Yobbi: Blame for all parties
Related
Advertisement
5/10/2008 - 5/11/08
Her voice cracked on the other end of the phone. Then there were long pauses.
The news hit her like a knee to the stomach.
Chanet Fiorina was in disbelief when she was told that she would not be competing in the Class AAAAA Girls State Golf Tournament; that a district judge had sided with Santa Fe High School concerning her academic eligibility.
Fiorina had lost the same tournament, the high school holy grail, in 2007 by a single stroke after 36 holes of competition, and she was fresh off a District 2AAAAA championship this season (which she had to forfeit).
But there would be no title chase in the state's largest class in 2008.
Fiorina, a sophomore and the entire roster of Demonettes golf, failed to earn the required minimum grade point average of 2.0 on a 4.0 scale that is required by the state Department of Education and the New Mexico Activities Association as of March 31, the NMAA cutoff date.
"I'm just very disappointed," Fiorina managed to get out at one point.
Chanet's mother, Caryn Fiorina, brought her daughter's case to court because she thought Santa Fe High had failed to provide Chanet with the proper accommodations in accordance with Section 504 of the Federal Rehabilitation Act. Chanet has been diagnosed with attention deficit disorder and a form of dyslexia, and should be provided educational amenities and an education plan. Caryn also felt that Chanet had not been given complete credit for assignments she had completed in a chemistry class.
A judge saw otherwise and ruled accordingly.
But there were many who had a hand in Chanet's public drama playing out as it did:
Her parents.
Her school.
Herself.
That list is in no particular order.
Chanet's parents, Tom and Caryn, are going through a divorce that is matter of public concern because Tom is a former municipal judge. A separation of any kind is never easy on a child, but in this case it is made harder because of its publicity.
And what was adverse for Chanet's case is that some information was lost between her parents. Like the fact that Caryn didn't know Tom had signed a 504 parents' rights agreement, which went a long way in determining the school's 504 obligations were being met.
Santa Fe High wasn't completely blameless, though. The school knew on March 31 that Chanet was not eligible, but she played in three more tournaments from April 1-24. The NMAA is investigating the matter.
Chanet's responsibility was to attend class, which she could have done a better job of, considering she missed 11 of the 45 days in the third quarter. Seven of those absences were not excused.
Chanet is not a spoiled child looking to beat the system. It was the cumulative effect of many circumstances that will keep her considerable talent off the golf course.
First District Court Judge Michael Vigil put it like this in his ruling: "I'm quite disappointed for a lot of reasons, some of which is how this was handled by the adults. ... There was a breakdown."