Shutterstock

Most schools take pride in ensuring that all of their students walk at graduation since it is such an important event.

What would you do if your school principal was trying to make money by forcing everyone to buy expensive cap and gowns in order to walk?

That is what happened to the woman in this story, so she refused to pay for the gown, which meant she couldn’t walk. This upset the principal since she was the first student not to walk in school history.

While it is unfortunate that she couldn’t walk, the principal shouldn’t have taken such a stand. Read through the full story and see what you think of what happened.

Ruining a School Record

Just before my senior year of high school, my father moved me to Louisiana.

Starting at a new school is always difficult.

There, I had an encounter with the principal, who wouldn’t take one of my credits from my old school because their classes were different.

He also accused me of lying about getting a water from the vending machine, which was for a teacher and wasn’t breaking any school rules.

Most people have to buy a cap and gown for graduation.

Late in the school year, I was really not liking this school much, due to previous encounters, missing all my friends, disliking humidity, and many more reasons.

I found out for graduation they charged $240 for cap and gown, and to walk at graduation. My dad offered to pay, but it seemed terribly expensive and I didn’t want to do it on principle.

The school is just finding ways to make money, it seems.

This was in 2001, to put that in perspective. Also, no outside pictures. You had to buy their pictures for $40, which they would snap if you paid.

This is before cell phones with cameras were common, in the dinosaur days. So, I decided not to pay, and not to go.

Maybe he is just warning them that they might not be able to walk at graduation.

Later that month (April) I get called to the principal’s office. I am 1 of 10 kids called, and we already don’t like each other from past instances.

He tells us it’s because we haven’t paid for graduation. I was one of the last kids in the line of seniors he was talking to.

She is the only one who isn’t going to walk.

Everyone else either had the check and just hadn’t turned it in, or were getting the money because their family was low income.

When the principal gets to me I tell him I am not going and I don’t intend to pay. His response was to say that I had to go. I again told him I wasn’t paying and it was crazy expensive.

If anything, the principal just gave her some extra power here.

He tells me that no kid has ever not walked for graduation in his school. It’s a school record. I don’t know if it was true, but I believe it because it was something kids were proud of in this town.

Not me, since I disliked him and the school. I tell him I will walk if he gives me the cap and gown for free. He says he’s not going to do that because then other kids would want it.

The principal is not going to be happy about this.

Well, I’m not going then, and he can’t make me give him the money, so stalemate. The other students are mortified because everyone is afraid of this jerk.

I have straight As because the classes are so easy in this school and most are reteaching stuff I learned 10th and 11th grade in California. So, I get kicked out of his office.

Even her dad is supporting this decision.

The principal called my father about this, and I told my dad he could just say since I didn’t go to the school for all three years (10-12 in this school) and my credits aren’t all valid, I guess I am not a real student so it won’t ruin their record.

My dad is kind of petty too, so he said something like that. No one else called us again about it.

The end of that school record.

Graduation comes and goes without me there. The petty revenge comes in when they have to mail me my diploma because I didn’t go.

Which I made them do and called the school till I got it. According to the principal, it was first time they ever had to do that.

The principal shouldn’t have tried to force her to buy something like this. If it is a requirement, they should provide it.

Let’s see what the people in the comments have to say about this story.

This commenter is almost certainly correct.

Now this is what a school should do.

This person loves stories like this.

You would think that this would have happened in the past.

If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a man who is confronted by his high school bully and decides to steal his Nintendo DS.

Yeah, the principal is awful.

The principal shouldn’t have tried to take a stand on something so stupid. Surely the school has access to some extra caps and gowns.

I agree with some of the commenters who suggested that the school was getting a kickback from the company.