equity news 2/02

equity news 2/02

Florida Department of Education

Feb. 02

EQUIP

Two of the five Guiding Principles for Florida?

Educational Governance articulated in ∕229.002(2),

Florida Statutes specifically address equity in education

for the K-20 public education system:

•?

Maximize education access and academic

success for all Floridians

•?

Safeguard equity and refuse to compromise

academic excellence

This K-20 focus on high student achievement was the

impetus for the Commissioner’s identification of

“Access to High Quality Instruction” for the annual

program analyses required by the Florida Educational

Equity Act.

District and college staffs are currently involved in the

assessment of access to high quality instruction and the

examination of the potential barriers for ensuring

minority representation in programs and courses

representative of high quality instruction. To assist in

this self-evaluation and in the identification of high

impact, measurable methods and strategies, EEOP has

instituted the

EQUIP (Ensuring Quality and

Unleashing Improved Performance)

series. This series

provides summaries of current data and research to

enhance the decision making and planning processes of

staff working to ensure equal educational opportunity.

EQUIP

will be distributed from time-to-time and will

be available on the EEOP web page at:

http//www.firn.edu/doe/eeop/eeop.html

Four issues of

EQUIP

are attached to this newsletter.

Employee Medical Information and

Emergency Evacuation Procedures

In December 2001, the Equal Employment

Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued a “Fact Sheet

on Obtaining and Using Employee Medical

Information as Part of Emergency Evacuation

Procedures”. Employers may ask employees to self-

identify if they require assistance during evacuations

because of a disability or medical condition. An

employer is entitled only to the information necessary

for it to be prepared to provide assistance.

The

information obtained from the self-identification

should be kept confidential and may be shared only

with those who have responsibilities under the

emergency evacuation plan. The ADA confidentiality

exception allows employers to share medical

information with first aid and safety personnel. The

EEOC states that the exception allows an employer to

share information about the type of assistance a person

needs in the event of an evacuation with medical

professionals, emergency coordinators, floor captains,

volunteer “buddies”, building security officers and

other non-medical personnel responsible for ensuring

safe evacuation.

The full text of the fact sheet is

available at:

http://www.eeoc.gov/facts/evacuation/html

Cheerleaders

In a Florida school district, the Justice Department

called the small number of African American

cheerleaders suspect–6% last year in a school system

that is 14% black.

The Department investigates

cheerleading because it considers it a meaningful

barometer of student life–a “real signal” of

African

American students’ status on campus said the attorney

hired by the district to negotiate with the Justice

325 West Gaines St. Rm. 348 • Tallahassee, 32399

.firn.edu/doe/eeop/eeop.html

Department.

850-488-6217 • http//www

Service Animals

In a recent ADA briefing, the Department of Justice

clarified that businesses and organizations that serve the

public must allow people with disabilities to bring their

service animals into all areas of the facility where

customers are normally allowed. ADA applies to

government agencies and all businesses open to the

public, including restaurants, hotels, taxis, grocery and

department stores, medical offices, theaters, health clubs,

parks, and zoos.

• Businesses may ask if an animal is a service animal,

but cannot require special ID cards for the animal

or ask about the person’

s disability.

• People with disabilities who use service animals

cannot be charged extra fees.

•

person with a disability cannot be asked to remove

the service animal from the premise unless: (1) the

animal is out of control and the animal’

s owner does

not take effective action to control it (for example,

a dog that barks repeatedly during a movie) or

(2) the animal poses a direct threat to the health or

safety of others.

• Allergies and fear of animals are generally not valid

reasons for denying access or refusing service to

people with service animals.

•

Violators of the ADA can be required to pay money

damages and penalties.

This ADA briefing has been distributed among the

investigators with the Office for Civil Rights.

ADA Business Brief: Service Animals?

U.S. Department of Justice,?

Civil Rights Division, Disability Section?

Complete Brief available at?

http:// www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/svcanimb.htm?

