Parents, advocates and school staff:
Please send comments on the need to reauthorize Individuals with Disabilities Education Act [IDEA]. This is the basis of most special education plans, programming as well as building based services and accommodations.
Let your legislators know that you want this Act to stay in place to educate children with disabilities.
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Improving Youths with Disabilities Outcomes for Postsecondary and Employment
John H. Hager, assistant secretary of the Office of SpecialEducation and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), U.S. Department ofEducation, is pleased to share with you an important message regarding a Notice of Proposed Priority and Definitions for Special Demonstration Programs-Model Demonstration Projects-Improving the Postsecondary and Employment Outcomes of Youths with Disabilities.
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The 2004 reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) called for states to set measurable targets for the progress of students with disabilities. Together with the No Child Left Behind Act, the IDEA is holding schools accountable for making sure students with disabilities achieve to high standards. We must ensure that all individuals, including individuals with disabilities, graduate from high school with theskills they need to successfully transition into post secondary education and the workforce.Youths with disabilities face significant challenges both in the school environment and in their transitions to adult life.National studies and reports have shown that, compared to their non-disabled peers, students with disabilities are less likely to receive a regular high school diploma; drop out twice as often; enroll in and complete postsecondary education programs at half the rate; and, up to two years after leaving high school, aboutfour in 10 youths with disabilities are employed as compared to six in 10 same-age out-of-school youths in the general population.
These and other related findings on the secondary and postsecondary outcomes of youths with disabilities have spurred federal and state efforts to improve transition policies and practices.Federal and state efforts to improve the postschool outcomes ofyouths with disabilities have resulted in some important gains over the past decade, including graduation rates, enrollment in postsecondary education and the number of youths entering theworkforce; however, despite these gains, far too many youths with disabilities continue to experience difficulties in achieving successful post-school outcomes. We are making progress, but we still have work to do.
Toward that end, I am excited to share with you the Federal Register notice inviting public comment on the Notice of Proposed Priority and Definitions under the Rehabilitation Services Administration's Special Demonstration Programs Model Demonstration Projects Improving the Postsecondary and Employment Outcomes of Youths With Disabilities. This priority is intended to improve the post-school and employment outcomes of youths with disabilities. We invite you to submit comments to help ensure that it does.
The NPP is open for public comment until Mar. 19, 2007.
Sincerely,
John H. Hager
Assistant SecretaryOffice of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services
U.S. Department of Education
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Sunday, February 25, 2007
The World of Autism-- the Dark Side
No matter what services are available, and improvements in quality and quantity, we must be ever vigilant...
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Men Charged After Autistic Boy Dies in Van
Schenectady Center Resident Allegedly abused in 2004 at previous school
By MICHELE MORGAN BOLTON and TIM O'BRIEN, Staff writers
Friday, Februa 16, 2007
COLONIE -- The 13-year-old child who died while being transported from the O.D. Heck Developmental Center was the same boy who was allegedly abused while a resident of the Anderson School in Dutchess County in 2004, his parents confirmed to the Times Union today.
Mike and Lisa Carey said authorities told them their son, Jonathan, was inappropriately restrained by two O.D. Heck workers in a transport van Thursday night going through Colonie and couldn't be revived.
``We are devastated,'' Mike Carey sobbed. ``He was such a special human being. Jonathan loved Jesus. And maybe this is the Lord's way of getting Jonathan's law passed as soon as possible.'' The two center employees -- identified by town police as Edwin Tirado, 35, of 1634 6th Ave., Schenectady, and Nadeem Mall, 32, 9 Plaske Drive, Schenectady -- have been charged with second-degree manslaughter. The two men drove around for 1 1/2 hours after the boy stopped breathing said Colonie Police Chief Steven Heider in an afternoon press conference. They went to a Hess Mart for drinks and then drove to a toy store in Mohawk Commons, a short distance from O.D. Heck, to buy a video game and drop it off at Tirado's Schenectady home.
Mall was driving a van to take the 13-year-old and a 14-year-old patient from O.D. Heck to Crossgates Mall. They first stopped at the Hannaford on Wolf Road so that Mall could get cash from an ATM. When he returned, Heider said, Tirado was restraining the boy in the back seat of the van. The boy soon stopped breathing. ``The two adults rendered no aid and they did not return to O.D. Heck for an hour and a half,'' Heider said. More than two hours after they left for the mall, they finally returned and told O.D. Heck workers they had a medical emergency. Efforts were made to revive the boy there, and he was then taken to St. Claire's Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
``The 13-year-old succumbed to what we're alleging were improper and wrongful holds placed on him,'' Heider said. Tirado, who had worked at the agency for six years, was the person restraining him, but Mall had an equal responsibility for failing to provide or get medical assistance, he said. The combination of the improper hold, and their failure to either provide or seek medical attention, resulted in the manslaughter charge, he said. The Times Union profiled the Careys earlier this year and their quest to not only learn who had physically abused the severely autistic and mentally retarded boy at the Dutchess County facility but also get his records unsealed. Jonathan was nonverbal and couldn't tell them himself. That law, he said, would give families the right to access their own children's records to be sure the state is held accountable for their care.
