FROM INDIANA PUBLIC BROADCASTING

Residents across Indiana have raised concerns about the Indiana Department of Education’s proposal for new high school graduation requirements.

The Arc of Indiana, a group that helps Hoosiers with developmental disabilities, says many of the new requirements are limiting to students who have disabilities.

Some students could graduate with Indiana’s Alternate Diploma, but there is a cap and students must have severe cognitive disabilities to qualify.

Karley Sciortino–Poulter  is The Arc’s advocacy network director. She says students who have disabilities have greater opportunities with a high school diploma.

One of The Arc’s top concerns is that the enlistment pathway, one of three pathways detailed in the proposal, is inaccessible to students who have disabilities.

There could also be challenges with the availability and the requirements for work-based learning opportunities.

Sciortino–Poulter says people with disabilities often make great employees — when they have the right support and accommodations in place.

She says the diploma requirements need greater flexibility to ensure all students have the opportunity to succeed.