Thursday, August 30, 2012

Great Gig - Part II

English: Looking down at Magens Bay from Mount... (Photo credit: Wikipedia)







So far only one of you has guessed where I am.


I am doing a training here and it is very beautiful.  In addition to the photos on the recent blog post there are some more pix on our micro/Tumblr special education law blog which you can get to here.

Any more guesses?
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Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Breaking: Second Circuit Approves State Ban on Aversives

Seal of the United States Court of Appeals for...Seal of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)











The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday upheld a state law baring aversives.  You can read the entire decision in Bryant v. NY State Educ Dept here.  The court ruled that neither IDEA nor the Constitution invalidates the New York statute.

This decision may have significance for the ongoing debate over the abuse of seclusion and restraints on children with disabilities.
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Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Index to Series: Bullying of Children With Disabilities

Some states of the United States have implemen...Some states of the United States have implemented laws to address school bullying. Law prohibits bullying of students based on sexual orientation and gender identity Law prohibits bullying of students based on sexual orientation School regulation or ethical code for teachers that address bullying of students based on sexual orientation Law prohibits bullying in school but lists no categories of protection No statewide law that specifically prohibits bullying in schools (Photo credit: Wikipedia)



We recently finished a long series on Bullying of Children With Disabilities- the hot button issue in special education law.  In the past, readers have suggested that an index to the various posts in a multi-part series would be helpful.  One follows.    If you click on any installment, the link will take you to the particular post.  NOTE: If you should misplace the index, you can always find any post on this blog by typing the subject matter into the blog index on the lefthand side of the blog.










INDEX to Bullying Series:


Bullying of Kids With Disabilities - Part I                          February 3, 2010 

Bullying of Kids With Disabilities - Part II                         February 10, 2012

Bullying of Children With Disabilities - Part III                February 24, 2012  

Bullying of Children With Disabilities - Part IV                March 9, 2012

Bullying of Children With Disabilities - Part V                 March 17, 2012   

Bullying of Children with Disabilities - Part VI                 March 28, 2012  

Bullying of Children with Disabilities - Part VII                April 10, 2012

Bullying of Children with Disabilities - Part IX                 April 25, 2012

Bullying of Children with Disabilities - Part X                   May 17, 2012

Bullying of Children with Disabilities - Part XI                 June 5, 2012

Bullying of Children With Disabilities - Part XII              July 27, 2012


Bullying of Children With Disabilities - Postscript I        August 1, 2012

Bullying of Children With Disabilities - Postscript II      August 16, 2012

More From GAO Bulling Report                                            June 8, 2012  

Breaking News: GAO Issues Report on School Bullying  June 7, 2012


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Thursday, August 16, 2012

Bullying of Children With Disabilities - Postscript II

Centennial Fountain, Seattle University. From ...Centennial Fountain, Seattle University. From left to right in the background Garrand Hall (School of Nursing), Administration Building, Piggot Hall (Albers School of Business). The fountain was designed by Seattle artist George Tsutakawa. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)











As I have mentioned here, at the recent excellent conference at Seattle University, I was lucky enough to present a half-day session on Bullying and IDEA. It is rare to get to discuss these important topics in such depth, and I thank the Institute as well as the participants who were incredibly helpful during the presentation.

In a previous post, I mentioned our detailed discussion of the definition of bullying.  In this post, I'm going to summarize our discussion of the public policy question. (Yes, there is a reason why I got that masters degree in public policy after all.)

Some participants questioned whether the school districts should have a role in bullying, ie is there a government interest?   Most participants felt that bullying, which as we know from the definition requires a power imbalance, requires intervention. A number of participants, however, felt that dealing with bullies is one of the life lessons that one has to learn.  They pointed out their own school bullies, as well as judge bullies and others in later life.  We also discussed our popular culture images regarding this issue.  Pick almost any movie with bullies and the victim eventually gets ticked off and does in the bad guy.  The best example is "A Christmas Story," the popular Christmas movie in which Farkus bullies Ralphie until one day he gets possessed and beats the heck out of him while imitating his father's bad language.  Most other movie involving bullies have a similar plot line.

