A former Hartford Public High School student is taking legal action against her school district, claiming she was failed by the system and left unable to read or write—despite graduating with honors.
According to a report from The New York Daily Mail, Aleysha Ortiz, who spent 12 years in the Hartford public school system, addressed the city council in May 2024, revealing her story. She explained that she had always relied on technology to help her understand schoolwork, but the underlying issue was never properly addressed.
“I decided, they had 12 years,” Ortiz told CNN. “Now it’s my time.”
According to the lawsuit, Ortiz exhibited difficulties with letter, sound and number recognition as early as first grade. The failure to intervene properly led to behavioral issues, as she felt increasingly frustrated and left behind. By sixth grade, Ortiz was reading at a kindergarten or first-grade level, yet she continued progressing through the system. In her sophomore year at Hartford Public High School, Tilda Santiago was assigned as her special education teacher and case manager.
Ortiz alleges Santiago bullied, harassed and even stalked her, leading to the educator’s removal from the role. However, Ortiz still did not receive the help she desperately needed. Her mother, Carmen Cruz, attempted to advocate for her despite the language barrier, as she primarily speaks Spanish. She said she trusted the teachers, believing they had her daughter’s best interests in mind.
“I didn’t know English very well, I didn’t know the rules of the schools,” Cruz said. “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.”
By 11th grade, Ortiz began advocating for herself and pushed to be tested for dyslexia. However, it wasn’t until just one month before graduation that she finally started the testing process. The evaluation was only completed on the last day of school, confirming that Ortiz was indeed dyslexic and required explicit instruction in phonics, fluency and reading comprehension.
School district officials reportedly offered Ortiz the option to defer her diploma and receive intensive support, but she declined, feeling it was too little, too late.
“While Hartford Public Schools cannot comment on pending litigation, we 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,” the district said in a statement to CNN.
Ortiz is now attending the University of Connecticut as a full-time student—although, she has not attended classes since Feb. 1 due to mental health treatment. She aspires to be a writer, someday and explained that the tools she relies on, such as text-to-speech and speech-to-text apps to complete assignments gave her “a voice that I never thought I had.”
