Holmdel Student In Wheelchair Says She Was Not Allowed On Stage

HOLMDEL, NJ — A graduating senior at Holmdel High School who uses a wheelchair said she was not allowed on stage last week to collect her diploma like everybody else, and she also said she hopes this never happens to another Holmdel student.

Lili Portmann, 18, uses a wheelchair and she told the Asbury Park Press — which first reported the story — that she had practiced rolling her chair up the ramp and onto the stage. Holmdel High's graduation was held last Tuesday, June 19 at Brookdale Community College auditorium.

Portmann was the first student called and she said she had rehearsed her coming up on stage days earlier at Holmdel High. However, when the big moment came, Portmann said she was told by school officials to stay put and that her diploma would be handed to her.

"It was rehearsed the day before, and still," Portmann told the Asbury Park Press. "I hope this never happens to (anyone) else."

"She doesn't see any difference between her and anybody else," her mother, Tracy Welch told the Asbury Park Press. "She said, 'I don't understand why he didn't let me walk?' If you're different, if you're special, if you need a little extra help, there's just no sense of inclusion up there."

The young woman has spinal muscular atrophy type 3 and uses a motorized wheelchair. She can also walk with crutches, and she can ride horses and do karate.

Holmdel school superintendent Dr. Rob McGarry did not immediately respond when asked by Patch or the Asbury Park Press how this happened. But according to the APP, he did immediately write back to the Portmann/Welch family and apologized, calling it "a significant mistake" caused by "a lack of communication and sufficient planning."

"Graduating high school is a milestone event meant to be a happy experience for students and a moment of pride for parents," Dr. McGarry said in an email to the family. "And I am so sorry that our actions prevented you, your family and Lili from experiencing it in that way."

Portmann's family has formally complained to Dr. McGarry, and taken to social media to voice their anger.

"Yesterday, June 19th, I once again sat though another Holmdel High School graduation, but this time not my own. It was my younger sister Lili’s graduation, and she has overcome so many obstacles to get to where she is today," Lili's older sister, Blake Portmann wrote on Facebook. "For every high school student, graduation marks the celebration of all your accomplishments because even though it is just for a couple of seconds, ALL eyes are on you as you walk across the stage ... However, yesterday, that moment was taken away from my sister, Lili."

"Being the first student to be called up to the podium, as rehearsed in school the day before, Lili was denied the right to ride up the ramp and across the stage to receive her diploma. The superintendent who shook every other students hand merely stood there and watched," she continued. "After graduating from Holmdel High myself in 2015, I was a proud graduate of my alma mater. But, after watching yesterday’s 'events' take place, on top of everything my mom has dealt with the last twelve years in the Holmdel School system, I am no longer proud."

Portmann will be attending Lynn University in Boca Raton, Florida in the fall. Watch the video below, which her sister put on Facebook:

Top image via Shutterstock