The split was no spur-of-the-moment stunt. Tyvion Campbell had told her teachers, classmates and relatives for weeks that she intended to drop into the move once she reached center stage at her graduation — and when she did, the crowd at the Harold Washington Cultural Center roared. What the 18-year-old did not expect was to walk away without the diploma she had just earned.
Campbell, a longtime dancer and cheerleader who finished at Chicago Tech Academy with a 3.5 GPA, said administrators declined to hand over the document after her celebration during last month’s ceremony. She reached for it and came up empty, an outcome she initially blamed on a clerical slip-up.
“I tried to reach for my diploma, and I didn’t get it,” she said. “I was confused at first. I thought they mixed up my name.”
According to Campbell, staff then steered her away from the proceedings for a meeting with school leadership. She said the principal told her the celebration had crossed a line.
“The principal Miss [Zataya] Shackelford told me that I need to think of a way to make up for what I’ve done. This was supposed to be a celebratory moment and I made it about myself.”
The teen, who is set to study business administration at Georgia State University, said the rebuke left her in tears and unable to finish out the day’s events.
“It was disappointing,” she said. “It really hurt my feelings. I cried and I couldn’t even continue the graduation.”
Campbell maintains that nothing in the school’s rules prohibited what she did, arguing students and families were never warned that splits or similar gestures were off-limits. As of her account, the physical diploma remained in the school’s hands, with administrators telling her the matter would stay unresolved until she addressed the incident. Chicago Tech Academy has not responded to requests for comment.
