OTHER SPECIALIZED SCHOOLS

Africentric Alternative School: Opened amid fierce controversy in September 2009 as a way to tackle a high dropout rate among black students, the school teaches lessons that reflect black children’s heritage. Some argued that a separate school smacked of segregation, even though it was open to children of all colours and is set inside Sheppard Public School. Enrolment has sagged to 130 students from kindergarten to Grade 8, partly because there is no free bussing, but has a loyal core of families who support the concept.

Ben Heppner Vocal Music Academy: A specialty program for elementary kids who like to sing, this school has about 70 students from Grades 4 to 8, set within Heather Heights P.S. in a quiet corner of Scarborough near Ellesmere and Scarborough Golf Club Rds. The school enters choral competitions, sings at nursing homes and has performed on morning television. Many are prepping to apply to popular arts high schools.

Boys’ Leadership Academy: This specialty elementary school opened in 2011 to give boys a chance to talk about what it means to be male, without having to worry about girls listening in. Housed in Rexdale’s The Elms Junior Middle School, the program has focused, over the years, on busting macho stereotypes while also giving boys more time to be active and stocking the shelves with books that tend to appeal to the male taste in reading. It has about 130 students from Grades 4 to 8.

Jean Augustine Girls’ Leadership Academy: The smallest of the Toronto District School Board’s specialty elementary schools, the school has attracted only 17 students this year from Grades 4 to 8. Housed in Highland Heights Public School in a residential part of Scarborough near Finch Ave. and Birchmount Rd., the program focuses on giving the girls leadership opportunities and letting them express themselves without worrying about male classmates.