Provides an overview of the First Amendment status of college print media, and then discusses the degree to which student-controlled electronic media outlets warrant comparable expressive rights. (SR)

Summarizes a case involving a district's alleged violation of a neurologically impaired student's rights under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the Rehabilitation Act (Section 504). The Third Circuit Court ruled that IDEA's "stay-put" rule did not excuse the district from developing a timely individualized…

Discusses the controversy over the arrangement between UMI, a company that stores, reproduces, and sells master's theses and doctoral dissertations, and the commercially based online retailer, Contentville.com. Both American and Canadian scholars have been surprised to find their work being offered, without their permission, for sale online by…

Although athletic events generate their share of negligence lawsuits, the relatively small number, compared with other education areas, suggests that defenses (like assumption or risk and contributory negligence) have a better fit in athletics. Implications of newer litigation trends involving coaches' misconduct and interpretation of state…

Examines concepts and ideas behind the practice of distance education, including commercialization; the role of public institutions and private sector firms; a vision to open the process of learning to new possibilities; and barriers to distance education, including legal, administrative, and financial. (LRW)

Explores whether plagiarism-detection services such as Turnitin.com, which keeps copies of submitted papers in a database, are trampling students' rights for the sake of academic integrity. (EV)

Identifies broad areas affecting department chairs when they deal with academic personnel matters, including sexual harassment and sexual discrimination. Notes that the hiring and reappointment process is at the core of building and maintaining the highest quality faculty members, and that most federal and state courts defer to academic judgment…

Explores two aspects of financial dilemmas in postsecondary education and disability law: who pays for funding of students' auxiliary aids and for how long. Suggests that in the 1998 Rehabilitation Act Amendments, Congress implicitly acknowledged that agencies may sometimes be unable to offer students a full range of vocational services,…

Most courts have flexibly interpreted the constitutional requirement of procedural and substantive due process in favor of zero-tolerance expulsion decisions. While being sensitive to community intolerance for threats to school safety (student possession of guns or drugs), school leaders should modulate development and enforcement of expulsion…

The Department of Education's Inspector General has identified and prosecuted 17 cases where borrowers received large amounts in student loans by claiming falsely to be pursuing studies at foreign institutions. Officials see serious statutory, regulatory, and program deficiencies that may expose programs to more fraud and abuse. Critics feel the…

Examines the legal issues surrounding Internet filtering in public libraries. Discusses First Amendment rights and responsibilities; recent court cases; legal problems with limiting Internet access; librarian intervention; less restrictive means to protect minors from harmful materials; and possible liability issues. (LRW)

The aim of the study was to compare African American and Caucasian substance dependent suicide attempters for risk factors for suicidal behavior. One hundred and fifty-eight African American and 95 Caucasian substance dependent patients who had attempted suicide were interviewed and their family history of suicidal behavior recorded. Patients…

The issue of special needs and the English Language Learner is a complex and complicated one. It involves all of the issues that education for children with special needs has, such as legal issues, psychological issues, parental involvement issues, and the involvement of general education classroom teachers. These issues are intertwined with those…

The purpose of this document is to provide charter school authorizers with targeted technical assistance related to special education in charter schools. Charter school laws are unique to each state, and they provide a wide range of policies and practices for the hundred of authorizers chartering schools nationally. As a result, providing…

This book discusses elements of six major areas of controversy which occur between different types of helping professionals. Theme 1 involves identity for the mental health professions. Questions are addressed related to the professional status of various mental health occupations, and who among them shall provide mental health services. Theme 2…