Pregnant teen fights to walk after being barred from Christian school's graduation ceremony

An 18-year-old high school student with a 4.0 GPA said it's unfair her private Christian high school barred her from graduation because she is pregnant.

Officials at the Heritage Academy in Hagerstown, Maryland, told Fox 5 the student, Maddi Runkles, is not allowed to participate in the graduation ceremony next month because she violated the school's rules by engaging in premarital sex.

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Runkles learned she was pregnant in January. She told the local outlet that she was suspended for two days after she informed school officials of her condition, and was consequently stripped of all her on-campus leadership positions.

The teen said the school mandated parents and students signed a vow at the start of the school year that stated, "This application extends to my actions, such as protecting my body by abstaining from sexual immorality and from the use of alcohol, tobacco and illegal drugs..."

Runkles signed the slip, which she said "is like a typical thing every school year."

Her father, Scott Runkles, who is the former president of the school's board, told reporters he disagrees with the school's decision.

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"The difference is consistency because we have had other students that have had serious infractions and they have walked in the past and they are allowed to walk this year," her father said.

According to The New York Times, David Hobbs, a Heritage Academy Administrator, described the predicament as "an internal issue about which much prayer and discussion has taken place."

"You can't be pro-life, but then refuse to support the girl that keeps her baby," the teenager said.

If unable to attend the ceremony scheduled for June 2, Runkles said she plans to hold a private celebratory event her classmates and family will attend instead.