AODA Alliance
Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act Alliance
Ontario Autism Coalition
Ontario Parents for Education Support
MEDIA ADVISORY
April 24, 2026
Parents of students with disabilities to Hold Queen’s Park News Conference Monday, April 27, 2026 9:30 AM to Show How Bill 101 Puts Student Achievement Last, Especially Hurting Students with Disabilities
What: the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act Alliance, Ontario Autism Coalition and Ontario Parents for Education Support will hold a 9:30 AM news conference in the Queen’s park Media Studio right before public hearings on Bill 101 begin. They will describe how the Ford Government’s Bill 101 puts massive red tape and bloated new bureaucracy first and puts student achievement last, contrary to the bill’s name. They will show how it particularly Hurts chronically underserved vulnerable Students with Disabilities, who number over 330,000.
When: Monday, April 27, 2026 at 9:30am
Where: Queen’s Park Media Studio
Streaming live at https://www.ola.org/en/legislative-business/video/media-studio
At least one third of a million students with physical, sensory, physical, intellectual, learning, mental health, neurological, communication and other disabilities suffer from well-documented recurring disability barriers in publicly-funded schools. The Ontario Autism Coalition, AODA Alliance and Ontario Parents for Education Support all applied to appear before the rushed one day of public hearings that the Ford Government has allowed for Bill 101, which begin at 10 AM on April 27, 2026. The Ontario Autism Coalition has been permitted to appear at the hearings at 3 PM, and the AODA Alliance was invited to speak at 4 PM. Inexplicably, the Ontario Parents for Education Support was denied a slot to speak at the hearings.
At this news conference, Bruce McIntosh (Ontario Autism Coalition board member and founding president), David Lepofsky (AODA Alliance Chair) and Elizabeth Garkowski (co-chair of Ontario Parents for Education Supports), all parents of students with disabilities, will explain why the bill is so harmful. They will describe amendments that will be sought at the hearings if the Ford Government insists on proceeding with the bill.
The AODA Alliance has submitted a detailed brief that details the bill’s many serious problems, and lists 8 amendments that the AODA Alliance seeks.
Contact: Bruce McIntosh 416-451-8315, bruce.mcintosh@ontarioautismcoalition.com
David Lepofsky aodafeedback@gmail.com
Elizabeth Garkowski ontarioparentsforeducation@gmail.com
Learn more about the advocacy efforts of the AODA Alliance, the Ontario Autism Coalition and the Ontario Parents for Education Support.