On August 27, 2008, in Baltimore, Md., a settlement was reached between
Target.com and the National Federation of the Blind (NFB) regarding access
to the chain department store's website. "Access to websites
is critical to the full and equal participation of blind people in all aspects
of modern life," said
NFB president Dr. Marc Maurer. "We look forward to working with Target
in the coming months to help make additional improvements that will enhance
the experience of blind visitors to Target.com." Maurer further hopes
this settlement will lead the way in online accessibility. Target president
Steve Eastman agrees stating that "we will work with the NFB
on further refinements to our website." As part of the settlement,
NFB will certify Target.com in its Nonvisual Accessibility Web Certification
program as soon as "agreed upon improvements" are completed early
in 2009. Also Target will set up a $6 million fund that the California settling
class can make claims from. The two parties have agreed to a three-year relationship
during which the NFB will test the website for accessibility changes and
improvements.

For more information:
Chris Danielsen, National Federation of the Blind, National Federation of
the Blind and Target Agree to Class Action Settlement, August 27, 2008, Pages
1-2

Sam Black, Target, National Federation of the Blind settle suit, Business
Journal, August 27, 2008, available at

http://baltimore.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2008/08/25/daily28.html

The Alexandria (VA) Human Rights Commission unanimously ruled in favor of
a man claiming he was discriminatorily fired from his managerial position
at T.G.I. Friday's restaurant for having HIV. James W. McCray
alleges that T.G.I. Friday's discriminated against him in violation
of the ADA when they terminated him the day after he disclosed that he was
HIV positive.The
restaurant argued that McCray was fired for poor performance. The Commission
will soon issue an opinion and recommend remedies, which may include requiring
the restaurant to pay civil penalties or compensatory damages to Mr. McCray.
Mr. McCray may still file a lawsuit in federal court and plans to do so.

Full Story: Chris Johnson, HIV-Positive Va. Man Wins Early Victory in Case
Against T.G.I. Friday's, Washington Blade, July 9, 2008, available at

http://www.washingtonblade.com/thelatest/thelatest.cfm?blog_id=19598.

City of Alexandria, Human Rights Commission Announces a Decision in the
Case: James W. McCray v. T.G.I. Friday's, General News Releases, July
8, 2008, available at

http://alexandriava.gov/news_display.aspx?id=14510

Morris Steinheimer and Mandy Fugate are citizens of St. Johns County, FL,
who both sustained brain injuries that render them unable to walk.To
get around town they travel together in a golf cart. Florida law, however,
prohibits the operation of motorized vehicles on sidewalks. Steinheimer
and Fugate have filed a lawsuit arguing that the Florida law prohibiting
motorized vehicles on sidewalks violates the Americans with Disabilities
Act (ADA).

Although scooters may be driven legally on sidewalks, Steinheimer and Fugate
prefer using a golf cart because both can ride in one vehicle. They believe
that the golf cart constitutes a reasonable modification permitted under the
ADA. The City of St. Augustine Beach, however, argues that the cart is
too big and forces citizens off sidewalks. However, Steinheimer and Fugate
have yet to hear a complaint from other residents. The court's decision
is pending.

Full Story: Jessica Clark, Court Battle to Drive Golf Cart on Sidewalk,
First Coast News, July 9, 2008, available at

http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/topstories/news-article.aspx?storyid=113204&catid=15

James Adeyemi, who is deaf, applied for an information technology position
with the D.C. Public School System (DCPS). After screening applications
and conducting interviews, DCPS instead hired two other applicants, whom it
found better qualified, and who ranked higher in the applicant pool. After
a failed attempt at mediation, Adeyemi filed suit in the District Court for
the District of Columbia alleging discrimination in violation of the ADA. DCPS
contended that it chose not to hire Adeyemi due to the availability of more
qualified candidates.

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals addressed the burden of proof necessary
for a rejected job applicant to proceed on an ADA discrimination claim. The
court affirmed the lower court's ruling that a rejected job applicant
must show he or she is significantly more qualified than the selected candidate
successfully to challenge the employer's asserted legitimate and non-discriminatory
reason for not hiring the applicant with a disability.

To preserve employer's discretion in making hiring decisions, the court
requires evidence showing that any gap between qualifications in applicants
is so significant as to indicate that the employer may have considered another
factor, and perhaps acted discriminatorily. In Adeyemi's case,
the record failed to show that he was even as qualified as the candidates
ultimately selected.

Opinion: Adeyemi v. District of Columbia, 525 F.3d 1222 (D.C. Cir. 2008),
available at

http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/data2/circs/dc/077077p.pdf

Three years ago, a small group of mothers from New York City decided that
to provide the best education for their children, they would open
their own independent elementary school. Audra Zuckerman, Julia Harquail,
and Michelle Smith--all mothers of children with Down syndrome--started
the Ideal School of Manhattan. The school, which teaches students from
kindergarten through a combined third-fourth grade, offers education services
for children with and without special needs. Each classroom, consisting of
about 16 students, has one teacher qualified in special education and another
with basic classroom experience. Of the 70 students currently enrolled,
20 are considered students with special needs. While some children remain
on a waiting list for the 2008-2009 school year, students currently enrolled
at Ideal will begin on September 8.

