In case you miss any of these email over the last year, they are all
archived in the Military Family Network at
<http://www.emilitary.org/forums/index.php?showforum=664>
http://www.emilitary.org/forums/index.php?showforum=664 and also at the
POAC-NoVA website of
<http://www.poac-nova.org/base.cgim?template=news_and_events>
http://www.poac-nova.org/base.cgim?template=news_and_events.


Items 1 through 22 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.


25. The most recent issue of the PEATC Press discusses the VA regulations
process and some of the differences between the current VA regs and Fed
regs. The former procedural safeguards document did a fair job of also
highlighting some of the additional protections contained in the current VA
regs. The PEATC Press can be downloaded @
<http://www.peatc.org/PEATC_Press_Sept%2006.pdf>
http://www.peatc.org/PEATC_Press_Sept%2006.pdf There is a special edition
related to where to find the research that folks keep talking about @
<http://www.peatc.org/PEATC_Press_Sept_06_specialeditionsection.pdf>
http://www.peatc.org/PEATC_Press_Sept_06_specialeditionsection.pdf Updates
on the VA regs process can be found at the bottom left corner here:
<http://www.pen.k12.va.us/VDOE/dueproc/regulationsCWD.html>
http://www.pen.k12.va.us/VDOE/dueproc/regulationsCWD.html.

26. The new model procedural safeguards document for Virginia is on the
Web: <http://www.doe.virginia.gov/VDOE/Instruction/Sped/proc_safe.pdf>
http://www.doe.virginia.gov/VDOE/Instruction/Sped/proc_safe.pdf.

27. "It's A Family Affair- Siblings Experience a Myriad of Emotions,
Struggles, Rewards, & Challenges" by Sue Lovejoy in the September edition of
Bay State Parent at
<http://www.baystateparent.com/news/2006/0901/Articles/025.html>
http://www.baystateparent.com/news/2006/0901/Articles/025.html.

""Tim is so comfortable and respectful around the kids," said Valle Dwight
of Florence. Speaking about her oldest son and his recent volunteer efforts
at a local therapeutic riding program, she added, "He makes an effort to
look past disability." Tim, 13, whose brother Aidan has Down Syndrome, is
no stranger to assisting children with challenges. As captain of Aidan's
unified* basketball team, Tim "played his heart out" at the Special Olympic
Winter Games. Honored with a gold medal, he was recognized as the "player
who more than anyone exemplified the spirit of Special Olympics," Dwight
said. Down to just four players at one point, Tim instinctively rallied his
team to a different sort of victory that day. "We didn't win any games," his
mother said. "But Timmy won a lot of hearts." Throughout their lives,
siblings of children with special needs will experience a myriad of complex
emotions, struggles, rewards, and challenges. "In the special needs
parenting adventure, siblings are real-life heroes," wrote author Judy
Winter in Breakthrough Parenting for Children with Special Needs. Referring
to her "two very great brothers," both of whom have Autism Spectrum
Disorder, Cara Loughlin, 12, said, "they (Brian and John) need more special
help than other children." Being the youngest child, Cara has dealt with
the impact of the boys' diagnosis her entire life. "I never really thought
about how I am affected by my brothers' special needs before," she said.
"From a parent perspective," said Mary Loughlin, mother of Cara, Brian, and
John of Auburn, "the challenges are to avoid being so focused on the child
with special needs that you do not have time with typical child(ren)."
Loughlin, Central Massachusetts Coordinator at the Federation for Children
with Special Needs (FCSN), makes every effort to provide a typical life for
her daughter, but admits that it "is not always possible." Essential home
and school programs, medical appointments, and therapies can put demands on
families, which make balancing individual needs difficult. "I try to make
sure Cara has time alone with me," Loughlin said. "I let her choose when her
siblings join in." According to Tufts University Child and Family News,
research shows that feelings of anger, guilt, embarrassment, and fear are
normal reactions. Although siblings of children with special needs may
become overachievers, they tend to be mature, altruistic, and sensitive to
the needs of others. ..."

28. "Mint Hill boy not allowed on ride" dated 6 October 2006 by Maria
Kotula from WCNC6 News at
<http://www.wcnc.com/news/topstories/stories/wcnc-ad-10_06_06-ride.11d97580.
html>
http://www.wcnc.com/news/topstories/stories/wcnc-ad-10_06_06-ride.11d97580.h
tml.

"When 6NEWS went to visit Bryan Mullis, 8, in Mint Hill Friday, the first
thing done was to measure his height, because his parents said a ride
attendant at the Mint Hill Madness festival would not let Bryan on the
spinner teacup ride because he was too short. The ride required kids to be
42-inches tall. Bryan is 48 inches tall. Bryan's parents, Beth Schmidt and
Mark Mullis think their son was being discriminated against because he has
Downs Syndrome. Mark Mullis stood in line to get on the ride with his son.
When they were not allowed, he was told by a supervisor of MGR Rides to read
the sign, which states patrons with mental and physical disabilities may
find this ride unsuitable. MGR Rides said the spinner ride is their most
volatile ride and there's concern for kids that may get scared. Bryan's dad
said that should be a parent decision. ..."