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Men Charged After Autistic Boy Dies in Van
Schenectady Center Resident Allegedly abused in 2004 at previous school
By MICHELE MORGAN BOLTON and TIM O'BRIEN, Staff writers
Friday, Februa 16, 2007
COLONIE -- The 13-year-old child who died while being transported from the O.D. Heck Developmental Center was the same boy who was allegedly abused while a resident of the Anderson School in Dutchess County in 2004, his parents confirmed to the Times Union today.
Mike and Lisa Carey said authorities told them their son, Jonathan, was inappropriately restrained by two O.D. Heck workers in a transport van Thursday night going through Colonie and couldn't be revived.
``We are devastated,'' Mike Carey sobbed. ``He was such a special human being. Jonathan loved Jesus. And maybe this is the Lord's way of getting Jonathan's law passed as soon as possible.'' The two center employees -- identified by town police as Edwin Tirado, 35, of 1634 6th Ave., Schenectady, and Nadeem Mall, 32, 9 Plaske Drive, Schenectady -- have been charged with second-degree manslaughter. The two men drove around for 1 1/2 hours after the boy stopped breathing said Colonie Police Chief Steven Heider in an afternoon press conference. They went to a Hess Mart for drinks and then drove to a toy store in Mohawk Commons, a short distance from O.D. Heck, to buy a video game and drop it off at Tirado's Schenectady home.
Mall was driving a van to take the 13-year-old and a 14-year-old patient from O.D. Heck to Crossgates Mall. They first stopped at the Hannaford on Wolf Road so that Mall could get cash from an ATM. When he returned, Heider said, Tirado was restraining the boy in the back seat of the van. The boy soon stopped breathing. ``The two adults rendered no aid and they did not return to O.D. Heck for an hour and a half,'' Heider said. More than two hours after they left for the mall, they finally returned and told O.D. Heck workers they had a medical emergency. Efforts were made to revive the boy there, and he was then taken to St. Claire's Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
``The 13-year-old succumbed to what we're alleging were improper and wrongful holds placed on him,'' Heider said. Tirado, who had worked at the agency for six years, was the person restraining him, but Mall had an equal responsibility for failing to provide or get medical assistance, he said. The combination of the improper hold, and their failure to either provide or seek medical attention, resulted in the manslaughter charge, he said. The Times Union profiled the Careys earlier this year and their quest to not only learn who had physically abused the severely autistic and mentally retarded boy at the Dutchess County facility but also get his records unsealed. Jonathan was nonverbal and couldn't tell them himself. That law, he said, would give families the right to access their own children's records to be sure the state is held accountable for their care.
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
The World of Autism
There have been a number of articles and updates on the Autism Spectrum Front. Check out the latest research on the genetic level http://mail.rochestercdr.org/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/health/6369347.stm
This is progress of a sort, but not really helpful in the short term for parents, family and people with the spectrum. Gene links--genetic markers-- how does that help someone know not to go out a window, fire burns or how to look someone in the eyes when they talk? (Sigh)
60 Minutes also did a piece on autism research, which I didn't get to see. But it looks like more science experiments on people with disabilities. Check it out, and see what you think:
www.cbsnews.com/stories/1998/07/08/60minutes/main13502.shtml
A video and a text version of the story will be posted there as well after it airs.
There is also some good news-- of a sort. A study that being a sibling of a child or children with a disability does not psychologically scar you for life. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/18/magazine/18autistic.t.html?ex=1172466000&en=50b0fa56f2c82f04&ei=5065&partner=MYWAY
That was the old rationale for putting kids 'in the home'-- protect the abled bodied children. Now research shows it doesn't hurt, sometimes it makes a more sensitive, caring sibling, and sometimes sibs end of stressed and neurotic.
A mixed bag-- just like being anyone's sibling...
This is progress of a sort, but not really helpful in the short term for parents, family and people with the spectrum. Gene links--genetic markers-- how does that help someone know not to go out a window, fire burns or how to look someone in the eyes when they talk? (Sigh)
60 Minutes also did a piece on autism research, which I didn't get to see. But it looks like more science experiments on people with disabilities. Check it out, and see what you think:
www.cbsnews.com/stories/1998/07/08/60minutes/main13502.shtml
A video and a text version of the story will be posted there as well after it airs.
