Alabama high school student Cynthia Pettway was unable to cross the stage on her graduation day. Pettway was hospitalized and could not attend the graduation ceremony for LeFlore High School in Mobile, Alabama, in person,  but that didn't stop her from participating. The 17-year-old virtually crossed the stage with the help of a robot. 

In an interview with the BBC, Pettway said her mom, Rachael Johnson, had the idea to use a robot to cross the stage. 

"She had this idea that I can just roll across the stage," she said. "But I didn't think it was going to work."

Though Pettway was concerned about how the robot idea would be executed, her mom was determined. According to a Facebook post by the Mobile County Public Schools, the school district partnered with USA Children's and Women's Hospital to have a robot roll across the stage with a video-linked tablet. 

Pettway operated the robot to cross the stage during the graduation ceremony, as she sat in a conference room with her friends and family at the hospital. She was able to see her graduation by using the video tablet fixed on the robot – which was dressed in a graduation cap and gown – and even got emotional from the experience. 

"The whole stadium was cheering for me…" she said. "The cheering came, and then I got emotional." 

Johnson said the graduation ceremony and experience "was perfect," according to the school district's Facebook post.