Families fighting to save Algonquin program for special needs students
'It provides young people with opportunities like everyone else gets. It's an investment tin them.'
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Burgin has been aware of the program for the past four or five years. The plan has been that Angie take the program after high school.
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'We want her to be active and involved in the community,' he said. 'She's very social, caring and compassionate. She's by nature a helper.'
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White argues that it's important that AAADD be offered on a college campus.
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'It allows people with exceptionalities to have the college experience,' she said. 'It better prepares them for the workforce and to be contributing members of the community.'
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In a statement, Algonquin said AAADD has about 70 students as of last month. The program will wrap up on April 30, 2026.
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'The AAADD program is essentially a unique continuing education program that leads to a certificate of completion. It's a non-Ministry program that does not lead to a formal credential. As such, there is no funding from the Ministry of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security,' said the statement.
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'The decision is also a reflection of the college facing substantial fiscal challenges also being faced by the entire post-secondary sector due to a shift in immigration police and a prevailing lack of funding support from the provincial government — including operating grants and tuition freezes.'
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There have been no new students accepted into the program for three years. No new students will be accepted going forward, said Algonquin.
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There will be options for Angie in the world of work, said Burgin. She has already completed some co-op placements, including one at her school cafeteria and another at her local elementary school.
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There are a lot of day programs for young people with special needs, but very little that allows them to get out into the community, he said.
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'They could take the curriculum and move it to another setting, but that would take away the college angle.'
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Pasma said she understands the problem from Algonquin's perspective. Colleges are facing deep cuts, and they can't afford to subsidize programs.
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In February, Algonquin College president Claude Brulé recommended suspending 37 programs as the college grapples with a steep decline in international students and a provincial tuition freeze.
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'I have sympathy for Algonquin. They have to cut $60 million,' said Pasma. 'This is a program that they've been funding. We can't ask Algonquin to do programming out of the goodness of their heart.'
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But cutting AAADD also affects some of the province's most vulnerable students, said Pasma.
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'The province is underfunding in kindergarten to Grade 12. And now we're seeing it in post-secondary,' she said. 'It doesn't matter what provincial department it comes from. The provincial government should pay for it.'
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