But most participants felt that bullying is different because of the power imbalance.  What do you think? What exactly is the role of government, here the school district, with respect to bullying?
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Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Subscriptions and Tech Update

SUN VALLEY, ID - JULY 06: Reid Hoffman, co-fou...SUN VALLEY, ID - JULY 06: Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn, attends the Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference on July 6, 2011 in Sun Valley, Idaho. The conference has been hosted annually by the investment firm Allen & Company each July since 1983. The conference is typically attended by many of the world's most powerful media executives. (Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife)

























I will be doing a training for hearing officers, mediators and state complaint investigators in  a few weeks.  In preparation for the training, I recently contacted the office of the state department of education, and I was delighted to learn that one of the first persons I was talking with on the telephone recognized my name because she is a subscriber to this blog.  The best way to ensure that you receive all of our posts is to take advantage of the free subscription to this blog.  They are available on the lefthand side of the blog and you can arrange your subscriptions so that you receive the posts by email directly to your inbox or so that they appear in an aggregator or reader, like netvibes or Google reader.  Those with blogs or websites can also get a blidget (blog widget) to insert directly into their website.  Please take a subscription because numbers matter in the blogosphere.  We are doing great, but enhanced credibility is always good.

By the way, I always enjoy meeting and talking to our readers.  I will be at public conferences in San Antonio and Omaha later this year, as well as other locations for trainings to which the public is not invited.  The information is in the conference section on the lefthand side of the blog. Please stop me and say hello if you will be at these conferences.

One of the key functions of this blog is to share information with all types of special education stakeholders (Aside: in my mind these folks are not really carrying steaks!).  In pursuit of that quest, we have created a number of spin off special education law groups.  They are listed on the lefthand side of the blog under helpful links.  The Plaxo group never got off the ground and the Ning group is now defunct.  The Facebook group was very successful until Facebook went all corporate and decided that we were not sufficiently exchanging useless information and archived the group.  It still exists and has som useful discussions, but to become a member, even if you were a member, you have to ask.

The most successful of these groups by far has been the LinkedIn Special Education Group.  It now has over 4,300 members and has many lively discussions.  We had a problem with spammers for a while, but I think that we have solved it.  Check out this interesting group here

That is the tech update for now, please tell us if you are having any issues
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Friday, August 10, 2012

Message to You from Alexa Posny

Alexa Posny speaks to audience members after t...
Alexa Posny speaks to audience members after the forum (Photo credit: Medill DC)










As you may have heard Alexa Posny is stepping down as Assistant Secretary of Education for OSERS, the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.  Dr Posny has been nice enough to allow me to interview her for the readers of this blog.This link is an index of the posts in the series presenting the interview.

When I heard that she was leaving, I asked her if she had any message for our readers as she left this important position.  I received this reply:

During my time at the Department, I served as a voice for State Chiefs, State Department and Local Education Agency Administrators, as well as educators and related services staff, helping the Department advance its agenda in the field.  The work and initiatives that I oversaw had a wide-ranging impact, from issuing IDEA Part C (Infants and Toddlers) regulations; to developing a disability policy strategy that integrates students with disabilities into all aspects of the department’s work; to supporting programs that help individuals with disabilities become gainfully employed, self-sufficient and independent; to supporting advances in disability research; and in administering billions of dollars through OSERS formula and discretionary grants.   I am honored to have been able to serve in this position and to serve this administration as we strive to improve results and outcomes for individuals with disabilities. 



Good luck Alexa.
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Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Fun With Numbers: Census Bureau Issues Report on Americans With Disabilities

English: Seal of the United States Census Bure...
English: Seal of the United States Census Bureau. The blazon is defined here as: On a shield an open book beneath which is a lamp of knowledge emitting rays above in base two crossed quills. Around the whole a wreath of single leaves, surrounded by an outer band bearing between two stars the words "U.S. Department of Commerce" in the upper portion and "Bureau of the Census" in the lower portion, the lettering concentric with an inner beaded rim and an outer dentilated rim. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)








The United States Census Bureau has issued its 2010 report on Americans with Disabilities. You can read the entire report here.You can review a summary here.

The report is full of useful information.  For example, 56.7 million people, or about 18.7% of the American population, has a disability.  For those under 15 years of age, 8.4% (about 5.2 million) had a disability, of which about half were classified as having a severe disability (4.2% of the total or about 2.6 million kids).

Of all Americans, about 8.1 million people have difficulty seeing and about 30.6 million people have disabilities that impair their mobility.