There is also some good news-- of a sort. A study that being a sibling of a child or children with a disability does not psychologically scar you for life. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/18/magazine/18autistic.t.html?ex=1172466000&en=50b0fa56f2c82f04&ei=5065&partner=MYWAY
That was the old rationale for putting kids 'in the home'-- protect the abled bodied children. Now research shows it doesn't hurt, sometimes it makes a more sensitive, caring sibling, and sometimes sibs end of stressed and neurotic.
A mixed bag-- just like being anyone's sibling...
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Ashley Treatment Update
I had a prior post regarding the protest in Chicago by the activist groups FRIDA. (The group Not Dead Yet and ADAPT, both disability civil rights activist group, protested with FRIDA at the American Medical Association headquarters.)
The latest developments-- the AMA has agreed to a meeting, to discuss concerns over the ethics of the Ashley Treatment.
The latest developments-- the AMA has agreed to a meeting, to discuss concerns over the ethics of the Ashley Treatment.
Thursday, February 08, 2007
A Disability Community Thumbs Up to...
1. The Fallen Heroes Center
A world-class state-of-the-art physical rehabilitation facility for wounded warrior opened January 29, 2007. http://www.fallenheroesfund.org/The Center will serve military personnel who have been catastrophically disabled in operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Center will also serve military personnel and veterans severely injured in other operations and in the normal performance of their duties, combat and non-combat related."
2. End of use of term Mental Retardation by influential journal
After almost 5 decades of beingcalled Mental Retardation, this influential journal in special education changed names to Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities under the leadership of Editor Steven J. Taylor. The journal's name change is a microcosm of society's ongoing struggle to find a socially acceptable way of addressing persons with an intellectual disability. The new name comes close on the heels of the name change of its publisher, the American Association onIntellectual and Developmental Disabilities, formerly AAMR, the world's oldest organization representing professionals in developmental disabilities.
For all those who ask, "What's in a name?" Dr. Taylor says, "The term intellectual and developmental disabilities is simply less stigmatizing than mental retardation, mental deficiency, feeble-mindedness, idiocy, imbecility, and other terminology we have cast aside over the years." However, Taylor acknowledges that the crux of the issue here goes beyond language and terminology into the deeper issues of inclusion and acceptance of people with intellectual disabilities in society. He explains, "Anyone whobelieves that we have finally arrived at the perfect terminology will be proven wrong by history. I am sure that at some future point we will find the phrase intellectual and developmental disabilities to be inadequate and demeaning."
3. Braille Making a Comeback
In March 2007, blind grade-school students from across New England will travelto Newton to test their skill in reading Braille. The competition, called the Braille Challenge, measures students' Braille reading speed and accuracy,with the top finishers in the regional events going on to national finals this June in Los Angeles.
The Braille Challenge is in its sixth year, and there's been a steady rise in the number of competitors. It's a sign of a growing resurgence in Braille, a writing system that not so long ago seemed headed toward extinction.
A world-class state-of-the-art physical rehabilitation facility for wounded warrior opened January 29, 2007. http://www.fallenheroesfund.org/The Center will serve military personnel who have been catastrophically disabled in operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Center will also serve military personnel and veterans severely injured in other operations and in the normal performance of their duties, combat and non-combat related."
2. End of use of term Mental Retardation by influential journal
After almost 5 decades of beingcalled Mental Retardation, this influential journal in special education changed names to Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities under the leadership of Editor Steven J. Taylor. The journal's name change is a microcosm of society's ongoing struggle to find a socially acceptable way of addressing persons with an intellectual disability. The new name comes close on the heels of the name change of its publisher, the American Association onIntellectual and Developmental Disabilities, formerly AAMR, the world's oldest organization representing professionals in developmental disabilities.
For all those who ask, "What's in a name?" Dr. Taylor says, "The term intellectual and developmental disabilities is simply less stigmatizing than mental retardation, mental deficiency, feeble-mindedness, idiocy, imbecility, and other terminology we have cast aside over the years." However, Taylor acknowledges that the crux of the issue here goes beyond language and terminology into the deeper issues of inclusion and acceptance of people with intellectual disabilities in society. He explains, "Anyone whobelieves that we have finally arrived at the perfect terminology will be proven wrong by history. I am sure that at some future point we will find the phrase intellectual and developmental disabilities to be inadequate and demeaning."
3. Braille Making a Comeback
In March 2007, blind grade-school students from across New England will travelto Newton to test their skill in reading Braille. The competition, called the Braille Challenge, measures students' Braille reading speed and accuracy,with the top finishers in the regional events going on to national finals this June in Los Angeles.
