(1993). The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Child Care Providers: Increasing Service Access for Young Children with Disabilities and Families. This presentation addresses aspects of the Americans with Disabilities Act of relevance to day care centers in Arkansas. First, Title I of the Act which addresses discrimination in employment is summarized including definition of "individual with a disability," reasonable accommodations, identifying essential functions, want ads, application forms, references, and medical exams. Next, aspects of Title III, which prohibits discrimination against the full and equal enjoyment of goods and services, are considered. These include integrated programs, barrier free access, policies and procedures, and "readily achievable" accommodations, reasonable modifications, and provision of auxiliary aids and services, terminology, and suggestions for relating to people with disabilities. Schedules for accomplishing the elimination of barriers are described for new construction, alterations to existing structures, and removal of barriers in existing facilities. Seven steps for a… [PDF]
(1993). The Americans with Disabilities Act. A Guide for People with Disabilities, Their Families, and Advocates. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 outlaws discrimination against people with disabilities. It is a bold and comprehensive law affecting employment, transportation, services provided by state and local government, services and accommodations offered by private businesses, and telecommunication access for people with communication impairments. This guide devotes one section to each of the law's four Titles. The section on employment (Title I of the ADA) reviews requirements concerning: employers and activities covered, the meaning of a "qualified individual with a disability," the concept of direct threat, pre-employment inquiry about disabilities, medical exams, medical insurance, and rights and remedies. The section on public services (Title II) covers: public service providers, accessibility including reasonable modifications, rules of integration, publicly funded/operated transportation, and rights and remedies. Title III is on public accommodations and… [PDF]
(1992). Selection of Least Restrictive Behavioral Interventions for Use with Students with Disabilities. Appendix H to the Utah State Board of Education Special Education Rules. The purpose of these Utah behavioral intervention policies and procedures is to provide state-of-the-art guidelines for educators dealing with the behavior problems of students with disabilities. The standards serve to assure that students have access to effective education procedures and due process, and that school districts minimize their risk of being involved in due process hearings and litigation. The guidebook describes the functions, composition, and responsibilities of the Utah State Office of Education Human Rights Committee, the Professional Peer Review Committee, local human rights committees, and the Individualized Education Program Team. It provides sample forms for summarizing interventions, acquiring parental consent, summarizing committee actions, and implementing emergency procedures. Behavioral interventions are then discussed, including: (1) preliminary strategies such as environmental engineering, pacing, home notes, precision commands, and parent conferences;… [PDF]
(1993). Bilingual Preschool Programs: Future Directions. Language policy in Australia has evolved in three phases, with three kinds of argumentation prevailing in public attitudes. In the first phase (1945 to the mid 1970s), maintenance of the first language by non-English-speaking-background (NESB) immigrants was considered a hindrance to assimilation and educational achievement, and thus abandonment of the first language was encouraged. In the second phase (beginning in the mid-1970s), first language maintenance came to be seen as a right, either for protection of cultural identity or for educational equity. Although this view remained controversial, Australia's first bilingual education programs were developed during this phase. In the third phase (late 1980s), bilingual education was seen as beneficial not only to NESB students but also to English-speaking-background (ESB) students, for whom knowledge of a second language was considered economically advantageous. For advocates of bilingual education, this argument has the drawback… [PDF]
(1993). University Policies and Procedures on Sexual Harassment. Sexual harassment complaints are challenges to the abuse of power in certain kinds of communicative relationships, and sexual harassment policies and procedures are ways of defining the responsible exercise of power and providing the means to address grievances that result from irresponsible and potentially harmful uses of power in those relationships. Harassment in colleges and universities can be particularly abusive, especially in relationships between faculty and students, because of the special character of trust and dependency that exists. Procedural fairness for all parties to a complaint can be assured if guidelines are developed; distributed and communicated widely among faculty, staff, and students; and training takes place. The guidelines should include both formal and informal remedies. Informal communicative remedies work best where the desired outcome is simply to bring the harassment to an end, and not necessarily to punish or expose those accused of harassment…. [PDF]
