Teenager with cerebral palsy filing lawsuit against school.

From: Terri Lynn (954) 677-1030

Additional information including the name of the student and the name of the school will be faxed to you first thing in the morning on June 6th

On Tuesday, June 6th, a female student born with cerebral palsy will be filing a lawsuit for $10 million against a well- known South Florida private school.

For 10 years the student attended the school. She had many friends and was highly regarded by her teachers. She was also the recipient of many awards and honors.

In 1997, the student contracted an infection, which caused complete paralysis and restricted her to a wheelchair. Physically, she was unable to attend classes even though she wanted to. The school claimed they would make audiotapes of her classes and send a teacher to her home.

The girl's mother assured the school that she would do whatever was necessary to keep her child up to date with her schoolwork. Only 2 tapes arrived. The school's response was that making tapes of the classes was a major inconvenience and required too much time and effort. The school could no longer be called upon to send the daily assignments home, as the arrangement was simply too complicated and required too much effort on the part of the teachers. The school administration throughout the entire time was uncooperative and belligerent.

Having no other choice, her mother arranged for home schooling. Having only a home schooling diploma, instead of a college preparatory diploma that she worked for all of her life, the student was not a candidate for admission to the colleges of her choice.

As a result of the discriminatory actions towards her, a civil lawsuit will be filed against the school for ten million dollars. The lawsuit is claiming fraudulent misrepresentation and breach of contract. Based upon research, this is the first and only tort case of a disabled child against a private school in the 11th Circuit.

WHAT: News Conference -taking place outside of the courthouse immediately after the lawsuit is filed

WHEN: Tuesday, June 6, 2000 TIME: 10:30 a.m.

WHERE: Dade County Courthouse 73 West Flagler Street Miami, Florida # # #