KASBO Network |
The importance of being involved in the legislative process cannot be understated. Everyone needs to be apprised of the issues and be willing to make contact with legislators in order to further the instructional causes for children throughout the state. School Business Officials are not exemptfrom this critical task.
For that reason, it is important to know what the Legislative Committee will be recommending, to the USA Board of Directors, for the platform document this year.
The committee felt very strongly that there needed to be increased dialogue with the Regents centers about admission requirements. There was lively discussion about the need for admission requirements. The only consensus that was reached was to put more effort into achieving an open dialogue between public education and higher education regarding the current requirements. There was also much discussion about getting the message to the legislators that districts need additional support in order to implement the assessment recertification process. The concern centered around the extra financial and administrative resources that would be needed. The final major addition to the platform was a new resolution for Special Education. It addresses the need for clarification of current Special Education regulations, including, but not limited to, the amount of paperwork involved. The USA Board will take action on these recommendations in November. They will also adopt the legislative stand on the budget as suggested by the Task Force on School Finance. There will be more on this topic after the board adopts the plan.
In response to Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements and a recent federal court ruling, the American Association of School Administrators (AASA) is offering ADA NOTICE KITS. The Notice section of the ADA's Title II Regulations (35.106) requires that all public schools inform employees and community members of the ADA applicability to school activities, programs and services, and of the protections against discrimination assured by the ADA. A recent federal court case, Clarkson v. Coughlin et.al. 898 F. Supp. 1019 S.D.N.Y. 1995), ruled that a public entity had violated the law by failing to provide these notices.
To meet the requirements of the ADA it is, therefore, essential that schools provide this notice and offer the information in forms accessible to individuals with disabilities. To simplify compliance, the ADA Notice Kits offered by AASA contain ADA Notices in print and formats accessible to many individuals with disabilities (large print, braille, audio cassette, and computer diskette). The Kits' color Notice Posters, and other formats, contain information on school program accessibility, reasonable accommodations, effective communication, employment practices, and information resources, as require by law. Each Kit is $69.00 plus $5.50 shipping and handling. For more information or to order, please call 312.6640.1438 or send of fax purchase order to ADA NOTICE - AASA PROJECT, 1231 N. Dearborn, Ste, 210/S Chicago, IL, 60610. FAX: 312.640.0894. Administrators Please Note: ADA Notices are required in addition to any EEOC posters and disability signs which you may already display.
School personnel like everyone currently using computer technology, have many questions concerning potential problems as the year 2000 approaches.
To date, there are no clear answers concerning this issue. The move to 2000 could impact schools in three general areas. Computer hardware is receiving the most attention. Though it may be costly, almost all computers can either be replaced or adapted to accommodate the calendar rollover. The two areas that seem the most nebulous are software and related hardware (items such as concentrators, switches, routers, external drives et cetera). There are measures that can be taken. School administrators should:
*direct an evaluation of current computer equipment. Software is available from the National Software Testing Institute (www.nstl.com) that provides an analysis of PC's capability to function in the year 2000. This analysis can either be performed by school personnel familiar with computers or by your computer vendor.
*obtain written documentation from the manufacturer or dealer of each software product in use. This document should either verify the software is capable of operation after December 31, 1999 or that a fully operational product will be available prior to that date.
*prepare in advance. In that all of the answers to this event are not clear, one should anticipate that expenditures may be necessary to correct problems as the year begins. Consider not only that computers may need replaced or modified, but also that peripheral equipment such as external drives, network hardware such as hubs and routers, and software may experience problems.
*Contact your technology service provider for assistance with this issue.
Many hardware and software companies have information available on their WEB sites.
Note that recent legislation signed by President Clinton was enacted to enhance the awareness of the problem. However, it is also designed to protect technology vendors from financial liability from this event since total answers and solutions are not well defined. It is in the best interest of schools to keep current on this issue. (This article was prepared by Paul R. Graff, president of Edu/Tech Systems, Inc. If you have questions contact Dr. Graff at 1.800.736.1111)
