This is certainly how it would appear in the case of Rose McGrath, a 12-year-old cancer survivor who has been expelled from her school over her absences.
Rose, who battled leukaemia, has reportedly been expelled from St Joseph Middle School in Michigan, with management citing concerns over her attendance and academic performance as the reason.
Brave Rose was visibly upset as she shared her story with local media, telling CBS: “I didn’t do anything wrong, but they still got rid of me.”
Rose, who was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in 2012, has only managed to attend 32 full days of school so far this year.
The 12-year-old’s mum, Barbara, said that the school’s management don’t seem to understand that Rose’s treatment is still affecting her health and life.
“Even though she’s now done with her treatment you still have a very long recovery process because you’ve basically just put two-and-a-half years of poison into your body. You’re not recovering overnight,” she said.
Father John Fleckenstein of the Battle Creek Area Catholic Schools responded to media interest, saying: “These were extraordinary circumstances, but so many accommodations were made we felt eventually it became a point where we really had to help Rose, by being able to make sure that she was getting the assistance that she needed and to learn.”
He would not comment further due to privacy issues.
