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By MOLLY CORMIER
For The Daily Gleaner

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A room full of parents interested in the rights of students with disabilities were told earlier this week by the New Brunswick Human Rights Commission that zero-tolerance policies in public schools can amount to discrimination.

Human rights officer Francis Young spoke about the Guideline on Accommodating Students With a Disability, adopted by the New Brunswick Human Rights Commission in 2007.

The guideline is only the second of its kind in Canada, Young said.

"The guideline has a wide scope as far as students with a disability," he said.

"It covers physical and mental disability and it also applies to parents of students who have a disability. It applies to the actual academic aspect of school, but also the extracurricular activities at school."

The presentation was designed to inform parents about the guideline, which outlines accommodations for students with disabilities attending public school.

The guideline includes protecting students with disabilities from disciplinary actions that Young described as "blanket policies."

"Discipline policies cannot simply be applied blindly, irrespective of the cause of the problem," he said. "If the behaviour problem is simply the acting out of a disability, that has to be considered. The same applies for absenteeism. If the absenteeism is due to a disability, the school cannot simply have a uniform, blanket policy."

Young received positive reaction from parents at his presentation on Monday.

Some said the guideline has helped improve the quality of education in their childrens' schools.

"I heard this evening of a parent in relation to their own child who was having problems getting the supports he needed, so he actually gave the school a copy of the guideline. He said 'These are the legal requirements,' and according to the parent, things went much more smoothly," Young said.

Shana Soucy, inclusive education co-ordinator at the New Brunswick Association for Community Living, was also on hand to speak about the importance of inclusive education in the province.

Soucy said the guideline is helping students with intellectual disabilities reach their full potential by being included in regular classrooms.

"It informs them of their rights and what's available, and where they can get supports to make sure everyone's included," Soucy said, adding education about the guideline reduces the amount of complaints received by the Human Rights Commission.

Young said the guideline was created in response to a need for accommodation in schools as well as the workplace.

"Almost 60 per cent of our complaints deal with physical and mental disability and about three quarters of those issues deal with employment," he said.

"We had already issued a guideline that deals with employment so we wanted to have one that extends into school."

In some cases, the guideline has created a demanding requirement for school boards, Young said.

"In light of limits on resources they may feel that they don't actually have the resources they need to completely deliver on the requirements," he said.

But by continuing to give presentations, the New Brunswick Human Rights Commission hopes education professionals will see the importance of such a guideline.

"I think they understand they are requirements of the Human Rights Act, but also that they are practical requirements to allow all their students to grow to their full potential," Young said.