Accessibility for Play Areas

“Accessibility Guidelines for Play Areas” published in

the Federal Register in October 2000. These guidelines

establish minimum accessibility requirements for newly

constructed and altered play areas. The rule is the result

of three years of generally widespread acceptance of

the Proposed Rule distributed in 1997.

When designing or modifying play areas to meet the

requirements of these new Accessibility Guidelines,

it is important to understand the distinction between

elevated and ground-level play components.

Generally, there must be access provided by ramp or

transfer system to half of the elevated play

components. The rules provide a chart defining the

ground-level minimum requirements for accessibility.

The requirements for surfaces are also included in the

rules. According to staff of Playworld Systems, Inc.,

if you build a playground based on the best

information about safety available at the time, it is

most likely to serve everyone well for the greatest

span of time.

More information is available from the Access Board

by calling 800-872-2253. Full text of the guidelines

is available at:

http://www.access-board.gov/news/playguide.htm

Sexual Harassment in Schools

In 2001 AAUW published a follow-up study

, Hostile

Hallways: Bullying, Teasing and Sexual Harassment

in School

, to its 1993 landmark study on harassment

in schools. The report is based on a national survey of

about 2000 public school students in grades 8-11.

Though most schools have policies against sexual

harassment, 81% of students say they have

encountered sexual harassment.

Sixty-one

(61)percent of the students were harassed in a

classroom and 72% in the hall.

One in four students (25%) said they are harassed

often while 60% said it happens occasionally. About

70% of the students said their schools have rules on

harassment, compared with 26% in 1993. A higher

percent of girls are negatively affected by the

incidents: 32% of the girls and 16% of boys said they

feel less confident; 30% of the girls and 18% of the

boys said they do not participate in class discussions

as much because of incidents involving harassment.

Twenty (20) percent of boys and 44% of girls fear

being harassed during school related times.

U. S. Supreme Court

The U. S. Supreme Court ruled in two major ADA cases

in January 2002.

In the first case,

Toyota Motor Manufacturing v.

Williams

, the Court concluded that mild carpal tunnel

syndrome is not a disability under ADA. The Court

reiterated that disability determinations should be made

on a case-by-case basis and that a medical diagnosis

alone is insufficient to make a disability determination.

EEOC v. Waffle House

, the Court ruled that

arbitration agreements between employers and

employees do not preclude EEOC from suing for

damages on behalf of an employee.

Hazing and Athletics

Jan Doleschal, the commissioner of athletics for

Milwaukee Public Schools, doesn’t mince words when

it comes to hazing. She considers it a quick way for a

school district or school to find itself in a courtroom,

facing a series of charges that could result in substantial

monetary losses.

In the January 2000, edition of

Managing School Athletics, Doleschal offers the

following preventive tips for districts and schools to

avoid hazing lawsuits and to protect their students:

1.?

Educate–include coaches, all students (not just

athletes), parents and all district and school

employees.

2.?

Know What to Do Before You Need It–have

policies and procedures ready and have all

persons knowledgeable about them.

3.?

Take Hazing Accusations Seriously–just as

administrators take assault, harassment and

intimidation seriously, hazing should be

considered in the same category of seriousness.

Since hazing can be just as destructive and

humiliating to the victim, all reports and rumors

should be investigated thoroughly.

4.?

Don’t Rely on Law Enforcement to Determine

Punishment–the district or school should make

sure that each hazing participant receives

punishment according to local policy.

Law

enforcement might have a different standard

governing hazing.

Put an Anti-Hazing Clause into the Athletic Code

of Conduct–“T

reat it with the same amount of

seriousness you would treat any other serious

actions, like drugs or alcohol use during the

season,” Doleschal said. “The seriousness of

hazing, by the time it occurs, is way beyond a

one-game suspension.

If there is a student

involved, the student has to know up front he or

she will be suspended from the team for the

remainder of the season.”

