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13| W aterloo C hronicle | T hursday,June 14,2018 w aterloochronicle.ca Vania arrived in Canada from Cuba with little more than a few dollars in her pocket. Knowing only a bit of English, a trustingManager recognized her work ethic and passion and gave Vania her first job at Tims. Grateful for this chance, she worked her way from the kitchen to the cash, and all the way up to General Manager. Now Vania looks to hire new Canadians at her restaurant, giving them the same life-changing opportunity she received 17 years ago. Thank you, Vania. And thanks to all those whomake our community stronger. "This experience changed my life. Now it'smy duty to pay it forward." Vania, TeamMember from Burlington, ON © Tim Hortons, 2018 A Waterloo Region public school trustee's bid to secure more supports for children diag- nosed with attention deficit hy- peractivity disorder is about to receive some provincewide at- tention. Natalie Waddell, a Waterloo Region District School Board trustee representing Kitchener, won the backing of the Ontario Public School Boards' Associa- tion for her efforts to recognize children with ADHD as "excep- tional learners," much like au- tistic children, giving them le- gal rights to educational accom- modations in school for their disability. The trustee's proposal, sub- mitted on behalf of the local pub- lic school board, asks the associ- ation to lobby the Ontario Min- istry of Education to acknowl- edge ADHD as a neurological disability, and to implement training on the disorder for edu- cators. Waddell's proposal, present- ed at the association's meeting last week, received a green light for a lobby effort. The associa- tion went a step further to refer the motion to the ministry's ad- visory council on special educa- tion. The support is an encourag- ing step for the Waterloo Region public trustee, whose own 11- year-old son was diagnosed with ADHD. "I realize that these lobbying efforts may ultimately not lead to any significant changes," she explained, "but I am overjoyed the association is willing to stand up as a unit and use our collective voices to publicly in- dicate to the ministry that the current situation needs to be changed for these students." Waddell is grateful for the chance to present her proposal to the association, thanking lo- cal public trustees for their sup- port. ADHD is considered one of the most common neurodeve- lopmental disorders, affecting five per cent of students, and is recognized as a disability by the Ontario Human Rights Commis- sion. Although children with the disorder can have average or above average intellectual abil- ities, their success in school is at risk because the disability can impair cognition, memory, speed at which information is processed, reading and writing literacy, as well as math prob- lem solving. Research also shows those with ADHD are three times more likely than their peers to drop out of high school. The dis- order can also increase risks of substance abuse or mental health issues. Currently, the education ministry does not recognize ADHD under its five categories of exceptionality, something Waddell argues creates inequi- table access to special supports, potentially preventing students from reaching their full poten- tial in school and chosen ca- reers. EDUCATION Trustee wins support to fight for rights for kids with ADHD LISA RUTLEDGE lrutledge@cambridgetimes.ca Students with ADHD should have right to special accommodations in school, says trustee A Waterloo Region public school trustee is fighting to protect education rights of students diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Metro/Photo