An art student is suing Rocky Mountain College in Montana because she can't pass the math classes required for her to earn a bachelor's degree, the Associated Press reported.
Hannah Valdez, who flunked and dropped math classes required for her to earn a bachelor of fine arts degree is suing to force the school to allow her to substitute them two non-math courses, according to the AP.
In her federal lawsuit, Valdez said her disabilities prevent her from passing two basic math courses- including algebra, calculus, statistics or trigonometry - that are a part of the college's general education requirements to graduate with a bachelor of fine arts.
Valdez is asking a judge to require the college to substitute two other courses for the math classes.
She has a range of disabilities which include Asperger's syndrome, bipolar syndrome, anxiety disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and dyscalculia, which is a mathematics learning ability, her attorney Donald Harris told the AP.
"They don't understand her disability," Harris said of Rocky Mountain officials. "The stress and anxiety that Hanna feels when she is trying to be successful with math classes affects her other studies, as well."
Valdez attempted to pass two math courses before requesting to substitute the classes in April 2012, which the college denied.
Harris said what Valdez is asking for is common in other colleges and universities and Rocky Mountain College have substituted courses before. According to Harris, the college usually permits a course waiver or substitution in circumstances such as unavoidable conflicts or course cancellations.
Valdez filed a lawsuit in state court, claiming negligence by the school and discrimination under the Americans With Disabilities Act, the AP reported.
The lawsuit was transferred to U.S. District Court on Nov. 4.
Valdez said she's gone into substantial debt and will sustain significant damages if the college prevents her from graduating with a degree because of her mental disabilities.
The university's interim Academic Vice President Barbara Vail told the AP that Rocky Mountain values Valdez as a student, takes seriously its obligations to provide access for students with disabilities, and is doing everything it can to help her graduate.
A response filed in U.S. District Court Monday by the college's attorney, W. Anderson Forsythe, said school officials offered to accommodate Valdez, but it can't fundamentally alter its educational program.
Vail said Forsythe plans to file a request to delay the lawsuit while they work out a solution in which Valdez would be tutored by associate math professor Robyn Cummins, who is trained in teaching people with disabilities.
"We are hoping to try and work with her through Professor Cummins to help her meet her requirements," Vail said.
But waiving those requirements is not an option, she said.
"We're very serious that a degree from Rocky means something," she said.
According to the lawsuit, Rocky Mountain admitted Valdez even though college officials knew her SAT score for math placed her in the bottom 5 percent of all students.
