Items 1 through 7 have been deleted, since they are primarily for families
living in Virginia and Maryland, and I did not want to send useless
information to the folks in the rest of the country. However, please let me
know if you live in Virginia, Maryland or DC; so that I can add you to my
private email distribution list for events in those states.


8. The National Autism Association has a program called helping hands.
They provide funding to single parents who need financial assistance in
getting necessary biomedical treatments, supplements and therapy services
for their autistic child. The application at
http://www.nationalautismassociation.org/helpinghand.php
<blocked::http://www.nationalautismassociation.org/helpinghand.php> is
pretty simple to fill out and shouldn't take that long to complete. You can
apply for up to $1500.

9. "Autism Study Prompts Debate" dated 11 March 2006 by Kathy Fowler from
WJLA ABC7 News at http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/0306/309536.html
<http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/0306/309536.html> . Transcript and video
of newscast is at this web link.

10. "Immunity, neuroglia and neuroinflammation in autism" by Pardo, Carlos
A.
<http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/routledg/cirp/2005/00000017/00000006/
art00007#aff_1> 1; Vargas, Diana L.
<http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/routledg/cirp/2005/00000017/00000006/
art00007#aff_1> 1; Zimmerman, Andrew W. in the December edition of
<http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/routledg/cirp> International Review
of Psychiatry at
<http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/routledg/cirp/2005/00000017/00000006/
art00007>
http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/routledg/cirp/2005/00000017/00000006/a
rt00007.

"Abstract: Autism is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder of early onset
that is highly variable in its clinical presentation. Although the causes of
autism in most patients remain unknown, several lines of research support
the view that both genetic and environmental factors influence the
development of abnormal cortical circuitry that underlies autistic cognitive
processes and behaviors. The role of the immune system in the development of
autism is controversial. Several studies showing peripheral immune
abnormalities support immune hypotheses, however until recently there have
been no immune findings in the CNS. We recently demonstrated the presence of
neuroglial and innate neuroimmune system activation in brain tissue and
cerebrospinal fluid of patients with autism, findings that support the view
that neuroimmune abnormalities occur in the brain of autistic patients and
may contribute to the diversity of the autistic phenotypes. The role of
neuroglial activation and neuroinflammation are still uncertain but could be
critical in maintaining, if not also in initiating, some of the CNS
abnormalities present in autism. A better understanding of the role of
neuroinflammation in the pathogenesis of autism may have important clinical
and therapeutic implications."

11. "State Rep. Wagner proposes bill in aftermath of caged kids case" dated
11 March 2006 by MATT SANCTIS from the Newspaper Network of Central Ohio at
http://www.centralohio.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/BC/20060311/NEWS01/603
110315/1002
<http://www.centralohio.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/BC/20060311/NEWS01/60
3110315/1002&template=BC> &template=BC.

"State legislators are considering new legislation in light of a recent case
in Huron County in which a couple made some of their foster children sleep
in wood and wire cages. House Bill 529, introduced Thursday in the Ohio
House of Representatives by State Rep. Jeff Wagner, R-Sycamore, would add
notification requirements and evaluations to foster and adoption cases.
Michael and Sharen Gravelle of Clarksfield Township kept some of their 11
special-needs children in cages. The children, who range in age from 1 to
15, were removed from the home in September after county authorities found
the cages. The Gravelles have testified in court that the cages were needed
to protect the children from harming themselves and others. The children
suffered from conditions ranging from autism to fetal-alcohol syndrome. A
custody battle between the parents and the county is pending in Huron
County. Written closing statements from attorneys on both sides of the case
are expected Monday. The parents also pleaded not guilty to several charges,
including child endangerment, in a separate criminal case. "House Bill 529
addresses much-needed reforms in our adoption and foster care system,"
Wagner said. "The recent case in Huron County has brought these issues to
the forefront." Sen. Tom Niehaus, R-New Richmond, is proposing companion
legislation in the Senate, Wagner said Thursday, and Gov. Bob Taft expressed
a desire for the legislation earlier this year. Wagner said the current
bill features two major components. The first would require adoption
agencies, both private and public, to contact the local Department of Jobs
and Family Services whenever a foster child is being sent to a home. The
second component would require an assessment by the DJFS any time a family
has five or more children in the home. Wagner said it would not affect
children originally born to the family. ..."

12. "Why Is Your School On This List?- More than 200 Washington-area
schools failed to meet the standards set under the No Child Left Behind Act.
So Outlook asked local for an explanation" dated 12 March 2006 by Reginald
Ballard from The Washington Post at
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/10/AR200603100
2053.html>
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/10/AR2006031002
053.html.

"Cardozo High School, Northwest Washington. We are a "needs improvement"
school. In 2004-2005, we did not make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) in both
reading and math. We are trying to avoid moving to the next step,
"corrective action," which has an even more negative connotation to it.
There is nothing positive I can say about No Child Left Behind. We were one
of the schools that did make AYP at the beginning, so we were a school that
kids from other schools could transfer to. But that was almost like a
Catch-22. If you get that designation, they send you kids with low test
scores, which helps bring you down further. Almost all the schools that
originally made AYP have now moved down to "needs improvement." One of the
things we are trying hard to do is make sure we teach the standards that are
required on the D.C. Comprehensive Assessment System test. I am not saying
we are teaching to the test. We don't know what it's going to look like, but
we are teaching those standards that will be on it. I am having my teachers
develop plans to determine the skills that the students who were close to
receiving satisfactory scores need to improve. I have teachers doing lesson
plans on those skills, and they have to tell me where their students are
after each assessment, and how they are going to move them to the next
level. ..."


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