29. "Disability is a civil rights issue" dated 25 October 2006 by TOBY
OLSON in an editorial from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer at
<http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/289810_disability25.html>
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/289810_disability25.html.

"Each October we celebrate National Disability Employment Awareness Month,
yet we have made little or no progress toward initiating the open, mature
public dialogue essential to improving public awareness on disability. As a
result, we continue to endure the human and economic costs inflicted by
attitudes and policies shaped by widely held, but false assumptions and
myths. As things stand now, the general public is consistently,
spectacularly wrong in nearly every truth it holds dear about the experience
of life with a disability. When I say that to someone, that person usually
will look sad and thoughtful and nod in agreement, and I'll know that person
is thinking, "He's right; I couldn't possibly imagine how horrible it must
be." Let me tell you, every one of us has much more than enough experience
imagining how horrible it must be, and if our imaginations were ever to fail
us in this regard, we could always count on Hollywood to shovel out yet
another overblown, melodramatic, cliché-riddled treatment to help us along.
What the general public is unprepared to imagine is just how wonderful,
rewarding and full of accomplishment life with a severe disability usually
is. There have been dozens of studies that have shown not just a disconnect
but rather an immense chasm -- we're talking the Grand Canyon here --
between the popular assumptions and the actual experiences of people with
disabilities. One of the earlier studies compared overall satisfaction and
happiness rates for people with paraplegia and people who had won the
lottery, and found not much difference. I buy lottery tickets, and I see
this as very good news. Since my odds of having a spinal cord injury are
much better than they are for picking those winning numbers, it's good to
know that either way, once I make it through the disruptive process of
adjustment to the dramatic changes in my life, I'll probably end up being
about as happy as I am right now. The kinds of things that the popular
perception of the experience of significant disability consistently and
spectacularly underestimates include: what we can do; how happy we are; our
level of self-esteem and virtually every other measure of competence,
productivity and quality of life. All of this plays well for telethons,
personal injury suits and other efforts to tug at heartstrings to loosen
purse strings, but it's a real disadvantage in any endeavor that requires
being accepted as a competent, functioning adult. Some examples include
applying for a job, trying to get a date, rent an apartment, preserve
parental rights or help someone else understand that disability is first and
foremost a civil rights issue. We must develop a public dialogue that
actively challenges the preconceptions and stereotypes about people who have
disabilities, forces an examination of those beliefs and replaces them with
beliefs informed by the actual experiences of people with disabilities. In
other words, we need to talk. ..."

30. "Down syndrome families sue state over placement of kids in classes"
dated 27 October 2006 by John Mooney from The Star-Ledger at
<http://www.nj.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-5/1161928035141470.xml?starle
dger?nnj&coll=1>
http://www.nj.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-5/1161928035141470.xml?starled
ger?nnj&coll=1.

"Three families of children with Down syndrome have filed a federal suit
against the state Department of Education, saying it has not done enough to
get districts to include such children in mainstream classes. The
class-action suit, known as Grieco vs. New Jersey Department of Education,
was filed in U.S. District Court in Newark in August and amended this week.
It is named after a Jefferson Township, Morris County, family who brought an
unsuccessful complaint against Jefferson schools before a state
administrative judge and is now pursuing and broadening the case in federal
court. The plaintiffs, whose children are 6, 9 and 13, are joined by
several prominent state and national advocacy groups, including the National
Down Syndrome Congress. The plaintiff's lawyer, Andrew Hamelsky, yesterday
cited New Jersey's notorious standing as one of the nation's most segregated
states when it comes to special-education students, including those with
Down syndrome. "These school districts have no idea what to do. They just
can't handle it," said Hamelsky, a Paramus attorney. "And there is nothing
at all coming from New Jersey. ... Not only have they not done enough, they
haven't done anything." No hearing date has been set. New Jersey has the
highest rate of special-education students in outside schools, and among the
lowest rates of those in general education classrooms for the bulk of the
school day. Just 5 percent of students classified with mental retardation
are in mainstream classes for 80 percent or more of the day, according to
state data. State officials have decried the high rate of students in
outside or segregated settings, and Gov. Jon Corzine this week announced $15
million to help districts provide more in-district programs for children
with autism. "We understand that New Jersey continues to have an
overreliance on separate programs, and we have already identified this as an
area for improvement," said Jon Zlock, spokesman for the Education
Department. "We continue to work on increasing the number of appropriate
in-district placements for students."

31. "Parents' suit: Open doors to regular classrooms- Jefferson mother
fights for her son and 'those who will come after us'" dated 27 October 2006
by Laura Bruno from the Daily Record at
http://www.dailyrecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061027/COMMUNITIES21
/610270367/1203/NEWS01
<http://www.dailyrecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061027/COMMUNITIES2
1/610270367/1203/NEWS01> .

