School kids with special needs treated as if 'expendable', parent says

There was a rally in front of the Regina Public School Board office on Monday night — the latest in a series of protests in response to provincial budget cuts.

A few dozen people, including members of CUPE, a union that represents school support workers, were there to voice their displeasure over recently announced cuts to education.

Trista Wilson's son is one of 66 pre-school-aged kids attending a discovery program for special needs children which has been eliminated by Regina Public Schools.

"It negatively affects his development right now he's in a classroom with 12 kids," Wilson said. "Everybody is a tight-knit community in there right now. Kindergarten classroom of 30 kids ... he will be lost in the crowd."

Wilson's son has a cognitive disability which affects his speech. Instead of a second year in the discovery program, he will go to kindergarten in the fall.

Wilson, who is organizing a Wednesday rally in front of the Legislative Building, says the program cuts make her feel as if the province's "kids are no different than a cable bill, that the government thinks it's expendable."

Jackie Christianson, chairperson of the education workers steering committee, said it's time for the government to pony up some cash to save the axed programs.

"If the [provincial] government is not funding these programs, you're just going to continue the cycle of taking away from what is funded," Christianson said. "And there's not even enough of that and there's going to have to be harder decisions made."