Dorothy Liggett

FAIRLAWN, Ohio — Dorothy Louise Liggett, 93, had one regret. But that disappointment turned to joy March 9 when she was awarded her high school diploma as a surprise on her birthday.

“Her one regret is no longer a regret. It is a fulfilled ambition,” said Donald Huston, Liggett's 67-year-old son, of Oklahoma. “I'm really thrilled that she is finally getting the one thing she always told us she wished she had gotten.”

Liggett's North High School diploma was hand delivered to her home in Fairlawn by Akron Public Schools Superintendent David James. He was moved to make sure Liggett got her diploma after reading a letter from her daughter, Janice Larkin, 73, of Monument Beach, Mass.

In the letter, Larkin explained that her mother was a few weeks from graduation in 1942, when she was expelled after officials discovered she was married.

“When I read the letter, and did some follow-up research, I felt terrible for the way Mrs. Liggett was treated,” James said. “To have invested 13 years in school, to have been a good student and still not receive a diploma because of that, was simply wrong.”

Liggett and her late husband — who had been called into the Army — had run away to Kentucky to be married and discovered a few months later that they were having a baby. Their plan was to have Liggett finish school.

That changed when Liggett was belittled by a gym teacher for forgetting her gym suit. When the teacher insisted Liggett go to study hall, the teen blurted out: “No. I'm married. I'm going home.” The school then acted on its policy that banned married students.