"The parents of a Jefferson child with Down syndrome are among three New
Jersey families in a federal class- action lawsuit suing the state of New
Jersey alleging children with disabilities are consistently denied access to
general education classrooms, violating federal laws. Pointing to New
Jersey's worst-in-the-nation record for including students with disabilities
in general education classrooms, the lawsuit alleges the state is violating
the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Americans
with Disabilities Act. The state has systematically failed to carry out its
duty to educate these children with their non-disabled peers, with a high
percentage of students placed in segregated classrooms, according to the
lawsuit. The state Department of Education, Jefferson Township School
District and their respective boards of education were served the lawsuit
Thursday. The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Newark in August.
The three families, backed by advocacy groups such as the National Down
Syndrome Congress, held a press conference Thursday morning in front of the
state Education Department's Trenton offices. The lawsuit was filed on
behalf of three children with Down syndrome: Vincenzo Grieco, 9, of
Jefferson; Simone Boucher, 6, of Metuchen; Christopher Briscese, 13, of
Hamilton Township, Mercer County; and all children who are "cognitively
impaired" or "multiply disabled." "I'm doing this for my son and for the
families who came before us and those who will come after us," Jefferson
mother Kelly Grieco said. "I want for Vinny what I want for all my children
...He has a contribution to make, even if it's not like what everyone else
can do, and he needs to be valued for that." State education officials said
they had not seen the lawsuit as of Thursday afternoon and could not respond
to the case. However, in general, the state is aware of the problem, said
Barbara Gantwerk, the education department's acting assistant commissioner,
who oversees special education. ..."

32. "Beyond Cognitive Disability Barriers- Employees Quickly Emerge as
Assets" dated 29 October 2006 by Amy Joyce from The Washington Post at
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/27/AR200610270
0970.html>
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/27/AR2006102700
970.html.

"When Kathryn Giordano, director of administration at Baker Botts LLP,
suggested to Pat Berry that his daughter come work at his law firm for the
summer, he shook his head in disbelief. "I thought no, not a law firm," he
said. "It was absolutely scary." That's because Berry's 19-year-old
daughter who loves to ride horses and types 45 words a minute has a
cognitive disability. His daughter's stint at the firm allayed his initial
fears. "Professionals with cognitively disabled children think they can't do
this," he said. "But they can." Other organizations have had the same
realization. A decade ago, the Cincinnati Children's Hospital opened a
division called Project Search which helps place people with cognitive
disabilities in jobs within the hospital and teaches other organizations how
to do the same. "We really have found that people with significant
disabilities are capable of doing incredibly complex work as long as it's
systematic," said Erin Riehle, director of the project. Most people with
developmental disabilities work in stereotypical jobs, she said, like
cleaning and horticulture. "Our objective was to look beyond that. We found
that we could put people with Down syndrome, Williams syndrome and many
other disabilities into roles that had never been considered before."
People with cognitive disabilities have significant delays in measured
intelligence, adaptive functioning or academic functioning. "A fair amount
of hospital revenue comes from providing medical care to kids with
disabilities. We kind of had an awareness that we needed to provide role
models in our workforce," Riehle said. More companies are realizing the
workforce opportunities in people with intellectual disabilities and are
considering them not only for jobs, but careers. But the number is still
anemic. Only about 31 percent of people with such disabilities are employed,
said Jon Colman, chief operating officer of the National Down Syndrome
Society. Mason Berry has a genetic disorder known as Fragile X syndrome,
which affects speech, motor skills, cognitive abilities and other
characteristics. Last summer at Baker Botts, she picked up books at book
drops throughout the towering office at the Warner Building and reshelved
them. She logged magazines into the computer and did some Internet research.
After a few weeks, she learned how to ride the Metro so she didn't have to
wait for her father, a partner there, to finish a conference call. This
summer, she is a Labor Department contractor doing database work, closer to
their home in Virginia. "I loved it," she said while visiting her father's
office on a recent weekday. To bide her time, she was reorganizing library
slips. "They are not in order," she said, shuffling through them. Companies
like Baker Botts, working with local schools and organizations, have found
that hiring employees with cognitive disabilities can fill a major gap in
employment -- and it has been acting as a go-between to find other firms for
employees with cognitive disabilities. ..."

33. "A Study Links Trucks' Exhaust to Bronx Schoolchildren's Asthma" dated
29 October 2006 by Manny Fernandez from The New York Times at
<http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/29/nyregion/29asthma.html?_r=1&ref=education
&oref=slogin>
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/29/nyregion/29asthma.html?_r=1&ref=education&
oref=slogin.