The Braille Challenge is in its sixth year, and there's been a steady rise in the number of competitors. It's a sign of a growing resurgence in Braille, a writing system that not so long ago seemed headed toward extinction.
AAPD Online Forum Launched
Starting February 1, AAPD will join some of the nations leading legal analysts and commentators in regularly weighing in on the issues making headlines in a new online blog and discussion forumcalled Talking Justice, at www.justicetalking.org. The new feature is a project of Justice Talking, the award-winning NPR program that airs in nearly 100 public radio markets and in 140 countries around the globe via NPR Worldwide and Armed ForcesRadio Network.
Each day of the week, a new, timely commentary from a distinguished contributor will be posted at Talking Justice. Bloggers from organizations as diverse as the American Tort ReformAssociation, the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Family Research Council, the National Council of Churches, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the National District Attorneys Association and the satirical group the Capitol Steps will offer up their views about law and American life. Some of the best legal blogs, websites and newspapers, including SCOTUSBlog, FindLaw, theNational Law Journal and Jurist will post content as well. AAPD will be featured on the 13th day of the month but has also put upan initial post just yesterday.
That initial post, entitledKeeping the World Safe for Disability, can be viewed at:http://mail.rochestercdr.org/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://communities.justicetalking.org/blogs/day13/default.aspxListeners and readers also are invited to participate in thedebate via discussion forums centered around topics aired onJustice Talking programs. Justice Talking, hosted by veteran NPR correspondent Margot Adler,has won 18 national journalism awards. Each program features intelligent conversation with activists and analysts, personalstories of those affected by the law, and lively debate on todays legal issues. A project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center ofthe University of Pennsylvania, Justice Talking is made possible with the support of the Annenberg Foundation.We invite you to visit the Talking Justice blogs upon its launch, and offer your feedback at comments@justicetalking.org or 215-573-8919. You can stay up to date on whats happening on the show bysigning up for their weekly podcasts or e-newsletter athttp://mail.rochestercdr.org/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.justicetalking.org. And be sure to check in on the 13th of each month to see the latest contribution from AAPD.
Each day of the week, a new, timely commentary from a distinguished contributor will be posted at Talking Justice. Bloggers from organizations as diverse as the American Tort ReformAssociation, the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Family Research Council, the National Council of Churches, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the National District Attorneys Association and the satirical group the Capitol Steps will offer up their views about law and American life. Some of the best legal blogs, websites and newspapers, including SCOTUSBlog, FindLaw, theNational Law Journal and Jurist will post content as well. AAPD will be featured on the 13th day of the month but has also put upan initial post just yesterday.
That initial post, entitledKeeping the World Safe for Disability, can be viewed at:http://mail.rochestercdr.org/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://communities.justicetalking.org/blogs/day13/default.aspxListeners and readers also are invited to participate in thedebate via discussion forums centered around topics aired onJustice Talking programs. Justice Talking, hosted by veteran NPR correspondent Margot Adler,has won 18 national journalism awards. Each program features intelligent conversation with activists and analysts, personalstories of those affected by the law, and lively debate on todays legal issues. A project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center ofthe University of Pennsylvania, Justice Talking is made possible with the support of the Annenberg Foundation.We invite you to visit the Talking Justice blogs upon its launch, and offer your feedback at comments@justicetalking.org or 215-573-8919. You can stay up to date on whats happening on the show bysigning up for their weekly podcasts or e-newsletter athttp://mail.rochestercdr.org/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.justicetalking.org. And be sure to check in on the 13th of each month to see the latest contribution from AAPD.
Recruiters Seek Disabled Students
A fad or a real attempt to level the employment playing field for people with disabilities? You decide.
