Kevin Stubbs lined up a date and paid for his tickets, tux and limo. But emergency brain surgery and a school attendance policy nearly derailed his plans to attend the Langley High School prom May 19, according to his family.

	John Beale, Post-Gazette MaryEllen Goessler sits beside the hospital bed of her son, Kevin Stubbs, yesterday at Allegheny General Hospital. Click photo for larger image.

If he's too ill to attend class, he can't go to the senior prom either, his mother, MaryEllen Goessler, said she was told by a school counselor.

Confronted with a growing controversy yesterday, Pittsburgh Public Schools officials cited a misunderstanding between the school and Mr. Stubbs' family.

In the end, Mr. Stubbs got what he wanted: Lisa Fischetti, the district's chief of staff, said he could attend the prom at a Green Tree hotel as long as his doctors approved and his mother accompanied him.

From his bed in the pediatric intensive care unit at Allegheny General Hospital, Mr. Stubbs, 18, said the school's handling of the issue was another disappointment in a life of comas, surgeries and "near brushes with death." His mother called it another battle for simple pleasures most kids take for granted.

"It's ridiculous," his sister, Shawna Howard, said.

Mr. Stubbs was born prematurely and diagnosed with Dandy-Walker syndrome and hydrocephalus, a life-threatening combination that requires shunts to drain fluid from the brain. Ms. Goessler and Ms. Howard said the shunts sometimes clog and must be replaced.

Mr. Stubbs, who has motor-skill impairments and learning disabilities, was in school as usual Friday and looking forward to the prom. He had purchased the tickets, rented a black-and-pinstripe tuxedo and secured the limousine. Vespera Barrow, a friend of his sister, had agreed to be his date.

But Mr. Stubbs experienced headaches over the weekend. He was rushed to the hospital and on Monday had his 38th operation -- an experimental procedure, his mother said, in which a hole was poked in the third ventricle of his brain as an alternative to a traditional plastic shunt.

His family said he may be out of the hospital in a day or two, but probably won't be able to return to school for a couple of weeks.

Ms. Goessler said she called the school Monday and spoke to a counselor, who told her students cannot attend a special event if they are not in class the same day. She said the counselor promised to double-check the policy with the principal.

Ms. Goessler said she called the counselor Tuesday and was told, "The policy stands." She wasn't surprised, saying schools over the years have tried to restrict her son's participation in special events.

But this event was more important than most, she felt.

"He's been there for four years," Ms. Barrow said. "They should give him an excused absence because he's sick. They know he's sick and he's always in the hospital."

Ms. Fischetti confirmed that Langley has a policy requiring students to attend class if they want to attend a special event on the same day. But she said Mr. Stubbs merited an exception.

Because it wasn't clear whether Mr. Stubbs would be physically ready to attend the prom, Ms. Fischetti said, the counselor suggested the parties work out an agreement closer to May 19.

Unfortunately, she said, the school and Mr. Stubbs did not understand each other. Ms. Goessler insisted there was no misunderstanding.

If it turns out he cannot attend the prom after all, his ticket money will be refunded. That, Ms. Fischetti said, also is an exception to school policy.

Ms. Fischetti said the district believes Mr. Stubbs' mother should accompany him for his well-being. Ms. Howard objected to that, saying nobody wants their mom at the prom.

Nancy Hubley, associate director of the Education Law Center and managing attorney of the disability organization's Pittsburgh office, agreed that Ms. Goessler shouldn't have to go. If Mr. Stubbs needs individual attention, she said, federal law requires that the school district provide it.

The controversy has unfolded as Mr. Stubbs battled pain and the drowsiness induced by pain medicine.

Yesterday, he had a weak handshake and answered questions mostly in phrases. But his family believes Mr. Stubbs, who will complete graduation requirements this year but take three years of district-offered life-skills training, will be up and around by the prom.

"My brother's totally capable of dancing," Ms. Howard said. "He loves to dance."