ONTARIO SPECIAL EDUCATION (ENGLISH) TRIBUNAL
B E T W E E N:
S. and S. Appellants
-and-
PEEL DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD Respondent
DECISION
Tribunal Members: Eva Nichols, Chair Derryn Gill, Member Noel Williams, Member
Indexed as: S and S. v. Peel District School Board
ONTARIO SPECIAL EDUCATION (ENGLISH) TRIBUNAL File #58b
IN THE MATTER OF the Education Act, R.S.O. 1990 c. E.2, as amended, ss. 57(3),
IN THE MATTER OF Ontario Regulation 181/98,
AND IN THE MATTER OF the minor child born in 1991,
BETWEEN
Mr. S. and Mrs. S., Appellants
-and-
The Peel District School Board, Respondent
Tribunal Members:
Eva Nichols Chair Derryn Gill Member Noel Williams Member
Appearances:
S. and S. Parents Nadya Tymochenko Counsel for the Peel District School Board (PDSB) Shirley Ann Teal Superintendent, Special Education and Support Services (PDSB) Louise Sibbald Secretary
The hearing on the merits of the appeal was held on December 5, 6, 7 and 8, 2006 in Mississauga, Ontario.
INTRODUCTION
On June 15, 2006, the Appellants appealed to the Ontario Special Education (English) Tribunal (the "Tribunal") regarding the special education identification and placement of their child. Their child is fifteen years old and attends a secondary school within the Peel District School Board (PDSB).
In June 2004, while attending school in the Dufferin Peel Catholic District School Board (DPCDSB), the child was identified as an exceptional student with Communication - Learning Disabilities. In September 2005, the child transferred to the PDSB for secondary education at the local secondary school. The October 2005 Identification Placement Review Committee (IPRC), the first IPRC held for the child within the PDSB, confirmed the child as an exceptional student with Communication - Learning Disabilities. The next IPRC was initially convened on March 21, 2006, and reconvened on April 11, 2006. This IPRC determined that the child should no longer be identified as an exceptional student. This decision was issued in a letter sent to the Appellants' legal counsel, dated April 19, 2006. This led to the launch of an appeal.
In May 2006, in response to the appeal, the PDSB agreed to identify the child as exceptional with a Behaviour designation. In June 2006, after the parents filed an appeal to the Tribunal, the board offered to further change the child's exceptionality designation to Behaviour and Communication - Learning Disabilities. This offer was withdrawn once the appeal commenced.
Ms. Nadya Tymochenko, counsel for the PDSB, filed a motion on June 23, 2006, asking the Tribunal to dismiss the appeal. This motion stated that there are no grounds for appeal in this case because the board, having received the notice of appeal, granted both the identification and the placement sought by the Appellants. The Tribunal met on September 15, 2006, to hear arguments to determine whether the Tribunal had the authority to hear the Appeal.
On October 11, 2006, the Tribunal issued its decision, 2006 ONSET 7, confirming that it had jurisdiction to hear the merits of the appeal.
The Tribunal heard the merits of the appeal on December 5, 6, 7, and