The provincial government's refusal to commit to the future of Ontario's special needs schools, including two in London, has left parents vowing to fight even harder.
Wendy Haggitt's daughter is in her second year at London's Amethyst Demonstration School for children with learning disabilities. She says parents have already begun filling human rights complaints against the government.
"We aren't saying what else we are planning at this point. We aren't done by any means," says Haggitt. "We are going to continue to fight for these kids. The government is taking away the children's right to a good education."
A motion put forward by New Democrat MPP Lisa Gretzky calling on the government to guarantee the schools would stay open beyond next year was defeated at Queen's Park Thursday. All 44 Liberals voted against it.
The vote took place one day after Education Minister Liz Sandals announced that admissions would resume for this fall.
Haggitt says resuming the application process for the 2016-2017 school year was nothing more than a temporary reprieve.
"Liz Sandals knew we had that motion tabled for Thursday and there was a rally," says Haggitt. "It was a matter of convenience on her side to alleviate some of the pressure Thursday where she still could not commit to anything for these kids going forward."
Amethyst School shares a site with Robarts School for the Deaf on Cheapside St. The schools are two of five under review by the province. Trillium Demonstration School in Milton, Sagonaska Demonstration School in Belleville, and Centre Jules-Leger in Ottawa are also included in the review launched in February.
The 2012 Drummond Report recommended closing all demonstration schools and moving their students to mainstream schools.
"These kids are going to these schools because they have exhausted all of their resources at their home schools," says Haggitt. "The home schools cannot give them the support they need to move forward with their education."
Haggitt says without the tailored education programs offered by these schools, many students will not be able to get into post secondary institutions or get good paying jobs.