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Students stand up and demand equality for people with disabilities
September 9th, 2010
Free State High School is expanding its homecoming royalty this year, after a handful of seniors with disabilities had been excluded from the initial round of balloting — a practice that’s been going on for at least a decade.
Among students originally left out this year: Owen Phariss, a senior with Down syndrome, whose friends had lobbied classmates to vote for him only to discover that Phariss had been denied a spot on the ballot.
Free State High School seniors, from left, Audrey Hughes, Bailey Knowlton and Connor Caldwell were instrumental in a petition drive to get some students added to the Homecoming Court ballot. Knowlton holds one of the signed petitions Tuesday at Free State.
Now — after senior school administrators were alerted about policies against discrimination — all seniors will be given another chance to vote today. They’ll seat another four girls and four boys on the Homecoming Court, joining the eight girls and eight boys who already received the most votes in last week’s nominating election.
“Anybody with a disability wasn’t included,” said Nancy Holmes, Phariss’ mother. “It’s very disturbing. In this day and age, it’s very disturbing.”
Homecoming is Oct. 1, when the Firebirds play Shawnee Mission East.
Wednesday’s additional balloting will come after students had started a petition drive, one that collected at least 800 signatures backing the belief that “ALL seniors should have an equal opportunity” to be on the Homecoming Court.
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