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Untapped' pool of potential employees called on to fill posts
By Jimmy Tobias
January 30, 2007
As Fortune 500 companies continue to diversify their offices with different types of top-tier students, candidates with disabilities may prove to be the next target audience.Last week, PepsiCo - the parent company of Pepsi, Frito-Lay and Tropicana -visited the University specifically to recruit students with disabilities,both physical and mental, for employment positions.The recruitment effort, which included a dinner and formal presentation, was facilitated by Morris Street Partners, a New York-based organization that currently has projects with PepsiCo and Merrill Lynch and aims to increasethe number of disabled persons in the corporate workplace.To help companies draw in students with disabilities, Morris Street Partnershosts events that are just like standard on-campus recruitment ones but are exclusive - and tailored - to disabled students.Last week's initiative was PepsiCo's first disability-focused recruitment project with Morris Street Partners, said PepsiCo Director of ExecutiveStaffing John Delpino, who heard about Morris Street Partners through a disabled executive at PepsiCo.After deciding to "get [their] tail wet," Delpino said, PepsiCo officials deemed the disabled a "very important population" and decided to go afterit.And those students taking advantage of Morris Street Partners' services are singing the company's praises."The idea behind the company is inspiring," said College freshman Julie Gutowksi, who does marketing for the company on campus."Hopefully, [it] will take hold on college campuses, as well as in the business world," she said.Gutowksi began working at Morris Street Partners after attending one oftheir recruitment sessions last semester with Merrill Lynch.One Wharton senior, who is currently utilizing Morris Street Partners'services - and who refused to disclose her name because of the sensitive nature of her own disability, an auditory- processing disorder that impairshearing - is currently in the early stages of recruitment at PepsiCo. She called Morris Street Partners' work "very insightful," adding that, "aslong as the disability does not affect [the person's] performance as an employee," why not hire them?
Still, officials at Morris Street Partners say they are not offering these services just for the sake of being considerate."It is not about being nice - it is about being smart," said Susan Lang, theCEO of Morris Street Partners.Lang added that the non-profit organization approaches its work from abusiness perspective.Rich Donovan, who started the organization last March, added that "Morris basically aims to bring disabled individuals into the market economy."Donovan, who has cerebral palsy, called the disabled a significant national minority and pointed out that "this is something that hasn't been attempted before in a meaningful way."Morris Street Partners is active on five campuses and is in contact with 15 others. It will return to campus next year with a new, although not-yet-chosen, name.Career Services, which typically organizes on-campus recruitment events,advertised this event, but most of the planning was done by Morris StreetPartners themselves, Barbara Hewitt, associate director of Career Services,wrote in an e-mail.
The Daily Pennsylvanian
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Untapped' pool of potential employees called on to fill posts
By Jimmy Tobias
January 30, 2007
As Fortune 500 companies continue to diversify their offices with different types of top-tier students, candidates with disabilities may prove to be the next target audience.Last week, PepsiCo - the parent company of Pepsi, Frito-Lay and Tropicana -visited the University specifically to recruit students with disabilities,both physical and mental, for employment positions.The recruitment effort, which included a dinner and formal presentation, was facilitated by Morris Street Partners, a New York-based organization that currently has projects with PepsiCo and Merrill Lynch and aims to increasethe number of disabled persons in the corporate workplace.To help companies draw in students with disabilities, Morris Street Partnershosts events that are just like standard on-campus recruitment ones but are exclusive - and tailored - to disabled students.Last week's initiative was PepsiCo's first disability-focused recruitment project with Morris Street Partners, said PepsiCo Director of ExecutiveStaffing John Delpino, who heard about Morris Street Partners through a disabled executive at PepsiCo.After deciding to "get [their] tail wet," Delpino said, PepsiCo officials deemed the disabled a "very important population" and decided to go afterit.And those students taking advantage of Morris Street Partners' services are singing the company's praises."The idea behind the company is inspiring," said College freshman Julie Gutowksi, who does marketing for the company on campus."Hopefully, [it] will take hold on college campuses, as well as in the business world," she said.Gutowksi began working at Morris Street Partners after attending one oftheir recruitment sessions last semester with Merrill Lynch.One Wharton senior, who is currently utilizing Morris Street Partners'services - and who refused to disclose her name because of the sensitive nature of her own disability, an auditory- processing disorder that impairshearing - is currently in the early stages of recruitment at PepsiCo. She called Morris Street Partners' work "very insightful," adding that, "aslong as the disability does not affect [the person's] performance as an employee," why not hire them?
Still, officials at Morris Street Partners say they are not offering these services just for the sake of being considerate."It is not about being nice - it is about being smart," said Susan Lang, theCEO of Morris Street Partners.Lang added that the non-profit organization approaches its work from abusiness perspective.Rich Donovan, who started the organization last March, added that "Morris basically aims to bring disabled individuals into the market economy."Donovan, who has cerebral palsy, called the disabled a significant national minority and pointed out that "this is something that hasn't been attempted before in a meaningful way."Morris Street Partners is active on five campuses and is in contact with 15 others. It will return to campus next year with a new, although not-yet-chosen, name.Career Services, which typically organizes on-campus recruitment events,advertised this event, but most of the planning was done by Morris StreetPartners themselves, Barbara Hewitt, associate director of Career Services,wrote in an e-mail.
The Daily Pennsylvanian
Saturday, February 03, 2007
Paretal Tool Kit for Children with Disbilities
New CD Released: Tool Kit on Teaching and Assessing StudentsWith Disabilities: Parents' Materials"John H. Hager, assistant secretary of the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), U.S. Department of Education, is pleased to share with you an important message abouta newly released CD, Tool Kit on Teaching and Assessing Students With Disabilities: Parents' Materials.