"In New York City, air pollution levels have typically been monitored by
inanimate objects, at more than a dozen locations around town. But in the
South Bronx, from 2002 to 2005, air pollution monitors went mobile. They
went to the playground, to the gritty sidewalks, even to the movies. A
group of schoolchildren carried the monitors everywhere they went. The
instruments, attached to the backpacks of children with
<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/health/diseasesconditionsandhealthtopics
/asthma/index.html?inline=nyt-classifier> asthma, allowed researchers at
<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/n/new_yor
k_university/index.html?inline=nyt-org> New York University to measure the
pollution the children were exposed to, morning to night. The South Bronx
is home to miles of expressways, more than a dozen waste-transfer stations,
a sewage-treatment plant and truck traffic from some of the busiest
wholesale produce, meat and fish markets in the world. It is also home to
some of the highest asthma hospitalization rates for children in the city.
The N.Y.U. study found that the students were exposed to high levels of air
pollutants in their neighborhoods and that children in the South Bronx were
twice as likely to attend a school near a highway as were children in other
parts of the city. The findings paint a bleak picture of the air quality in
one of the poorest sections of the city and have focused renewed attention
from community groups and elected officials on curbing pollution from truck
exhaust. "The levels did surprise me," said José E. Serrano, the Bronx
representative whose district includes the South Bronx. "They are really
telling us that this is a very serious problem." Mr. Serrano, who is a
Democrat and who helped secure federal money for the study, and the
researchers held a news conference this month about the findings. Ten
children from each of four public schools in the South Bronx - P.S. 154,
M.S. 302, M.S. 201 and Community School 152 - took part in the study. They
were given wheeled black and dark blue backpacks outfitted with a
battery-powered pump and an air filter, along with other instruments. "You
rolled it, so it wasn't really that heavy," said Derrick Reliford, one of
the students. The children, who were volunteers ages 10 to 12, each took
part in the study for a month. They reported to researchers stationed at the
schools twice a day and kept diaries on their asthma symptoms and daily
activities. Their lung function was tested, and the filters from their
backpacks were regularly changed and analyzed. A van parked near the schools
served as an air-monitoring lab. Derrick, 14, took part in the study in
2002, when he was a student at Public School 154 on East 135th Street. The
school is across the street from the Major Deegan Expressway. His
great-grandmother Evelyn Reliford, 70, said she never thought much about the
air pollution in the Mott Haven neighborhood. "I didn't really worry about
it until they took the study," said Mrs. Reliford. Airborne particles like
dust, soot and smoke that are less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter are
small enough to lodge themselves deep in the lungs. Studies have linked
pollution of this sort to respiratory problems, decreased lung function,
nonfatal heart attacks and aggravated asthma, according to the United States
<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/e/environ
mental_protection_agency/index.html?inline=nyt-org> Environmental Protection
Agency. E.P.A. officials said these fine particles, a significant portion
of which are produced by diesel engine emissions, lead to 15,000 premature
deaths a year nationwide. In the South Bronx study, of the 69 days for
which measurements were taken over the three-year period, average daily
exposure to fine-particle pollution for a group of 10 children exceeded the
E.P.A.'s new standard on 18 days. The standard will be 35 micrograms per
cubic meter in December. "I think it's an indicator that these kids are
being exposed to very high fine-particle concentrations on a fairly regular
basis," said George Thurston, associate professor of environmental medicine
at the N.Y.U. School of Medicine, who was one of the study's principal
researchers. Walter Mugdan, director of environmental planning and
protection for the E.P.A. region that includes New York, said he had not
seen the detailed study, which was financed in large part by an E.P.A.
grant. He cautioned that there were differences between the methods used by
the agency and by researchers to gather data on air pollution. ..."

34. "Influenza vaccination: policy versus evidence" dated 29 October 2006
in a press release from BMJ Journals (UK) at
<http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/333/7574/912>
http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/333/7574/912.

"Each year enormous effort goes into producing influenza vaccines for that
specific year and delivering them to appropriate sections of the population.
Is this effort justified? Viral infections of the respiratory tract impose
a high burden on society. In the last half of the 20th century, efforts to
prevent or minimise their impact centred on the use of influenza vaccines.
Each year enormous effort goes into producing that year's vaccine and
delivering it to appropriate sections of the population. Here, I will
discuss policies on the use of inactivated vaccines for seasonal influenza;
the evidence for their efficacy, effectiveness, and safety ("effects"); and
possible reasons for the gap between policy and evidence. Every vaccination
campaign has stated aims against which its effects must be measured. The US
Advisory Committee on Immunisation Practices produces a regularly updated
rationale for vaccination against influenza.
<http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/333/7574/912#REF1> 1 The
current version identifies 11 categories of patients at high risk of
complications from influenza (box). The rationale rests on the heavy
burden that influenza imposes on the population and the benefits of
vaccination. For example, reductions in cases, admissions to hospital,
mortality of elderly people in families with children, contacts with
healthcare professionals, antibiotic prescriptions, and absenteeism for
children and household contacts are the main arguments for extending
vaccination to healthy children aged 6-23 months in the United States.
<http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/333/7574/912#REF2> 2 Canada
introduced a similar policy in 2004.
<http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/333/7574/912#REF3> 3 Less
comprehensive policies recommending vaccination for all people aged 60 or 65
and over are in place in 40 of 51 developed or rapidly developing countries.
<http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/333/7574/912#REF4> 4 On the
basis of single studies, the World Health Organization estimates that
"vaccination of the elderly reduces the risk of serious complications or of
death by 70-85%."
<http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/333/7574/912#REF5> 5 Given the
global nature of these recommendations, what type of evidence should we
expect to support them and what does available evidence tell us?
<http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/333/7574/912#REF4> 4 When
considering the best evidence for vaccination we must take into account the
unique epidemiological features of influenza viruses and the rationale for
immunisation. The incidence and circulation of seasonal influenza and other
respiratory viruses vary greatly each year, each season, and even in each
setting. A systematic review of the incidence of influenza in people up to
19 years' old reported a seasonal variability of 0-46%; during a five year
period the average incidence was 4.6% in this age group. During a period of
25 years the incidence was 9.5% in children under 5.
<http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/333/7574/912#REF6> 6 ..."

