Texas school postpones graduation after majority of seniors ruled ineligible

MARLIN, Texas (KWKT) — A high school in the small Texas town of Marlin has postponed graduation after discovering that a majority of seniors did not meet minimum grade and attendance requirements.

Now, however, parents are speaking out, with some saying they weren’t given enough notice that their students were off track.

“This is a catastrophic failure of leadership and accountability,” a parent of a Marlin ISD high school student said at a recent school reunion.

Marlin administrators said the ceremony was postponed after an audit found only five students in the senior class were meeting basic guidelines, according to NPR.

However, it was a message that some parents wanted to know sooner.

“How many of you got a letter on April 17 saying your babies were on track and then come Thursday…said our babies can’t graduate,” one parent said.

For the past three days, school officials have been conducting audits — something school superintendent Dr. Darryl Henson says is done to comply with state guidelines.

“No amount of pressure you can exert on us through social media or actual media will get us around state guidelines,” Henson said.

He added that the students had many opportunities to catch up on their work.

“Throughout the year, as you have heard, opportunities have been presented. Students have been notified,” he said.

Some parents said otherwise.

“I haven’t received an email from school. I haven’t received a phone call and I haven’t received a letter, an official letter,” said another parent.

Since the announcement, students have done face painting – now 17 out of 38 are eligible to walk. One thing that the community and school staff could agree on is that there needs to be a stronger relationship between them.

“At the end of the day, it’s meant to be a partnership,” said one parent. “There is a school-community pact.