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Board Votes to Suspend Closures and Changes to Special Education Classes
The Board of trustees voted on Feb 22, 2011 to strike a Special Education Policy Ad-hoc Committee to review and consult on the draft OCDSB Special Education Policy.  This committee will look at parents' concerns with respect to specialized class location, wait list management, identification rates, IEP/IPRC protocols, and communications to parents and staff concerning special education classes.  While this committee is conducting its review, the Board has voted to suspend all closures and relocation of specialized classes (including gifted, LDD and others) for the 2011-2012 school year. 

Parents with children who may be eligible for the congregated gifted program should be aware that there are now openings at Hawthorne, Mutchmor and John Young Elementary schools.  If you have been considering the gifted program for your child, now is the time to take advantage and apply for a placement.  See Hawthorne's Open House for more details.

PLEASE NOTE: April 1 is the administrative deadline for applications.  Parents with questions about eligibility for placements in specialized classes should contact the Learning Support teachers in their schools as soon as possible to find out about eligibility and the application process.


In order to help the Board track requests for specialized classes from parents, OPEN strongly advises parents to make all requests for information, applications for, or inquiries about specialized class placement in writing to the school principal in addition to conversations with the Learning Support teacher.  Parents may also consider copying the organization associated with their child's exceptionality (e.g. Association of Bright Children, Learning Disabilities Association of Ottawa-Carleton, etc.). Please see OPEN's Resources page for links to the websites of these organizations.