Full Story: Susan Dominus, To Find the Perfect School, You Might Need to Start
One, New York Times, August 28, 2008, available at

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/29/nyregion/29bigcity.html

(free subscription required)

The U.S. Department of Education awarded universities in 14 states across the
country $4.37 million in grants to help train graduate students to work with
children with disabilities. The doctoral and post-doctoral students will
be trained in early intervention, special education, and related services.
Some of the money granted will go toward preparing master's degree students
for special education supervision and administration.

U.S. Secretary of Education, Margaret Spellings, said, "We hope
to build a corps of highly qualified personnel to help children with disabilities
reach their academic potential." She also commented that research
has shown a need for increased "special education and related services
personnel who have been trained at the doctoral and post-doctoral levels." For
the first year of what is planned to be a four-year project, the grants
will average at around $190,000. Spellings has high hopes for the project,
noting, "These
experts can play a critical role in improving the quality of services for
children with disabilities and their families."

Full Story: Jim Bradshaw, $4.37 Million in Grants Awarded for Training Highly
Qualified Personnel in Special Education, Press Release, July 21, 2008,

http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2008/07/07012008b.html

San Francisco school systems continue to have a difficult time adjusting
and making the necessary arrangements for students with autism in the district,
according to state experts. Though many families believe they know what
their child needs to be a successful student, there is a large disparity
between student needs and what the school systems are willing and able
to provide. The San Francisco school system attributes inflation, a higher
demand for services, and autism to the allocation of "regular education dollars" to
the special education budget.

Full Story: Nanette Asimov, State Schools Lack Cohesive Plan for Autism,
July 13, 2008, available at

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/13/BAFH103EEM.DTL

The IMS Company, which makes inflight portable media products, has developed
a technology allowing all its portable entertainment devices to include closed
captioning. All of the auditory parts of the movies and television
shows will be converted into text and superimposed on the show or movie if
the viewer so chooses. This option will be available on some platforms
by October 2008. The IMS Company will be the first to provide people
with hearing impairments closed captioning on a handheld device rather than
on a DVD, which is what many airlines have used for consumers who are deaf.

Full Story: The IMS Company and WGBH's Media Access Group Enable Closed
Captions on Handhelds, AIRFAX.com, June 2, 2008, available at

http://www.airfax.com/airfax/releases/showrelease.asp?id=2256

Engineers at Georgia Tech have created a device that allows people with
spinal cord injuries to control a wheelchair with their tongues. Maysam
Ghovanloo, an assistant professor in the Georgia Tech School of Electrical
and Computer Engineering, and his graduate assistant Xueliang Huo, decided
to use the tongue because it is connected directly to the brain by a nerve
that usually does not get injured in spinal cord injuries. The device
uses a magnet that is attached to the tongue. The movements of the magnet
are detected by a sensor field that is on a headset or brace inside the mouth.
Trial tests have been performed on people without disabilities. Ghovanloo
will soon be testing the device's usability for persons with disabilities.

Full Story: Georgia Institute of Technology. Tongue Drive System Lets Persons
with Disabilities Operate Powered Wheelchairs, Computers, Science Daily, June
30, 2008, available at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/06/080630090821.htm

Last month, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced that
it will apply the North American Number Plan ten-digit telephone numbers
to Internet-based Telecommunications Relay Service users. This will require
a new database that maps the telephone numbers to Internet addresses. The
FCC is now in search for a contractor to create and maintain the database
and has posted accordingly on the Federal Business Opportunities website. The
FCC hopes to have this database up and running by December, 31, 2008.

Full Story: Federal Communications Commission. Commission Releases Sources
Sought Announcement Seeking Contractor to Build and Operate Centralized Database
for Internet Based Telecommunications Relay Service Numbering System, June
25, 2008, available at

http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-08-1483A1.pdf

Researchers from The Autism Neuroscience Research Group (ANRG) at the University
of Missouri have been awarded grants from the U.S. Department of Defense,
MU Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders, and the NARSAD
Foundation to advance research projects that lead to the early detection
of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Until recently, early discovery of the
disease was nearly impossible due to the various genetic defects related
to ASD. However, researchers at the University of Missouri are discovering
ways to identify the disease using 3-D imaging that shows a relationship
in brain structures and facial features of children with the disorder.

Currently, autism is diagnosed based on behavioral patterns in children
as well as physical measurements that detect distinctions between the face
and brain. The new 3-D technology will allow scientists to form a more
accurate measure of the physical features of the child, allowing for rapid
detection, and, therefore, earlier access to health care and services.

