving special education services to continue attending school as long as they had not turned 21 before Sept. 10 and had not graduated. Schools are not required to participate.
Emily repeated kindergarten because she had been dealing with numerous medical issues. She will turn 19 in July, which would have made her ineligible to attend school this fall under the old policy.
When the school board declined to hear Emily’s request for a change in the age-out policy, the family went public, posting on social media and contacting news outlets.
Billings West students also staged a brief walk-out in support of Emily earlier this month.
“It’s been hard, but it’s been an honor to be a voice for other people who just either don’t have the time or the fortitude or the wherewithal to fight like this,” said Jana Pennington, Emily’s mother.
The three high schools in Billings enroll about 5,500 students.