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The family of a woman with Down syndrome is pushing back after she was expelled from an educational program for adults with disabilities.

For the past 10 years, Jasmine "Jazzy" Holman, 23, has participated in Lehi's Habilitation Independence Vocation Education Socialization program, or HIVEs, run by the Utah County-based nonprofit organization Just for Kids.

Program coordinators alerted Holman's family last month that she would be unable to attend after April 1, citing medical and behavioral concerns.

Jazzy Holman is diabetic in addition to having Down syndrome, her mother, Pam Holman, said. For the past year, Jazzy has worn an insulin pump to monitor and regulate her blood glucose levels.

Pam Holman says her daughter's diabetes was never a problem in the past, and she doesn't understand why the HIVEs program would exclude Jazzy after a decade.

The Holman family, with the help of Utah's Disability Law Center, is considering legal action against Just for Kids to have Jazzy's expulsion reversed.

"Jazzy has always been able to check her own blood, and she's always been able to administer the [insulin] shots," Holman said. "This is too far. We're not going to let this happen."

A lawyer for Just for Kids, Dan McDonald, said in a written statement that HIVEs is forced to turn some students away as the needs of Utah County's disability community exceed the program's abilities and resources.

He said it was "ludicrous" to accuse Just For Kids of discrimination because the organization has dedicated "many many years and thousands of dollars to selflessly serving the disabled."

"Just for Kids wishes no one ill will and its heart breaks for any disabled child that is unable to get the support or the services that he or she needs," McDonald said. "However, like any organization that serves the disabled, it cannot be and will never be a clearinghouse for all social ills."

McDonald said he could not provide specifics of what had changed after Jazzy's 10 years in the program, because they involved private medical information and because the Holman family has threatened litigation against Just for Kids.

But he referred to public posts on Pam Holman's Facebook page showing Jazzy Holman in the hospital in March, and he suggested that her medical conditions had worsened in recent months along with unspecified behavioral issues.

"This young lady is a very sweet young lady and deserves the very best," he said. "No one was out to get her."

Pam Holman said some of those behavioral issues were outlined in a letter she received Tuesday, including that her daughter had refused to wash her hands after testing her blood glucose levels and had used insulin checks more frequently than necessary as a way of avoiding instructions and tasks.

She acknowledged that her daughter had been admitted to the hospital more frequently than usual in the past year. But she said those visits were precautionary, and none involved a medical issue that occurred while her daughter was at HIVEs.

"They've decided all this, and they're not doctors," Holman said. "I don't know how they can make this diagnosis on Jazzy."

Nate Crippes, an attorney with the Disability Law Center, said the family is considering options after being told Tuesday that Jazzy Holman would not be allowed back into the HIVEs program.

He said there are provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act, particularly requirements for reasonable accommodations, that Just for Kids appears to have violated.

"We believe this is unlawful discrimination under the ADA," Crippes said. "I can't say exactly what we'll do, but we do intend to proceed to ensure that Jazzy's rights are protected."

Holman said she'd like to see her daughter re-enrolled in HIVEs, which her son also attends and is a place Jazzy Holman has felt included for the past 10 years.

She said "everyone loses" by fighting over the decision, but she is worried about other students with disabilities being targeted for expulsion.

"It may or may not work," she said, "but I'd also like to prevent this from happening to someone else."

bwood@sltrib.com Twitter: @bjaminwood