DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — Family, teachers and friends are remembering an eastern Iowa teen who reached her goal last week of graduating from high school — just two days before she died after a months-long battle with cancer.

The Telegraph Herald reports 18-year-old Allison Cress graduated from Hempstead High School in Dubuque on June 3. The feat came after she was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer in September a little more than two weeks after starting her senior year.

She was able to spend only three or four weeks in class during the school year, but worked with a tutor and taught herself. On Monday, she died at home in Asbury, Iowa, surrounded by her family.