Unconventional graduation speech topic of contention

Whether a Boulder eighth grader would be allowed to deliver a graduation speech she wrote to express her thanks for the school was up in the air in the days before the ceremony.

The speech is not a typical “we have had a wonderful time as classmates and will miss our years at Boulder Elementary” message. As written, it referred to severe depression, hospitalizations, anger control, self-harming, childhood trauma and struggles to figure out sexuality.

But it was a tale of gratitude.