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I am pleased to announce the release of a CD version of the ToolKit on Teaching and Assessing Students with Disabilities: Parents' Materials designed to assist parents and states in their effortsto work together to raise the achievement of all students with disabilities.The Parent Tool Kit compiles materials identified to augment the previously released CD, Tool Kit on Teaching and Assessing Students with Disabilities, and offers a collection of resources on the same substantive areas addressed, including assessment, instructional practices, behavior and accommodations. These new documents were written specifically for parents and include information they need as they work with schools to ensure thattheir children are receiving a quality education. Materials included in the new Parent Tool Kit provide information that willhelp them become active and informed participants in IEP discussions and other decision-making meetings that support students with disabilities and their families.
To encourage broad dissemination of these materials, we havelaunched a new Web site, www.osepideasthatwork.org/index.asp,which includes the materials in the Parent Tool Kit. The website will continue to be updated with additional materials as they become available.This Parent Tool Kit is an example of the Department of Education's ongoing commitment to ensuring that states, local school districts, schools and families have the most current and relevant information about practices that will improve and enhance education opportunities for children with disabilities throughout the nation. We appreciate the time you commit and the work you doevery day to improve the academic achievement of students with disabilities and hope you find these materials useful in advancing achievement through strong accountability and assessments for all students.
John H. Hager
Assistant Secretary
Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services
U.S. Department of Education
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I am pleased to announce the release of a CD version of the ToolKit on Teaching and Assessing Students with Disabilities: Parents' Materials designed to assist parents and states in their effortsto work together to raise the achievement of all students with disabilities.The Parent Tool Kit compiles materials identified to augment the previously released CD, Tool Kit on Teaching and Assessing Students with Disabilities, and offers a collection of resources on the same substantive areas addressed, including assessment, instructional practices, behavior and accommodations. These new documents were written specifically for parents and include information they need as they work with schools to ensure thattheir children are receiving a quality education. Materials included in the new Parent Tool Kit provide information that willhelp them become active and informed participants in IEP discussions and other decision-making meetings that support students with disabilities and their families.
To encourage broad dissemination of these materials, we havelaunched a new Web site, www.osepideasthatwork.org/index.asp,which includes the materials in the Parent Tool Kit. The website will continue to be updated with additional materials as they become available.This Parent Tool Kit is an example of the Department of Education's ongoing commitment to ensuring that states, local school districts, schools and families have the most current and relevant information about practices that will improve and enhance education opportunities for children with disabilities throughout the nation. We appreciate the time you commit and the work you doevery day to improve the academic achievement of students with disabilities and hope you find these materials useful in advancing achievement through strong accountability and assessments for all students.
John H. Hager
Assistant Secretary
Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services
U.S. Department of Education
A Mad, Mad, Mad Disability World- A Thumbs Down to...
#1 The Dutch Dating Programme for the Visibly Disfigured
Reuters January 27, 2007
The Netherlands, the country that has pioneered reality shows like Big Brother, is planning a new first - a dating programme for the visibly disfigured. The broadcaster SBS 6 is seeking candidates for its Love at Second Sight show due to be launched on February 20. "Do you have a visible serious handicap and are you looking for a partner?" says an appeal on its website. "The programme is a platform for people with such problems to share experiences and feelings in a positive way with the rest of the Netherlands and to show that they are absolutely not pitiful," the broadcaster said.
"The main aim of the programme is to remove prejudice about these people, to create more acceptance and respect and, of course, to find the love of their lives." But the majority of Dutch viewers are turned off by the show that was initially set to be called Monster Love. A poll by the mass circulation De Telegraaf daily showed 85 per cent do not like the idea, with only 9 per cent in favour.
#2 DC/NYC bus driver Disallows Seeing Eye Dog
The Washington PostSunday, January 28, 2007
"No dog , no dog," shouted the driver and another worker when District resident Joe Orozco and his guide dog tried to board a Todays Bus fromWashington to New York. Orozco protested that the company is required by lawto accommodate service animals, but the workers continued to block his entryand laughed, he says, when he threatened to call police. Once he called police, the workers said he could ride if the dog was put in the bottom ofthe bus with the luggage. They relented after police came.When Orozco tried to board the return bus the next day, a Todays Bus employee in New York yanked his ticket away and tried to return his money,he says.The bus pulled away. After Orozco called police, workers said he could take the next bus but ordered him to sit in the back. He complied, but he is filing a complaint with the Justice Department, which enforces the AmericansWith Disabilities Act (ADA). Todays Bus did not respond to four telephone messages left for the manager and owner.