Don’t let coaches plead ignorance–just as

administrators are held responsible for what goes

on in their various departments, so too, should

coaches be held responsible.

If they suspect

hazing is going on and do nothing to stop it, they

should be aware that their jobs are at risk.

Jan Doleschal can be reached at 414/475-8129

PGA v. Martin: Implications for

Intercollegiate and Interscholastic and

Athletics

The information in this article is based on a

memorandum to the Florida Department of Education

from the law firm of Brustein & Manasevit, Attorneys

at Law.

On May 29, 2001, the U.S. Supreme Court decided

PGA Tour, Inc. v. Martin. Professional golfer, Casey

Martin, sued under Title III of the ADA, alleging that

the PGA denied him equal access to its golf tours by

refusing his use of a golf cart during tournaments.

Martin has a degenerative circulatory disorder that

prevents him from walking the course. The PGA had

a rule, requiring players to walk the golf course during

tournaments. The Supreme Court ruled that the PGA

tours are a “public accommodation” covered by Title

III of the ADA and that allowing Martin’

s use of a

golf cart would not “fundamentally alter the nature”

of the golf tours.

While Martin is a Title III case, the ruling has

significance for Title II of the ADA and Section 504.

Like Title III, Title II and Section 504 also require

reasonable modifications to rules, policies or practices

if necessary to avoid discrimination, unless the

modifications would fundamentally alter the nature of

the service, program or activity.

Therefore, the Martin

decision has implications for athletic programs,

competitions and events at the elementary, secondary

and post-secondary levels.

The Martin case may prompt more requests from

students with disabilities or their parents seeking

modifications to rules that govern sports competitions.

However, the ruling does not require that rules must

always be modified.

Martin emphasizes that the

decision on whether to modify or waive a rule is an

individual inquiry. In addressing the issue, schools,

colleges and universities should consider the following

questions:

(1)Will the individual with a disability be denied equal

access to the athletic event/activity if the rule is

not modified or waived?

If no, there is no

discrimination. If yes, then consider:

(2) Does the modification/waiver of the rule alter an

essential aspect of the athletic event/activity? If

yes, then the rule does not have to be modified or

waived for the individual because it would

fundamentally alter the nature of the event/activity.

If no, then consider:

(3) Does the modification/waiver of the rule give the

disabled individual, in addition to access to the

competition, an advantage over others?

In examining whether to modify or waive a rule,

consider the purpose of the rule and the impact of the

individual’

s disability.

For example, in Martin, the

Court determined that the walk-only rule was a

peripheral tournament rule and that its purpose was to

subject players to fatigue.

School Climate for Gay Youth

A National Climate Survey reported by the Gay,

Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) in

2001 revealed four out of 5 (83.2%) gay and lesbian

youth report verbal harassment in the past year on their

school campus and one out of four (23.6%) report

hearing homophobic remarks from faculty or staff.

Nearly 1/3 (30.9%) of gay and lesbian students missed

at least one entire day of school in the past month

because they felt unsafe based on their sexual

orientation.

Other key findings from the GLSEN 2001 National

School Climate Survey include:

•?

84.3% of lesbian, gay and bisexual students

report hearing homophobic remarks, such as

faggot or dyke, frequently or often;

•?

81.8% report that faculty or staff never

intervened, or intervened only some of the time;

•?

74.2% of lesbian and bisexual women report

being sexually harassed;

•?

41.9% of lesbian, gay and bisexual students

report being physically harassed (shoved,

pushed) because of their sexual orientation;

•?

21.1% of lesbian, gay and bisexual students

report being physically assaulted (punched,

kicked, injured with a weapon).

Another poll commissioned by GLSEN and conducted

by Lake, Snell, Perry & Associates found that a

majority of U. S. parents favor expanding existing anti-

harassment and anti-discrimination policies to include

lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students. The

poll also showed that 80% of parents support teacher

sensitivity training on tolerance that include

instructions on dealing with gay and lesbian harassment

in schools.