SKIATOOK, Okla. - A Skiatook High School senior was told months before her graduation that she won't be allowed to walk across the stage.
The difference between her and a diploma, is half a credit of freshman geography, which she said the school never told her about.
Mia Freeman is described as exceptional. She's an AP student, president of the local 4-H club, rodeo queen, horseback rider and future veterinarian. She keeps busy looking for ways to better herself and make a difference in the community.
That's why she's speaking out. So what happened to her, doesn't happen to anyone else.
“I got called into the counselors office, and I assumed it was to congratulate me on a scholarship,” Freeman said.
But instead, she received bad news.
“[The counselor] had said that I had half a credit of geography that I had not taken,” Freeman said.
With graduation just a few months away, she was in shock.
“I was like is this a joke?"
To fix the problem, the school pulled Freeman from her forensic science class and put her in a freshman level class to meet the requirement.
“Going from essays and free response questions to coloring sheets was quite a change,” Freeman said.
An online class was apparently out of the question.
“They didn't have enough teachers to grade the course work, which ultimately was a result of budget cuts,” Freeman told 2 Works for You.
Not only did she get the news at the last minute, the geography credit isn't listed as a graduation requirement in the state's Academic Program Planning handbook. But according to Skiatook school policy, the requirement is listed on an enrollment form given to freshmen students.
"Of course all those papers don't get home with their parents," Freeman said. "We’re still kids."
Because Freeman was a transfer student, she feels someone at the school should have made her aware of the rule when she came to the school years ago.
"You need to be able to talk to the counselor, talk to the administrators and make sure they have a personal hand in your students' life," Freeman said.
She has since been allowed back in her science class, but is paying $150 to take an online course.
Although she will graduate and attend Oklahoma State University in the fall, Freeman is hoping administrators will hear her story, and make sure the faculty is held accountable to keep students on track for their future.
Freeman adds she is not the only student this year to hear they won't graduate with short notice.
2 Works for You did reach out to Skiatook High School for comment, however the superintendent said he wasn’t made aware of the issue, and the school cannot discuss student issues.
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