35. "New Special-Ed Chief Promises to Be Inclusive" dated 29 October 2006
by KRISTEN ARMSTRONG from the Sun Gazette at
<http://www.sungazette.net/articles/2006/10/29/local_education/edu878a.txt>
http://www.sungazette.net/articles/2006/10/29/local_education/edu878a.txt.

"The new director of special education for Arlington Public Schools said she
plans to adhere closely to state and federal requirements in an effort to
provide special-ed students with the best education possible. "The
department has a clear direction," said Julie Crawford, who was appointed to
the post by the School Board at the start of the school year. "My hope is to
continue the department's vision in serving students with disabilities in
Arlington." Nearly 16 percent of students in the school system are
classified as special-education students. Crawford, who has been in the
Arlington school system since 2002, took her new position after serving as
principal of Swanson Middle School. Arlington Public Schools has had a
rocky relationship through the years with parents of special-education
students, who are an organized and often vocal group. In August, the School
Board accepted the resignation of Norma Villanueva, who had served as
director of special education for two years. Villanueva won praise from
parents for listening to their concerns. Her resignation left some advisory
committee members upset, and others wary, but Crawford is seeking the
support of the special-education community. She has been involved in special
education for all her professional life, she said. "I'm excited about the
position," Crawford said. "Arlington is a great school system." Alvin
Crowley, the school system's assistant director of student services, said
the system's top leadership would work to help Crawford and special-ed
students. "We make sure students and teachers have adequate levels of
support," said Crowley. Some outside the world of special education
question whether the amount of resources devoted to students in the program
takes away from other programs, and some parents of special-education
students have been criticized for having "tunnel vision" and being too
demanding of the school system. Crawford defended the parents. She said she
understands their desire to be deeply involved in their child's experience
in the special-education program, even when they might be one-sided in their
approach. "I'm not a parent," she said. "But I think they have their
child's best interest at heart."

36. "Marathon Dream Team- Md. Father Who Longed to Race With His Disabled
Daughter Pushes the Bounds of Stamina" dated 30 October 2006 by Lyndsey
Layton from The Washington Post at
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/29/AR200610290
0870.html>
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/29/AR2006102900
870.html.

"If life had gone differently, Tim Mullen figures, this would have been the
year that his 17-year-old daughter, Leah, ran her first marathon alongside
him. Instead, the 43-year-old Maryland man bundled up his deaf and
developmentally disabled daughter, strapped her into a running stroller and
pushed her 26.2 miles yesterday in the Marine Corps Marathon. It was both a
test of his stamina and a display of love for his daughter. Leah, who
cannot speak, was smiling and cooing throughout the 4 hours, 11 minutes and
25 seconds it took her father to push her along the course. "She likes the
sensation of the wind against her face," said Scott Penhallegon, 29, one of
several people who lined the route to cheer her on. "When we first saw her,
she had a big smile, and you could just tell she was having a great time."
Leah expresses happiness by clapping. Everywhere she looked yesterday, she
saw thousands clapping for her. "She was loving it," her father said. She
was just shy of 2 when she was found to have neuroblastoma, a cancer with an
80 percent fatality rate at that age. The tumor was removed, but her body
produced an antibody that attacked her nervous system. She lost her hearing,
is given to frequent seizures and developmentally is at the level of a
2-year old. She can walk but is unsteady on her feet. The only way Leah
could do a marathon was if Tim Mullen pushed her. They had plenty of
backup. Tim Mullen's brother, Mike, came from New Jersey to pedal alongside
them on a bike that towed a trailer stuffed with Leah's medications,
diapers, food, extra clothing and a walkie-talkie. Several friends took
turns escorting them on the course, jumping on the route and running for
several miles before jumping off. At the windiest section, Hains Point,
where Mullen worried that gusts would make it difficult to push the
stroller, four friends ran with him and formed a windshield. One of them,
Bob Villaneuva, 33, of Baltimore, ran the whole distance. It was his first
marathon. Dozens of family members and friends, including babysitters and
teaching aides and therapists from the Ridge Ruxton School, a specialized
school in Baltimore that Leah attends, cheered them from the road. Some
relatives flew in from as far away as Florida. At about the 15-mile mark, a
group of them met Mullen to help him check Leah's diaper. "It was faster
than a NASCAR pit stop," Mullen said. "We were in and out in 25 seconds."
Mullen, who lives in Timonium, started running in 2001 after realizing that
he was winded by rushing up two flights of stairs. "It was kind of
disgusting," said Mullen, who had wrestled and played baseball and football
as a teenager but never liked to run. "I went home that night, strapped on
whatever athletic clothing I had and got no more than a half-mile from the
house before I turned around. The next night, I ran a little farther." ..."

