Eastdale & Heydon Park Coalition

Eastdale Collegiate Institute and Heydon Park Secondary School

are not under-enrolled schools. They are under threat.

Eastdale and Heydon Park exist to serve students who would otherwise disengage from education entirely. Removing Grade 9 intake doesn’t “optimize resources”; the cost of maintaining these programs is far lower than the lifelong public cost of losing them.

1. These Schools Catch the Students Who Would Otherwise Disappear

Eastdale and Heydon Park play a vital and essential role in our school system - they catch students who would otherwise fall through the cracks. 

·    Many students with Mild Intellectual Disabilities do not succeed - or even remain enrolled - in large mainstream high schools.

·    Without small, predictable, sensory-friendly environments, students experience heightened anxiety, trauma, and disengagement.

·    These specialized settings are often the last point of attachment to education before students drop out entirely.

·    Students with special needs and disabilities have a right to the accessible and appropriate supports they receive at Eastdale and Heydon Park.

Closing intake doesn’t move students elsewhere, it pushes them out of the system.

 2. Uniqueness Is a Strength, Not a Liability

These schools offer learning that cannot be replicated in mainstream settings:

·    Credit and non-credit, life-skills programming

·    Experiential learning focused on life and employability skills (Rooftop gardens teaching science, sustainability;  kitchens and cafeterias teaching culinary and food-service training)

·    Co-op placements and real-world skill development.

·    To protect our most vulnerable students, Eastdale and Heydon Park must remain strong and stable.

Most students remain until age 21, because that’s what it takes to:

·      Earn a certificate or diploma

·      Build functional independence

·      Prepare for adulthood with dignity

For many students, these schools are their only viable path to completing high school.

 3. Who Gets Harmed (and Who Can’t Fight Back)

Eastdale and Heydon Park families face layered adversity beyond disability alone.

·    Eastdale ranks in the top 15 most challenged schools out of 100+ in the TDSB on the Learning Opportunities Index, and Heydon Park is number 26.

·     Many students lack access to basic necessities: toiletries, winter clothing, food security.

·     Families are already under immense strain and often lack the capacity to advocate publicly or politically.

This raises a critical question: Would this approach be taken if the affected community had greater resources, visibility, or political voice?

 4. Location Is Not Accidental - It Is Essential

Location matters for access, safety and independence.

·    Eastdale and Heydon Park’s proximities to streetcars are critical, not just for daily TTC access, but as intentional travel training for students building independence. Streetcar access is especially important for students with sensory sensitivities, offering calmer, more manageable travel than buses or complex transfers.

·    Heydon Park is also close to St. Patrick Station, further increasing safe, predictable transit.

·    Central locations allow for meaningful community-based field trips.

·    Both school serves students from communities identified as needing enhanced services due to their vulnerability, such as Scarborough and Regent Park.

·    For most Heydon Park/Eastdale students, there is no viable alternative school they can safely or realistically travel to.

Moving or eliminating the program ignores how disability, transit access, and geography intersect, and effectively excludes the very students the program exists to serve.

5. The Financial Reality for Families

The burden on families is well documented:

·    Parents frequently reduce work hours, change jobs, or leave the workforce entirely.

·    Disability-related care costs are high and often not fully covered.

·    Severity of a child’s disability correlates strongly with financial hardship.

·    Families of children with ASD and similar conditions experience significantly lower lifetime earnings.

Weakening school-based support deepens this economic penalty and shifts costs from education to social services.

6. The Cost of Failure Is Far Greater Than the Cost of Support

When students with disabilities do not complete high school, the impact ripples outward:

Economic Impact

·    Employment rates drop to ~8% for adults with disabilities without a diploma

·    Lower lifetime earnings = lower tax contribution

·    Increased reliance on income assistance, housing support, and community services

Social & Health Impact

·    Increased social isolation

·    Poorer health outcomes and higher healthcare usage

·    Overrepresentation in the justice system

The Post School “Abyss”

·    Supports collapse after school exit; families navigate an “abyss” with little guidance

·    The system pays more later for what it refused to fund earlier

Preventing dropout is one of the most cost-effective interventions available.

7. These Students Are Thriving Because of These Environments

The students at Eastdale and Heydon Park are thriving because of their specialized settings.

·      Sensory-friendly spaces

·      Trained educators

·      Predictable routines

·      Relationship-based teaching

·      Experiential learning

Forcing students into mainstream environments can cause lasting stress, anxiety, and trauma — undoing years of progress.

This is not an enrolment issue. It is a human rights violation.