1. Our commitment

This policy is governed by the Ontario Human Rights Code and the decisions of the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario. The school's academic accommodation practice follows the Ministry of Education's assessment policy in Growing Success and the equity and inclusive education principles set out in Policy/Program Memorandum 119.

The school has a legal duty to accommodate students and staff on every protected ground, up to the point of undue hardship.

2. Protected grounds

Accommodation is provided for needs related to the grounds protected by the Ontario Human Rights Code, including but not limited to the following.

• Disability. Physical, sensory, cognitive, learning and mental health disabilities, whether permanent, temporary or episodic.
• Creed and religion. Sincerely held religious belief and observance.
• Gender identity and gender expression. School systems, campus facilities and communications reflect a student's lived gender, chosen name and pronouns.
• Family status. Students who face barriers because of caregiving responsibilities.
• Sex, including pregnancy. Including adjustment of deadlines and assessment arrangements.
• Ancestry, place of origin, ethnic origin, citizenship, race and colour.

3. The accommodations the school provides

An accommodation is a change to the way a student is taught or assessed that does not change the curriculum expectations being assessed. Accommodations fall into three kinds.

Accommodations apply to coursework and to the final evaluation alike, and are available in both attendance formats.

4. Modifications

A modification changes the curriculum expectations themselves, rather than the way they are taught or assessed. Where a student requires modified expectations, the Principal determines whether the course can still be granted as a credit toward the Ontario Secondary School Diploma, and records the decision and the reasons in the Ontario Student Record.

5. How to request accommodation

Accommodation is a shared responsibility. The student, or the parent or guardian of a student under 18, discloses the need and asks for accommodation. The school then assesses the request and puts a plan in place.

1. At admission, or as soon as the need arises, the parent or guardian, or the adult student, gives the Principal the student's existing Individual Education Plan and any professional assessment.
2. The school may ask for reasonable documentation of the functional limitations that make the accommodation necessary. Following the guidance of the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario, the school does not require disclosure of a specific diagnosis, only of the functional limitations.
3. The Principal and the assigned teacher review the documentation and confirm in writing which accommodations the school will implement and how.
4. The accommodations are implemented from the first week of the session and applied to coursework and the final evaluation alike.
5. The documentation and the school's written confirmation are filed in the Ontario Student Record.
6. Accommodations are reviewed with the student at the midpoint of each session and adjusted where needed.

The school provides a reasonable accommodation that effectively addresses the limitation. That is not always the specific accommodation a student asks for, and where the school proposes something different it explains why in writing.

6. Creed and religious observance

Students may request an extension to a deadline, or an alternative time for a final evaluation, where a scheduled academic deadline conflicts with a significant holy day or a creed based observance. Non completion of a weekly milestone for observance of a cultural or holy day is an excused non completion and does not reduce the attendance and participation mark.

Designated quiet space for prayer or reflection is available at the Vaughan campus.

7. Undue hardship

The school accommodates up to the point of undue hardship. Under the Ontario Human Rights Code undue hardship is measured against three criteria and no others.

• Cost. Where the cost would be so substantial that it would alter the essential nature of the school or substantially affect its viability.
• Outside sources of funding. Whether grants or subsidies are available to offset the cost.
• Health and safety requirements. Where an accommodation would create a significant risk that cannot be mitigated.

Inconvenience, the preferences of other students, and administrative difficulty are never grounds for claiming undue hardship.

8. If you disagree with a decision

Where a student, or the parent or guardian of a student under 18, believes that accommodation has been unreasonably refused or has not been properly implemented, they may submit a written request for review to the Principal, setting out the limitation and why the accommodation offered is insufficient. The Principal convenes a meeting within five school days, reviews the plan and responds in writing with reasons. The process is set out in full in the Dispute Resolution and Academic Appeals Process.

Nothing in this policy limits a person's statutory right to file an application with the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario.

How courses are delivered: the two attendance formats

Every course at this school is delivered online and asynchronously. There are no set class times. The school offers two attendance formats and the student chooses one at enrolment. Every one of the school's 26 courses is available in both formats in every session, and a student may ask to change format between sessions.

The course is identical in both formats: the same learning portal, the same unit materials, the same 110 scheduled instructional hours, the same weekly milestones and deadlines, the same assessments and rubrics, the same assigned Ontario Certified Teacher, and the same final mark composition. The format determines where a student studies, not what the course is or how it is taught. Students in both formats share one cohort discussion forum.

Attendance at the Vaughan campus is a facility the school provides, not a requirement of any course. A student in the on-site format who studies remotely on a given day is not marked absent and loses no mark, because attendance at this school means completion of the weekly milestones, not physical presence. No course requires a student to be physically present at any time, except where the student chooses to write the final examination on site. Every course therefore remains an online learning credit under Policy/Program Memorandum 167 in both formats.