STOP what you're doing and let's HELP THIS KID by MAKING NOISE. He's a licensed EMT and volunteer firefighter - and Fremont, Nebraska just told him he can't have a paid fire job BECAUSE HE WAS HOMESCHOOLED! Coates is 22. He already rides with Cedar Bluffs Fire as a volunteer and holds a Nebraska EMT license. ⠀ "Make a career out of it would be the goal, to get paid to do what you love," he told WOWT. ⠀ The April posting he applied under asked for "graduation from high school." The city said his diploma did not count because Nebraska treats homeschool as unaccredited. ⠀ Fremont later rewrote the description to "graduation from an accredited high school." HR director Jennifer McDuffee said accreditation was already implied. ⠀ "I would say it's a standard understanding that when someone requests a high school diploma or GED that they're asking for an accredited diploma," McDuffee said. ⠀ Homeschools in Nebraska operate as Rule 13 exempt schools. Parents file annually and meet hour rules without state accreditation. ⠀ "We understood that our homeschool operated legally under Nebraska's Rule 13," his father, Seth Coates, told the Omaha World-Herald. "What we never imagined was that the City of Fremont would treat the absence of accreditation as a basis for disqualifying Andrew from public employment." ⠀ JoAnn Coates taught Andrew and his five siblings at home. About 30 homeschool families packed the Civil Service Commission hearing. ⠀ Cedar Bluffs Fire Chief Chris Lichtenberg told the board the city is passing on a firefighter he already trusts. "I feel the city of Fremont's really missing out here, and in my mind, because of his home schooling, you guys are discriminating against him." ⠀ Commissioner Doug Backens rejected that word. "I don't think there was any discrimination against him, and when they use that word, I don't care to hear that word out there." ⠀ Chairman Steve Tellatin noted the original posting's ambiguity. The commission took no action and said city policy is not theirs to rewrite. ⠀ Seth Coates said the family now has 30 days to file in court. Andrew said the fight is no longer only about his application. ⠀ "We're not mad about one applicant, my application. I think now it's turned into we want to make sure that every homeschooler has an equal opportunity." ⠀ #Nebraska #Fremont @HarmeetKDhillon is this something @CivilRights can look into? @jbinnall and @AndrewOllis - the @TheKashFdn ??