The ADA guarantees interstate service to disabled passengers; that includes providing access, with advance notice, to people in wheelchairs. But many ofthe companies that pick up passengers curbside -- the so-called "Chinatownbuses" -- simply ignore the law. In 2004, regulators checked 14 companiesthat operate between Washington and New York and cited 11 of them for violating the ADA. The Justice Department launched an investigation inOctober 2004."Wecontinue to work on it," spokeswoman Cynthia Magnuson said last week.Gathering evidence seems quick and easy to CoGo, who recently called Todays to ask about wheelchair access. The man who answered refused to give hisname, but his answer was clear: "No wheelchair."To register a complaint, call the Justice Department, 800-514-0301.__.
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#3 The US Treasury Department for Keeping Money Inaccessible to the Blind
Hartford Courant, ConnecticutWednesday, January 24, 2007
Why Keep The Blind In Dark About Money?By CYRUS HABIB
Blind Americans may soon find themselves able to use money just like anyone else. That is unless the Treasury Department is successful this month in its appeal of a recent federal court order that paper currency be made recognizable to the blind, who are currently unable to distinguish onedenomination from another.I, for example, rely on the generosity of cab drivers, baristas and storeclerks each time I make a purchase with cash. That I have rarely been ripped off is a testament to their honesty or my charm, but I cannot help butprotest the perpetual necessity for either. After all, there are 180 countries in which this is not the case, because their currency is designed to be distinguishable by all.
U.S. District Judge James Robertson asked the Treasury Department to determine the best means of making money distinguishable by the blind,citing the myriad solutions proposed by the organization that filed thelawsuit, the American Council of the Blind. These included using raised ink, modifying the size of certain bills and producing a tactile mark to indicatea bill's denomination. The Treasury Department has objected to all such solutions, claiming that the $75 million price tag is simply too high. Of course, Treasury's lawyers fail to mention that the cost would have beenfar lower had the department acted voluntarily when the $20 bill was redesigned in 1998 and the $10 bill was modified last year. Instead, it has decided to spend our tax money fighting the blind in court, appealing Judge Robertson's decision even before a final judgment on the nature of asolution could be reached.
Blind people in the United States suffer from a staggering 70 percent unemployment rate, and a disproportionately high percentage of those who are employed work in the low end of the service sector. There is no questionthat the catastrophic poverty of America's blind requires a solution. Why not begin by giving us access to money at the most atomic level? How canblind Americans become truly independent, achieving the success we deserveand leaving behind the stigma of federal and state aid, without being able to differentiate between a dollar bill and a fifty?
The Treasury Department suggests using debit and credit cards, disregarding the fact that the lives of many blind Americans hinge upon financial exchanges for which plastic is often useless, such as catching a crosstown bus, purchasing a cup of coffee or getting change for laundry. These basic day-to-day experiences may not constitute reality for Treasury SecretaryHenry Paulson and his team, but they certainly do for millions of blind andlow-vision Americans. Some have called the lawsuit frivolous, arguing that blind people havemanaged to survive for years by relying on others for help. Such reasoning does more than ignore the overwhelming poverty and hardship that plague the blind community; it dishonors the sacrifices millions of disabled Americans made to help bring about passage of the landmark Americans With Disabilities Act.
Money is essential to a person's participation in society. Its accessibility to blind people should be considered as important as that ofwheelchair ramps or Braille in elevators.When it comes to accommodating disabilities such as blindness, let uscontinue to lead the world in practice as well as in principle. Moreimportant still, let us tell the world that we, too, believe that blindnessshould not be an obstacle to financial independence. In doing so, let usalso take a significant step toward ameliorating the living conditions of blind Americans, now and for years to come.The Treasury Department should obey Judge Robertson's order and show us themoney
Reuters January 27, 2007
The Netherlands, the country that has pioneered reality shows like Big Brother, is planning a new first - a dating programme for the visibly disfigured. The broadcaster SBS 6 is seeking candidates for its Love at Second Sight show due to be launched on February 20. "Do you have a visible serious handicap and are you looking for a partner?" says an appeal on its website. "The programme is a platform for people with such problems to share experiences and feelings in a positive way with the rest of the Netherlands and to show that they are absolutely not pitiful," the broadcaster said.
"The main aim of the programme is to remove prejudice about these people, to create more acceptance and respect and, of course, to find the love of their lives." But the majority of Dutch viewers are turned off by the show that was initially set to be called Monster Love. A poll by the mass circulation De Telegraaf daily showed 85 per cent do not like the idea, with only 9 per cent in favour.
