A shocking lawsuit is making waves in Connecticut’s education system as an honors graduate claims she made it through 12 years of schooling without learning to read or write.
Meet Aleysha Ortiz, a 19-year-old who should be enjoying her freshman year at the University of Connecticut.
Instead, she’s fighting a battle that most of us couldn’t imagine: trying to navigate college while allegedly being functionally illiterate.
In a stunning revelation that has parents everywhere questioning their trust in the education system, Ortiz is suing the Hartford Board of Education, the City of Hartford, and her former special education case manager for what she describes as years of educational neglect.
“I Was The Bad Child”
Ortiz’s educational struggles began early.
According to her lawsuit, she started having problems with “letter, sound and number recognition” as early as first grade.
But instead of getting the help she needed, these issues went unaddressed, causing her to act out in frustration.
“I was the bad child,” she told CNN, a label that likely masked her real struggles.
By sixth grade, Ortiz was reading at a kindergarten or first-grade level—a red flag that somehow continued to be ignored year after year.
Lost In Translation
For Ortiz’s mother, Carmen Cruz, the language barrier made advocating for her daughter nearly impossible.
As a native Spanish speaker with limited English proficiency, Cruz tried her best to speak with school officials but was left in the dark about her rights and options.
“I didn’t know English very well, I didn’t know the rules of the schools,” she explained to CNN.
“There were a lot of things that they would tell me, and I let myself go by what the teachers would tell me because I didn’t understand anything.”
The situation raises serious questions about how schools support parents who don’t speak English fluently, especially when their children have learning differences that require parental advocacy.
From Bad To Worse
Things took an even more troubling turn when Tilda Santiago was assigned as Ortiz’s special education teacher and case manager during her sophomore year.
Instead of providing support, Ortiz alleges that Santiago “bullied, harassed and stalked” her, eventually leading to Santiago’s removal from the role.
By 11th grade, Ortiz began advocating for herself, which prompted teachers to suggest testing for dyslexia—a step that arguably should have happened years earlier.
Too Little, Too Late
In what might be the most frustrating part of this story, Ortiz only began receiving dyslexia testing one month before graduation.
The results, which came on the last day of high school, confirmed she was dyslexic and “required explicitly taught phonics, fluency and reading comprehension.”
School officials allegedly told Ortiz she could defer accepting her diploma to receive intensive services.
But after 12 years in the system, Ortiz had a different plan. “I decided, they [the school] had 12 years,” she told CNN. “Now it’s my time.”
Technology As A Lifeline
Despite these overwhelming challenges, Ortiz managed to graduate with honors and earn a scholarship to the University of Connecticut. Her secret weapon?
Apps that translate text to speech and speech to text—the same technology she’s using to complete college assignments.
These apps gave “me a voice that I never thought I had,” she shared.
Ortiz has dreams of becoming a writer, though she hasn’t attended classes since February 1st as she focuses on mental health treatment.
Meanwhile, Hartford Public Schools has declined to comment specifically on the case, stating only that they “remain deeply committed to meeting the full range of needs our students bring with them when they enter our schools—and helping them reach their full potential.”
For Ortiz and potentially countless other students like her, these words may ring hollow after years of alleged systematic failure.