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Advocacy conference in Surrey focuses on equitable access to education

Two-day event aims to break down silos among eveyone involved in educating, and advocating for, children with disabilities
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Surrey’s Civic Hotel (13475 Central Ave.) is hosting the fourth annual BCEdAccess Advocacy Conference on Friday and Saturday (March 29 and 30). (Photo: Pixabay)

A two-day conference in Surrey aims to break down silos and give parents of children with disabilities the tools and information they need as advocates for their child’s education.

“Children with disabilities in B.C. schools are disproportionately suffering as a result of too many years of fiscal restraint and austerity,” said Tracy Humphreys, founder and chair of BCEdAccess Society.

Surrey’s Civic Hotel (13475 Central Ave.) is hosting the fourth annual BCEdAccess Advocacy Conference next Friday and Saturday (March 29 and 30).

READ ALSO: Surrey mom furious over new EA agreement

Humphreys says the conference also aims to create “a meaningful dialogue,” not only among parents but also among everyone involved in education.

“Families in the past have felt isolated and alone,” she said in a release. “Conversations about the issue have happened in silos – parents talking to parents, districts talking to districts, educators talking to educators.”

Speakers at the conference include B.C. Education Minister Rob Fleming and Shelley Moore, a well-known inclusion teacher, researcher and author, and Annie Kidder, executive director of Ontario’s People for Education.

The Surrey School District has an estimated 3,000 students who receive EA support.

Tickets range from $25 (online remote access) to $235 for the full conference. For more information and to purchase tickets, click here.



beau.simpson@surreynowleader.com

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Beau Simpson

About the Author: Beau Simpson

As an editor who started his career in 2000 with the Nanaimo Daily News, I am finding there is still much to learn about community journalism, especially in our digital age
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