There is a wealth of other helpful information in the report.  You should see if you can locate any other useful numbers.
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Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Breaking News: Transition- GAO Study Finds Poor Federal Coordination

The Government Accountability Office is an imp...
The Government Accountability Office is an important information-gathering agency for Congress. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)









One of the most important areas of the federal special education law is transition.  Transition generally means what happens to a special ed student after they leave school.

The GAO study finds inadequate coordination among the federal agencies charged with duties related to transition.  You can see a summary of the highlights of the study here.  Or here you can review the 71 page official report.

The following is a very brief summary of the law regarding transition:

The IDEA defines transition services as a coordinated set of activities designed to be a results oriented process that focuses upon the individual child’s needs, strengths and preferences.  IDEA, § 602 (34).  Not later than the first IEP to be in effect when the child is 16 years old and each year thereafter, the IDEA requires that the IEP contain measurable postsecondary goals; the transition services needed to achieve those goals; and beginning at one year before the child reaches the age of majority, a statement that the student has been informed regarding transfer of rights.  IDEA § 614 (d)(1)(A)(i)(VIII).  34 C.F.R. § 300.43, 300.320(b)
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Friday, August 3, 2012

Breaking News: Kardashians Oppose School Bullying

English: this is my own version of what bullyi...
English: this is my own version of what bullying looks like (Photo credit: Wikipedia)













I'm really trying to resist going for about twenty easy punchlines here, but:

The Kardashian family has formally gone on record against school bullying.

Here is the Public Service Announcement..

Reality TV in a dangerous world!  I can't make this stuff up.
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Thursday, August 2, 2012

Index to Procedural Safeguards- The Series

English: The 2012 Olympics stadium under const...
English: The 2012 Olympics stadium under construction (February 2011), near to Bow, Tower Hamlets, Great Britain. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

We recently finished a series on Procedural Safeguards.  Some readers have suggested that an index to the various posts would be helpful.  One follows.  As you may notice the numbering of the posts was a bit irregular.  This was not intentional, but for those who know me, it is consistent with my style.  Also if you click on any topic, the link will take you to the particular post.  NOTE: If you should misplace the index, you can always find any post on this blog by typing a key word or phrase into the search bar on the lefthand side of the blog.

INDEX: procedural Safeguards - The Series

Part I             Introduction                                           January 31, 2012

Part II           Notice of Procedural Safeguards                February 7, 2012

Part III          Parental Consent                                      February 13, 2012

Part IV          Independent Educational Evaluations           February 21, 2012

Part V           Prior Written Notice                                  February 29, 2012

Part VI          Dispute Resolution                                    March 13, 2012

Part VII         Facilitated IEP Meetings                            March 20, 2012             

Part VI          Mediation                                                 April 4, 2012

Part VIII        State Complaint Procedures                       April 18, 2012

Part IX           Resolution Meetings                                 May 4, 2012

Part X            Due Process Hearings                               May 21, 2012

Part XI           Procedural Violations                                June 13, 2012 

Part XI            Attorneys Fees                                        July 25, 2012
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Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Bullying of Children With Disabilities - Postscript I

English: Official portrait of Justice Potter S...
English: Official portrait of Justice Potter Stewart. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
At the recent excellent conference at Seattle University, I was lucky enough to present a half-day session on Bullying and IDEA.  The participants were very engaged in the presentation.

We began with the definition of bullying, and we found that the definition of bullying is much like Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart's infamous response when he was asked to define obscenity and he replied that he was not sure if he could define it, but he knows it when he sees it. 

We decided that one element is an intention to harm or harass.  There is no negligent bullying, and the bully must have some foul motive.

Another core element is repetition.  A single act of violence, no matter how bad, is not bullying.  It has to be repeated.

The final element is an imbalance of power, or at least a perceived imbalance of power. Two combatants even if engaged in repeated battle, are not involved in bullying.

We toyed with some other components of a definition of bullying, but none of them got the traction of consensus that the three elements listed above received.  So what do you think of this definition of bullying?

We then had some fun applying the definition to an array of hypotheticals.  My favorite was the famous legal case of Bugs Bunny vs. Elmer Fudd.  We all agreed that Mr Fudd had a disability. At first, I had people convinced that Bugs was a bully, and I was afraid that my Saturday morning cartoon enjoyment would be forced to come to an end.  Upon reflection, however, Bugs was exonerated on the theory that Fudd's rifle eliminated any imbalance of power based upon Bugs' superior intellect.
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