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Letter to Political Leaders from Lori Hendry Parent Leader Letter to Lynn Ziraldo, Chair of the Ministry of Advisory Council for Special Education Subject: Education of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children in Ontario Dear Mr. Eves, Mr. McGuinty, and Mr. Hampton: What is the commitment of each party in regards to accomodations for Deaf and Hard of Hearing children? Is your party committed to passing legilation to ensuring provincial standards are implemented to require School Boards to hire qualified and full time ASL/Spoken English interpreters? We have sent numerous letters outlining our concerns to you and the the responses have been as follows: Mr. Eves - responded once to state that this should be handled by Elizabeth Witmer Elizabeth Witmer - has never responded herself - had her subordinates respond in writing that the Ministry of Education is not responsible for School Boards not hiring qualified staff - if a parent has a problem that the School Board refuses to address, the only option is to sue the School Board Mr. McGuinty - has never responded Mr. Kennedy - Liberal Education Critic has never responded Mr. Hampton - has never responded Mr. Marcheses - NDP Education Critic has never responded We parents in Ontario have been told time and time again that our children have a right to quality education and that there is accountability, however, when we seek accountability, it would seem that either no one is responsible or we are ignored entirely. Please advise who we turn to to obtain accountability. Please see the attached letter. It raises grave concerns regarding the education of Deaf and Hard of Hearing students. It took 3 years for the present Ministry of Education to even have a discussion regarding Special Education!! With the elimination of OAC, to have to wait another 3 years means that thousands of Deaf and Hard of Hearing high school students will have their entire secondary education wasted because of their lack of access to quality education. Without standards being implemented regarding interpreters, teachers, educational assistants for Deaf and Hard of Hearing students (both elementary and secondary) these students are being set up to fail! These children are our future and for the majority of them to end up on welfare affects every citizen of the province - we all pay for that! I would appreciate your earliest responses as to what your party commitment is regarding this very important issue. I can be reached as follows: Lori Hendry |
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