37. "Protesters push Congress to pass autism bill" dated 30 October 2006 by
ANABELLE GARAY from the Associated Press at
<http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/health/4298616.html>
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/health/4298616.html.

"Jeremy Hammer seemed like many other preschoolers with his knack for
repeating dialogue from the "SpongeBob SquarePants" movies. Yet, Jeremy
couldn't say "Mom" or "Dad" until the age of 3. It was then that he was
diagnosed with autism, a brain disorder that can interfere with a person's
ability to communicate with others, cause developmental disabilities and is
characterized by repetitive behaviors. "We did feel something was wrong
before," said his mother, Kristi Hammer of Plano. "From the time we brought
him home from the hospital, he cried 50 percent of the time." Kristi
Hammer, her husband Kevin, and older son, John Michael, were among some 80
parents, grandparents and children who demonstrated today outside a
political fundraiser attended by House Speaker Dennis Hastert to push
Congress toward passing the Combating Autism Act. The bill, which was
approved by the Senate in August, would set up a strategic plan for
addressing autism and allocate $900 million for fighting the disorder,
demonstrators said. Supporters of the bill contend U.S. Rep. Joe Barton,
R-Ennis, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, has let the
bill languish in a subcommittee and kept it from being considered by the
rest of the House. For about two hours, dozens stood outside the fundraiser
urging Hastert, R-Ill., to compel Barton to let the bill out of committee.
Every 14 minutes, the peaceful protesters held a moment of silence, many of
them holding signs with framed pictures of their autistic children.
Hastert, who attended the luncheon fundraiser for U.S. Rep. Sam Johnson,
R-Texas, said he planned to meet with supporters of the autism bill in
Washington. He added that the NIH bill would tackle research for other
diseases that also merit attention. Barton also has said he would like to
instead focus on his National Institutes of Health Reform Act, which would
increase funding for the agency that oversees the nation's research, each
year. "Putting millions more dollars into the hands of the people who
actually deal with autism at the National Institutes of Health and the
Centers for Disease Control cannot fail to do an enormous amount of good,"
Larry Neal, deputy staff director at the House Committee on Energy and
Commerce, said in a statement. But supporters of the autism bill say the
NIH measure doesn't include provisions specifically aimed at fighting
autism. None of the politicians at the fundraiser met with the protesters.
Demonstrators say autism has become so prevalent, it's an epidemic. At
least one of every 166 school-aged children suffer from autism, according to
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates. Boys are three to four
times more likely to have autism than girls. "If you don't know someone
with autism today, you will," Kristi Hammer said. Neal said in his
statement that Barton hopes to reach a compromise and work to pass
legislation in November."

38. "Pa. files disciplinary charges in autistic boy's death" dated 30
October 2006 by JENNIFER C. YATES from The Associated Press at
http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/103-10302006-734384.html
<http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/103-10302006-734384.html> .

"State officials have filed disciplinary charges against a doctor who
prescribed a therapy for people with lead poisoning to a 5-year-old autistic
boy who had a heart attack and died. Dr. Roy E. Kerry, 68, of Greenville,
was charged Sept. 8 with six counts that include engaging in unprofessional
conduct and breaching the standard of care. Abubakar Tariq Nadama died in
August 2005 following his third chelation treatment at Kerry's clinic, the
Advanced Integrative Medicine Center in Portersville, about 25 miles
northwest of Pittsburgh. Kerry didn't immediately return a call to his
office Monday from The Associated Press. The Department of State alleges,
among other things, that Kerry prescribed an IV push - meaning the drugs are
administered in one dose intravenously - despite warnings that this method
can be lethal. He also prescribed the wrong formula of the drug, officials
said. If the State Board of Medicine finds any of the charges to be true,
Kerry could have his medical license revoked, suspended or restricted and
could pay up to $10,000 in fines for each violation. Chelation is often
used in patients with sickle cell anemia, lead poisoning or other maladies.
During chelation, chemical compounds are injected or given orally and latch
onto metals in the body and carry them out through urine or feces. Some
people believe autism can be linked to a mercury-containing preservative
once commonly used in childhood vaccines. Chelation therapy has been
advocated as a remedy. The Food and Drug Administration has approved
chelation only for acute heavy-metal poisoning that is confirmed by blood
tests. Critics call the treatment risky and say there isn't enough evidence
to link autism to mercury or lead toxicity. One of the most common uses for
chelation is lead poisoning, in which a synthetic chemical called EDTA is
given to patients. EDTA is the same compound that was administered to
Nadama. John Gismondi, an attorney who represents Nadama's family, said they
were pleased with the charges. The family's hope is that no other family has
to go through a similar experience, he said. "The family's main goal had
always been to get to the bottom of what happened, and if these charged shed
more light on things then that is a positive development," Gismondi said."