Full Story: University of Missouri-Columbia, Can Facial Structures, Brain
Abnormalities Reveal Formula for Detection of Autism? Science Daily, August
19, 2008, available at

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/08/080818184426.htm

(available via licensed database)

A new guide from the Bazelon Center for Mental Health provides information
and advice necessary for effective self-directed mental health care. A self-directed
program gives individuals flexibility to use money set aside for health care
in new ways to advance the goals of their individualized plan. This guide
uses lists, question-and-answer sections, and fact sheets to present and
organize information on evaluation, eligibility, financing, and planning
a self-directed program. The guide hopes to stimulate advances in the mental health care field, and it encourages groups and individuals to speak out for what could enable people living with mental illnesses the ability to enjoy "rewarding
lives and full community integration."

Full Story: C. Koyanagi, E. Alfano, L. Carty, In the Driver's Seat,
A Guide to Self-Directed Mental Health Care, Bazelon Center for Mental Health,
April 14, 2008, available at

http://www.hcbs.org/moreInfo.php/doc/2285

The New Jersey Hospital Association is working with the New Jersey Attorney
General to ensure that hospitals are accessible to everyone, including those
who have hearing disabilities. The office of the attorney general has released
a fact sheet to help hospitals and patients understand the New Jersey Law
Against Discrimination as it pertains to hospital settings. The fact sheet
addresses questions regarding hospital accessibility on topics such as reasonable
accommodations and the role of hospitals in facilitating communication.

Accommodations may vary depending on the complexity of communications. For
example, brief communications like meal times and visiting hours are easily
communicated through writing a note. More complicated communications, however,
such as the discussion of symptoms, treatments, and other important patient
health information, may require an interpreter. The hospital staff will assess
individual patients with auditory impairments to determine what individualized
accommodation is required.

Full Story: State of New Jersey, Office of the Attorney General, Ensuring
Open and Effective Communication in Hospitals for Persons who are Deaf or Hard
of Hearing, January 24, 2008, available at

http://www.alda-gs.org/Civil%20Rights/DCR-hospital-fact-sheet.pdf

Focusing on the achievements emphasized by the 2007 progress report on President
Bush's New Freedom Initiative for persons with disabilities, the Department
of Labor revealed the theme in late June for the upcoming National Disability
Employment Awareness Month. The theme calls to attention the importance of
persons with disabilities in the workforce, enthusiastically entitled, 'America's
People, America's Talent ... America's Strength!' The
2008 National Disability Employment Awareness Month will help make people
aware of the abilities and contributions of American workers with disabilities.

Full Story:
Office of Disability Employment Policy, 'America's People, America's
Talent... America's Strength!' is 2008 National Disability
Employment Awareness Month Theme, June 3, 2008, available at

http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/odep/odep20080993.htm

Organizations such as LimeConnect and the National Business & Disability
Council help to match the employment needs of corporations with the skill
sets of persons with disabilities. LimeConnect, founded in 2006, connects
college students and professional candidates with disabilities through "private
recruiting efforts" with Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, PepsiCo, and
Google, its four major partners. The National Business & Disability
Council boasts more than 30 corporate members, including AIG, Liz Claiborne,
and Proctor & Gamble. The
group leads the diversity-internship program "Emerging Leaders" and
also hosts "an invitation-only Wall Street job fair for candidates
seeking jobs at financial-service firms," such as Lehman Brothers and
Goldman Sachs.

Full Story:
The Wall Street Journal, Support Grows for Disabled Job Seekers, July 22,
2008, available at

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121666205789570827.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

In August, the Cabinet for Health and Family Services (CHFS) and Kentucky
Protection and Advocacy (P&A) reached an agreement permitting individuals
with developmental disabilities to gain access to a greater range of services "in
community settings, rather than institutions." This resolution
comes as an amendment of the "Michelle P." class action lawsuit
settlement agreement, a case originally filed by P&A in 2002 alleging
that Kentucky failed to allocate satisfactory community services to these
individuals.

There are currently 3,000 class action lawsuit members on a waiting list
for Supports for Community Living (SCL) residential assistance. For
the first year, the "Michelle P. Waiver," created to provide
individuals with disabilities the right to continue living in or return to
a community setting and prevent institutionalization, will serve those individuals
on the SCL waiting list who have met eligibility requirements. The
Waiver program then aims to support 1,500 additional individuals each successive
year. The
enhanced community services will facilitate "much-need[ed] relief to
persons with disabilities and their family members" in the community
through non-residential supports and services including personal care, respite,
adult day health, and behavioral supports.