(1993). Women in Academe: Historical and Sociological Perspectives. This paper examines the unequal status of women in academic life from the ideological framework of the women's movement and issues a call to action to change this position. The paper discusses the following issues: (1) persons in the majority culture highlight the differences between them and the minority by exaggerating their culture; (2) the imbalance in numbers causes people to be preoccupied with how to behave toward each other; (3) most curricular materials effectively eliminate women or perpetuate sex role stereotyping; (4) universities that engage only one half of its population in its governance, conduct, and exchange of ideas lack a balanced viewpoint; (5) women academics are victims of sexual harassment, which also impacts on women's equality; and (7) the movement of women into equal ranks in the academy is a threat to its very existence as a patriarchy. The paper concludes that women must take it upon themselves to protest unequal treatment and sexism in their workplace,… [PDF]
(1983). Religion and the Public Schools. Streamlined Seminar, v2 n1 Sep. A newsletter provides legal background and guidelines for celebrating religious holidays in the classroom. Material is divided into separate sections discussing the First Amendment, Supreme Court decisions regarding public schools and religious observances, specific "establishment clause" cases, specific "free exercise clause" cases, the school prayer issue, compliance, methods for solving school-based religious controversies, tuition tax credits, and methods for dealing with court challenges. (LP)…
(1976). Affirmative Action on Campus: How Firm the Foundation?. Journal of the NAWDAC, 38, 2, 50-56, Win 76. The author discusses the various legal and practical aspects of affirmative action on campuses in various educational fields. He concludes that although affirmative action programs are required by law their future depends on compliance by consensus, which seems to be lacking. (SE)…
(1975). A Bicentennial Without a Puerto Rican Colony. Crisis, 82, 10, 407-410, Dec 75. The United States revolution of 1776 is said to lose validity in light of Puerto Rico's colonial situation under American rule. The plight of the Puerto Rican people is compared to that of the Euro-American settlers under the thumb-screw of British imperialism. (Author/AM)…
(1975). Point of Law. California School Boards, 34, 3, 21-22, Mar 75. Discusses the role of the courts in reviewing the dismissal of a probationary teacher. Examines the principles of \substantial evidence\ and \independent judgment.\ (Published by California School Boards Association, 800 9th Street, Suite 201, Sacramento, California 95814) (WM)…
(1975). Insubordination. National Elementary Principal, 54, 3, 72-74, Jan-Feb 75. Courts will generally support the dismissal of an employee who fails to follow the legitimate orders of his or her superior or who is so verbally abusive of his superior that the school's effectiveness is imparied. (Author)…
(1975). Brown and the Three Rs: Race, Residence, and Resegregation. Journal of Law and Education, 4, 1, 8-14, Jan 75. Traces school desegregation from 1954 through four presidents' administrations and links school desegregation problems with housing patterns in metropolitan areas. (DW)…
(1975). Milliken v. Bradley in Perspective. Journal of Law and Education, 4, 1, 209-213, Jan 75. Suggests that the Milliken decision focused the Court's attention on the interrelationship between school segregation and residential segregation and may have laid the basis for successful legal action in the future. (Author/DW)…
(1987). Law in the Workplace. You and the Law Series. Meant to help both employees and employers avoid problems by generally explaining the law of the workplace and suggesting places to turn for further information concerning particular situations, this booklet is presented in a question/answer format. The areas covered and their subtopics are as follows: (1) recruiting and hiring; (2) employees' rights and responsibilities on the job–wages and hours, job safety, employee privacy, unions and collective bargaining, discrimination, unique rights of government employees, and performance reviews and discipline; (3) out of work–job security, unemployment benefits, social security disability, workers' compensation, special disability plans; and (4) planning for retirement–social security, pension plans. The booklet concludes with a section on where to get more information. (JB)…
(1989). Lillie Buffum Chace Wyman: Writing for Reform. A collection of eight short stories first published in 1886 in "Atlantic Monthly" under the title "Poverty Grass" is worth recovering, particularly now in light of renewed critical interest in history, culture, and feminism. Written by a 19th century activist and documentarian of social reform named Lillie Buffum Chace Wyman, these regional stories of New England factory and village life are striking for their depiction of truth in fiction. Most notable today, perhaps, is Wyman's commitment to individuals marginalized by 19th century American experience: the immigrant, the uneducated, the impoverished, the handicapped, and the female. One of these stories of persons struggling against odds is "The Child of the State" in which Wyman accuses the criminal justice system of inhumanity as well as inefficacy, particularly in its treatment of female youth. The short story illustrates Wyman's masterful use of formulaic plot and documentary style, stripped of…