39. "NIH's New Ethics Rules Lead Some to Ponder Jumping Ship" dated 30
October 2006 by Rita Beamish from the Associated Press in The Washington
Post at
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/29/AR200610290
0709_pf.html>
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/29/AR2006102900
709_pf.html.

"Nearly 40 percent of the scientists conducting hands-on research at the
National Institutes of Health say they are looking for other jobs or are
considering doing so to escape new ethics rules that have curtailed their
opportunity to earn outside income. Most scientists say the ethics
crackdown is too severe, and nearly three-quarters of them think it will
hinder the government's ability to attract and keep medical researchers,
according to a survey commissioned by the government's premier medical
research agency. The tightened rules were established last year after NIH
found that dozens of scientists had run afoul of existing restrictions with
private consulting deals that had enriched them with money from drug and
biotechnology companies. Outside income from such companies is now banned.
NIH also is placing greater restrictions and disclosure requirements on
employees' financial holdings. "Of course we are concerned when any
employees are saying they might consider leaving as a result of a change of
policy," said Raynard S. Kington, the agency's principal deputy director.
But he said in a telephone interview Friday that the survey results are
muddy because they combine those actively seeking to leave and those
thinking about it. NIH Director Elias A. Zerhouni, in a letter Thursday to
the staff, said the survey "does suggest concerns about the impact of the
regulations on recruitment and retention." But he added: "At this time we do
not anticipate revisions in the regulations." About 8,000 NIH employees, or
about half the workforce, responded to the Internet-based survey. Employee
job satisfaction was generally high, the survey found. But 39 percent of the
scientists researching disease and cures -- known as tenure and tenure-track
scientists -- said they were actively seeking new work or considering
leaving NIH because of the rules. Overall, 3,336 NIH scientists responded
to the survey, including 512 tenure and tenure-track researchers. Among all
NIH scientists, 18 percent said they were trying to leave or considering it.
Those not in the tenure group typically do not conduct research and instead
manage outside research performed with NIH money by universities and other
nonfederal entities. They are less likely to have private consulting
opportunities. One-third of all NIH scientists said they thought the new
rules would hurt NIH's ability to fulfill its mission, and most said the old
rules could have been enforced better rather than tightened. Kington
highlighted a finding that nearly nine in 10 scientists reported they intend
to work at NIH a year from now. Despite rumblings of low morale, he said the
scientists' job satisfaction rate of 81 percent reflects one of the
government's most positive workforces. Officials also emphasized employees'
opinion that the new rules will boost the agency's credibility with the
public; 73 percent of the employees who responded agreed with that, the
survey found. Arthur Caplan, medical ethics chairman at the University of
Pennsylvania, said tighter rules are needed but "we still haven't figured
out exactly how to manage conflict of interest." "The leaders of the NIH
and in Congress have to think a bit harder about giving a tiny bit of
breathing room so that NIH scientists are not sent into a monastery from
which they can't ever come out in the name of scientific integrity," he
said."

40. "Breaking Down The Ivory Tower- Study Finds Ed Schools in Poor Shape"
dated 31 October 2006 by Jay Mathews from The Washington Post at
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/30/AR200610300
0988.html>
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/30/AR2006103000
988.html.

"This should be a shining moment for education schools. Never has the nation
paid so much attention to improving the quality of teaching. Yet the
institutions that produce teachers have never faced so much criticism.
"Teacher education is the Dodge City of the education world," said Arthur
Levine, former president of Columbia University's Teachers College. "Like
the fabled Wild West town, it is unruly and chaotic." Stanford University
educational historian David F. Labaree wrote in a recent book:
"Institutionally, the ed school is the Rodney Dangerfield of higher
education; it don't get no respect. The ed school is the butt of jokes in
the university, where professors portray it as an intellectual wasteland."
The attacks have become so frequent and intense that some educators say they
have gone too far. But a growing number of educators say ed schools fail to
give teachers enough background in their subject matter, fail to prepare
them for the difficulties of urban schools and fail to recruit the best
students. For a study on ed schools released in September, Levine surveyed
administrators with firsthand knowledge of these problems: principals. Only
two of every five principals surveyed said ed schools were preparing
teachers very well or moderately well to get new curriculum and performance
standards into the classroom. Only one-third said their teachers were very
or moderately well prepared for maintaining classroom order. Only one-fifth
said their teachers were that well prepared to work with parents. There is
little agreement on what should be done to improve the ed schools. Levine
suggested that the leading accreditation organization for ed schools should
be replaced by one that pays closer attention to the performance of
graduates. Many ed schools bristled at that idea. Other critics have
suggested replacing ed schools with training institutes in school districts.
Some call for an expansion of Teach for America, which puts young college
graduates into the classroom with minimal preparation and lets them learn on
the job. But rethinking teacher education does not appear to a high
priority at many universities. Some experts wonder if ed schools will ever
be more than hiring halls with a few textbooks. ..."