#2 DC/NYC bus driver Disallows Seeing Eye Dog
The Washington PostSunday, January 28, 2007
"No dog , no dog," shouted the driver and another worker when District resident Joe Orozco and his guide dog tried to board a Todays Bus fromWashington to New York. Orozco protested that the company is required by lawto accommodate service animals, but the workers continued to block his entryand laughed, he says, when he threatened to call police. Once he called police, the workers said he could ride if the dog was put in the bottom ofthe bus with the luggage. They relented after police came.When Orozco tried to board the return bus the next day, a Todays Bus employee in New York yanked his ticket away and tried to return his money,he says.The bus pulled away. After Orozco called police, workers said he could take the next bus but ordered him to sit in the back. He complied, but he is filing a complaint with the Justice Department, which enforces the AmericansWith Disabilities Act (ADA). Todays Bus did not respond to four telephone messages left for the manager and owner.
The ADA guarantees interstate service to disabled passengers; that includes providing access, with advance notice, to people in wheelchairs. But many ofthe companies that pick up passengers curbside -- the so-called "Chinatownbuses" -- simply ignore the law. In 2004, regulators checked 14 companiesthat operate between Washington and New York and cited 11 of them for violating the ADA. The Justice Department launched an investigation inOctober 2004."Wecontinue to work on it," spokeswoman Cynthia Magnuson said last week.Gathering evidence seems quick and easy to CoGo, who recently called Todays to ask about wheelchair access. The man who answered refused to give hisname, but his answer was clear: "No wheelchair."To register a complaint, call the Justice Department, 800-514-0301.__.
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#3 The US Treasury Department for Keeping Money Inaccessible to the Blind
Hartford Courant, ConnecticutWednesday, January 24, 2007
Why Keep The Blind In Dark About Money?By CYRUS HABIB
Blind Americans may soon find themselves able to use money just like anyone else. That is unless the Treasury Department is successful this month in its appeal of a recent federal court order that paper currency be made recognizable to the blind, who are currently unable to distinguish onedenomination from another.I, for example, rely on the generosity of cab drivers, baristas and storeclerks each time I make a purchase with cash. That I have rarely been ripped off is a testament to their honesty or my charm, but I cannot help butprotest the perpetual necessity for either. After all, there are 180 countries in which this is not the case, because their currency is designed to be distinguishable by all.
U.S. District Judge James Robertson asked the Treasury Department to determine the best means of making money distinguishable by the blind,citing the myriad solutions proposed by the organization that filed thelawsuit, the American Council of the Blind. These included using raised ink, modifying the size of certain bills and producing a tactile mark to indicatea bill's denomination. The Treasury Department has objected to all such solutions, claiming that the $75 million price tag is simply too high. Of course, Treasury's lawyers fail to mention that the cost would have beenfar lower had the department acted voluntarily when the $20 bill was redesigned in 1998 and the $10 bill was modified last year. Instead, it has decided to spend our tax money fighting the blind in court, appealing Judge Robertson's decision even before a final judgment on the nature of asolution could be reached.
Blind people in the United States suffer from a staggering 70 percent unemployment rate, and a disproportionately high percentage of those who are employed work in the low end of the service sector. There is no questionthat the catastrophic poverty of America's blind requires a solution. Why not begin by giving us access to money at the most atomic level? How canblind Americans become truly independent, achieving the success we deserveand leaving behind the stigma of federal and state aid, without being able to differentiate between a dollar bill and a fifty?
The Treasury Department suggests using debit and credit cards, disregarding the fact that the lives of many blind Americans hinge upon financial exchanges for which plastic is often useless, such as catching a crosstown bus, purchasing a cup of coffee or getting change for laundry. These basic day-to-day experiences may not constitute reality for Treasury SecretaryHenry Paulson and his team, but they certainly do for millions of blind andlow-vision Americans. Some have called the lawsuit frivolous, arguing that blind people havemanaged to survive for years by relying on others for help. Such reasoning does more than ignore the overwhelming poverty and hardship that plague the blind community; it dishonors the sacrifices millions of disabled Americans made to help bring about passage of the landmark Americans With Disabilities Act.
Money is essential to a person's participation in society. Its accessibility to blind people should be considered as important as that ofwheelchair ramps or Braille in elevators.When it comes to accommodating disabilities such as blindness, let uscontinue to lead the world in practice as well as in principle. Moreimportant still, let us tell the world that we, too, believe that blindnessshould not be an obstacle to financial independence. In doing so, let usalso take a significant step toward ameliorating the living conditions of blind Americans, now and for years to come.The Treasury Department should obey Judge Robertson's order and show us themoney
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