Now is the time for us to speak up against cuts to our schools, especially in areas such as Special Education.
Recently I heard from Jessica - a Beverley School parent and Special Education advocate in our community.
-
Below is her story, in her words.
I’m here today not only as a parent, but as an advocate for children with exceptionalities—children who are too often forgotten when budgets get cut.
The Conservative government’s cuts to education are already having devastating effects. At my daughter’s school—Beverley School, a specialized TDSB school for students with complex needs—we’re losing a full-time teaching position next year.
Let me be clear: this is not just a staffing issue. This means fewer children will be invited to attend. It means larger class sizes. And in a school where many students are non-mobile—relying on wheelchairs, walkers, and beds—this isn’t just inconvenient. It’s unsafe.
Before Beverley, my daughter was in a classroom that claimed to be inclusive. But her curriculum wasn’t adapted. Her communication needs were ignored. Her potential went unseen. It was exclusion—dressed up as inclusion. And it was joyless.
When she arrived at Beverley, everything changed. She was met by educators who truly understand how children like her learn—through adapted materials, communication devices like AAC, or even sign language. For the first time, she felt seen. She felt heard. And most importantly, she found joy in learning.
She comes home excited. She wants to go to school. She’s thriving—and so is our whole family. Her confidence has grown. Her world has opened up. Her quality of life, both in and outside the classroom, has been transformed. That change? It’s priceless.
But it’s also fragile.
Losing a teacher doesn’t just mean fewer staff—it means dismantling the kind of classroom that makes that joy, that growth, possible. Teachers will be stretched thinner. Students with high needs will get less support. And the progress my daughter and so many others have made? That progress is at risk.
Congregated schools like Beverley are not luxuries. They are lifelines. They are communities where every child is given the chance to thrive in a space built for them, not around them.
We should be expanding schools like Beverley. Instead, we’re watching them shrink under cuts from a government that claims to care about kids—while failing the ones who need them most.
Every child deserves an education that recognizes their humanity, nurtures their potential, and brings them joy.
My daughter might be non-verbal—but this mama is not. And I will keep using my voice until every child gets the education they deserve.