Coffee at 9:30
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Department of Psychology
Community Workshop
Separate is Still Not Equal:
Students with Disabilities Continue the Struggle
Wednesday
December 8, 2004
10 am - 12noon
600 Suffolk St., Lowell MA 01854
Speakers:
Doreen Arcus
Associate Professor of Psychology
UMass Lowell
Robin Foley
Director, Special Education Projects
Federation for Children with Special Needs
Julie Walsh
Chair, Citywide Parent Council
Lowell Public Schools
Debbie Westaway
Assistant Administrator for Special Education
Lowell Public Schools
COME
JOIN US!
Workshop
10-12 Coffee at 9:30
This community workshop is free and open to the public.
Parents of school aged children and individuals with disabilities are especially encouraged to attend.
Preregistration
is not required; to assist in planning please call 978-934-4377 to let us know
that you will be in attendance.
Background
Fifty years after
the historic Brown vs. the Board of Education Supreme Court decision, a premise
of “separate but equal” continues to underlie the placements of many
students with disabilities in the Commonwealth and across the US.
Although federal legislation (IDEA 97) specifies that students with
disabilities be placed in inclusive classrooms, i.e., the “least restrictive
environment,” only 36.3% of students with disabilities in Massachusetts public
schools spent at least 80% of their day in the regular classroom during
the 2003-2004 school year. What is
even more striking is the variability across school districts:
from 11% of students in fully inclusive classrooms in the district at the
10th percentile to 78% in the district ranking at the 90th
percentile.
This workshop is
being offered for community members to explore issues related to the right of
equal access to education regardless of disability as part of National Inclusive
Schools Week.
The workshop has several objectives
To disseminate information about special education law and the state of special education in the Commonwealth
To disseminate materials with information about special education in multiple languages and to identify resources for further consultation
To explore ways of promoting
inclusive education
To explore ways of enhancing communication and partnerships between parents and school personnel
To promote a view of the child with disabilities as a child first and foremost
To identify next steps that the University, schools, and parent groups might take in support of children with disabilities and inclusive education
Questions?
978-934-4377
This workshop is supported, in part, by a grant from the
UML Council on Diversity & Pluralism