Full Story:
Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, Health and Family Services
Cabinet, Protection and Advocacy Agreement Approved, July 14, 2008, available
at

http://migration.kentucky.gov/newsroom/chfs/Michelle+P.htm

For more information:
Kentucky Protection and Advocacy, Michelle P. Case Update, October 11, 2007,
available at

http://www.kypa.net/drupal/?q=node/865

The Department of Justice (DOJ) recently filed a complaint and proposed
a consent decree in the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia to
implement ADA requirements making "over-the-road discount bus service" available
to persons with disabilities. In the first decree coordinated between
DOJ and New Century Travel, Inc., a "low cost, fixed route carrier," individuals
who use wheelchairs will be able to arrange for rides on accessible buses
with appropriate advance notice given to New Century.

Persons with disabilities will be able to make online reservations for accessible,
over-the-road bus service via New Century's website. Through New Century,
bus service will be provided to major cities along the east coast, including
New York City, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C.

Full Story:

Department of Justice, Bus Operator Will Provide Accessible Service for Individuals
in Wheelchairs, July 7, 2008, available at

http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2008/July/08-crt-590.html

The Speaker's rostrum in the U.S. House of Representatives will be
made wheelchair accessible by the end of the year through renovations announced
by House leadership in June. The rostrum, situated behind the President,
is occupied by the Speaker during the annual State of the Union address. The
Architect of the Capitol, responsible for the care and maintenance of the
Capitol and other buildings, will lead improvements, including reconstruction
of the wooden chair built into the podium and lifts to increase accessibility.

Full Story:
Carol D. Leonnig, Another Obstacle Conquered: House Speaker's Rostrum
Will Be Accessible by Wheelchair, Washington Post, July 8, 2008, available
at

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/07/AR2008070702252_pf.html

A recent (GAO) report examined the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS)
World Trade Center (WTC) health programs, originally developed in response to
the September 11th attacks on the WTC. The GAO identified five lessons
as potentially useful for developing responder health programs in the event
of future disaster:

• Registration of all responders during an emergency could improve "implementation
  of screening and monitoring services."


• Improved epidemiologic research efforts could help individuals
  understand the effects on health resulting from emergency response.


• More timely mental and physical health evaluations could improve accuracy
  of diagnoses.


• A treatment referral process in these programs could improve accessibility
  of treatment for responders.


• Data collection and equitable distributions of services would be more
  efficient by making services available to all responders.

Full Story: Government Accountability Office, September 11: HHS Needs
to Develop a Plan That Incorporates Lessons from the Responder Health Programs,
May 30, 2008, available at

http://www.gao.gov/docdblite/details.php?rptno=GAO-08-610

The National TA Center at United Advocates for Children and Families
(UACF) recently released a set of resources offering help for individuals
who are physically, psychologically, or emotionally impacted from the
effects of natural disasters. The resources offer advice and tips for communities to prepare
for and deal with the repercussions of hurricanes and other disasters. The
following resources can be found on the Association of University Centers on
Disabilities' (AUCD) website:

• After the Storm: A Guide to Help Children Cope With the Psychological
  Effects of a Hurricane


• Disaster Preparedness for Families of Children With Special Needs


• After the Disaster: A Children's Mental Health Checklist


• Emergencies, Mental Health, and Traumatic Stress


• Disaster Preparedness for Children


• Mental Health Services in Disasters/Major Traumas

For more information: Association of University Centers on Disabilities,
Resources for Helping Children Deal with Disasters, September 4,
2008, available at

http://www.aucd.org/template/news.cfm?news_id=3003&id=26&parent=26

Professor Grace Yawo Gadagbui presented her paper titled, "Inclusive
Education in Ghana; Challenges and Future Implications for all Stakeholders," at
the 'UNESCO-Ghana at 50 Anniversary' lecture series. She told
those in attendance that teachers require training to meet the needs of all
students, both with and without disabilities. Some students reportedly drop
out of school because they feel the school system cannot meet their individual
needs. Gadagbui called for a revamping of the educational system to address
the problems and needs of the students. Mrs. Esi Sutherland Addy, a fellow
lecturer, feels more needs to be done to facilitate and improve the teaching
and learning programs in this region.

Full Story: Avoid Abusing Children with Disability-Teachers Advised. myjoy.com,
June 25, 2008, available at

http://www.myjoyonline.com/education/200806/17546.asp

The United States Wheelchair Rugby team has lofty goals for the
Paralympics in Beijing. The team captured the Canada Cup International Wheelchair Rugby
Tournament, the last tournament in international competition before the 2008
Paralympic Games in Beijing, this fall. The Americans are currently ranked number
one in the world; however, they are not the defending Paralympics champions. After
earning bronze medals for their last Paralympics performance in Athens (after
New Zealand and Canada, respectively) the U.S. team is eager to capture the
gold this July.

Full Story: Mary Buckheit, A Rivalry to Match Red Sox-Yankees, ESPN, July
17, 2008, available at

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=buckheit/080714

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