Kate Bueckert

School boards across the province must&nbsp;develop policies and procedures surrounding students with service animals by&nbsp;January 1, 2020.

Just over half of school boards in the province have policies in place currently, Education Minister Stephen Lecce&nbsp;said during an announcement in Kitchener on Monday morning.

A service animal is defined as any animal that provides support to a person with a disability, a memorandum from the province says.

"Anything the province can do to create a framework ... to support children who need service animals is a positive step forward and it's a realization that we can do more to provide that inclusive environment for our children," Lecce said.

Lecce said Kitchener South-Hespeler MPP Amy Fee was a driving force behind asking school boards to create service animal policies. Fee's son, Kenner, has a service dog.

"It wasn't just my son and I found other families across the province who were struggling to get their service animals into class," Fee said.

'Service animal was a right,' autistic boy's family loses human rights case

The laywer for a Waterloo region family who lost their fight to allow their autistic son to bring his service dog to class says people's accommodation needs shouldn't be second-guessed if they have a valid doctor's note.

Kenner Fee service dog 

Kenner Fee, a nine-year-old boy with his autism service dog Ivy.

Fight 'far from over:' father of autistic boy who lost service dog fight

Even though Craig Fee and his family lost their human rights challenge against the Waterloo District Catholic School Board, he says the fight is "far from over" and he hopes to put pressure on the provincial government to change the law.

Kenner Fee is seen here with his autism service dog, Ivy. Fee's father, Craig Fee, said he will continue to fight for all people who need service dogs to be able to have them in the classroom, but will focus on getting the law changed rather than stage a legal battle.

Kenner and Ivy

Fee said she hopes school boards will develop policies that will allow children with service animals to bring them into the classroom, while also taking into consideration allergies or phobias.

She said they need to make sure "all sides are looked at equally to try and see if that's the best option for the student."

Kenner Fee is MPP Amy Fee's son. He has autism and has a service dog. He brought his service dog to a Kitchener classroom to explain to other students why it's important students like him receive this kind of support at school.

Kenner Fee service dog

Education Minister Stephen Lecce announced the province is mandating all school boards to develop policies and procedures for students who have service animals.

Ontario school boards must develop service animal policy: Minister

More Stories Like This