1 Week Left to Sign Up to Speak at TDSB Special Education Advisory Committee’s April 13, 2026 “Listening to Parents’ Voice” Meeting

Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act Alliance Update

United for a Barrier-Free Ontario for All People with Disabilities

Website: www.aodaalliance.org

Email: aodafeedback@gmail.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aodaalliance

Twitter: @aodaalliance

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/aodaalliance

TikTok @AODAAlliance

 

One Week Left to Sign Up to Speak at TDSB Special Education Advisory Committee’s April 13, 2026 “Listening to Parents’ Voice” Meeting

 

April 6, 2026

 

It is extremely important for every school board to hear from parents/guardians of students with disabilities/special education needs about their children’s experience at school. Since the Ford Government took over eight school boards representing over one third of Ontario’s K-12 school system, the chances for this have been massively reduced at the boards that have no elected trustees. . Here’s a rare opportunity not to be missed.

 

This is a final reminder to any and all parents/guardians of students with disabilities/special education needs at the Toronto District School Board, which has been under Ontario Government direct control since last summer. One week from today, on April 13, 2026 starting at 7 pm, the TDSB Special Education Advisory Committee is dedicating an entire meeting to hearing from you. Is your child experiencing any disability barriers at TDSB or difficulties getting their disability-related learning needs met at school? Do you have any suggestions on how TDSB could make things better for students with disabilities/special education needs? Take this opportunity to have your say.

 

Please sign up to speak to the TDSB Special Education Advisory Committee (SEAC) at this meeting. You can come in person or take part via Zoom. SEAC is being flexible about the sign-up deadline so that this SEAC  can hear from as many families as possible.

To sign up, just send a request to Lianne Dixon Lianne.Dixon@tdsb.on.ca and briefly say in a few short sentences what you’d like to say about your family’s experience. Be sure it relates to education of students with disabilities/special education needs at the TDSB.

 

To accommodate all participants, each speaker will get 3 minutes to share their experiences and ideas. To protect privacy when you speak to SEAC, please do not use the names of any student, teacher, other TDSB staff member, or school.

 

SEAC itself cannot investigate specific incidents. It will use this information to formulate recommendations to senior TDSB officials, the provincially appointed Supervisor, and to elected trustees once they are returned to office.

 

Parents can no longer make public delegations to TDSB trustees at school board meetings. The SEAC public forum is one of the only opportunities parents have to raise their issues in public regarding students with disabilities/special education needs, and it may indeed be the only such opportunity. This is because the Ontario Government ousted the trustees and appointed a Supervisor to run the TDSB on behalf of the Education Minister.

 

TDSB’s SEAC is inviting the provincially appointed Supervisor to attend and hear from you. It is very concerning that he has not accepted past invitations to attend any TDSB SEAC meetings. It is therefore possible that he will not attend this meeting.

 

How You Can Help

 

  • Please widely post and circulate this update. Encourage parents/guardians of students with disabilities/special education needs to sign up to speak at the April 13, 2026 TDSB Special Education Advisory Committee meeting.

 

Urge your local school board to hold a similar open Special Education Advisory Committee meeting to listen to the voices of parents/guardians of students with disabilities/special education needs. TDSB’s SEAC has  publicly stated that it is willing to offer its advice and tips on how to hold a successful event.

 

  • If you are a member of a school board’s Special Education Advisory Committee, please propose to your SEAC that it hold an open meeting to listen to parents’ voices.

 

  • Check out the AODA Alliance’s online video that offers practical tips to members of a school board’s Special Education Advisory Committee and members.

 

 

  • Learn about the AODA Alliance’s advocacy to improve education for students with disabilities by visiting the AODA Alliance Website’s education page.