41. "A breakthrough in ADHD treatment" dated 31 October 2006 by Frank
Pangallo from the Seven Network at
<http://seven.com.au/todaytonight/story/?id=30127>
http://seven.com.au/todaytonight/story/?id=30127.

"Thousands of ADHD sufferers worldwide have benefitted from a
ground-breaking drug-free treatment known as the Dore Program. Just four
months ago Port Lincoln schoolgirl Amerila Honan could barely string a
sentence together when trying to read. Today it's her mum Narelle who
happily can't find the words to express the amazing turnaround of her
nine-year-old daughter, who was diagnosed with dyslexia. "She's so excited.
She's unleashed herself. She's become this confident child excelling in
everything she's putting her hand to," said Narelle. Amelia's
transformation, along with thousands of others around the world, has been
achieved through the ground-breaking drug-free treatment known as the Dore
Program. It's now being hailed as a cure not just for dyslexia but other
debilitating neurological conditions like ADD, ADHD, Dyspraxia and
Asperger's sydrome. Wynford Dore, the driving force behind the program he
bankrolled and developed in the UK in a desperate attempt to help his
suicidal daughter's severe learning problems, said his program has worked
wonders for all ages. "The results are very dramatic like nothing else on
earth and, secondly the results last. They are not just temporary and that's
what makes it a remarkable process," said Wynford, who is in Australia to
promote his new book and meet some of the many success stories here. Dore's
research centred on a small area of the brain known as the cerebellum, which
if under-developed, affects cognitive and motor skills. The clinics analyse
a person's condition using equipment first developed through NASA's space
program to investigate temporary dyslexia of astronauts returning from
space. One device studies posture and balance, the other, eye movement. The
information is then used to develop a series of simple exercises, which
stimulate the part of the brain which isn't functioning as it should. The
results have been phenomenal in almost 90 per cent of people who have been
on the program, which costs about $4000 and usually takes 12 months to
complete. Wynford Dore says he's not in it for the money. He's out to
convince governments, educators, and medical specialists that this is a
proven way to go in overcoming chronic learning and behavioural disorders
without using mind-bending drugs."

42. "Vaccine death: maker quizzed" dated 31 October 2006 from the Evening
Telegraph (UK) at
<http://www.eveningtelegraph.co.uk/output/2006/10/31/story8917245t0.shtm>
http://www.eveningtelegraph.co.uk/output/2006/10/31/story8917245t0.shtm.

"The Procurator Fiscal's office in Dundee, investigating the death of a
woman following her devastating reaction to a flu jab, is seeking answers
from the German pharmaceuticals company that made the vaccine (writes Bruce
Robbins). Depute fiscal Kirsty McGowan said the firm has been asked if it is
aware of any other adverse reactions to the vaccine. Dundee woman Sylvia
Thomson suffered a fatal reaction to the injection in November last year and
died a few weeks later, on December 2, 2005. The former PE teacher, who'd
been bothered by an intermittent chest infection, asked her GP for the jab
as a precaution. A week later, she was taken into hospital suffering from
encephalitis - swelling in her brain. Hospital officials have since
admitted that other people may be predisposed to a similar reaction. Mrs
Thomson's husband, Robert, has been pushing for a fatal inquiry into his
56-year-old wife's death and is critical of the progress the fiscal's
department has made into the investigation. However, Ms McGowan told the
Evening Telegraph she would be taking the matter further if she didn't hear
back from the company in two to three weeks. She added, "We have received a
fax from one of the vaccine companies saying they have referred our inquiry
back to the parent company in Germany. Solvay Pharmaceuticals is
German-owned and has a base in Holland. They have to provide us with a full
answer and that couldn't be done by the distributors in Britain. "We've
identified the batch numbers of the vaccine concerned and are waiting for a
report from the company. We are looking for other adverse reactions to the
vaccine and the company will have all those details."
Ms McGowan rejected Mr Thomson's claims the matter hadn't been given a high
enough priority and said she had updated him at the beginning of October."
Mr Thomson said he believed the fiscal's department had spent a lot of time
speaking to Mrs Thomson's GP and a doctor at Ninewells Hospital when they
should have been on to the drugs company straight away. "There must be a
Government body that approved the vaccine for use in the UK and the fiscal
could have contacted them straight away to find out what tests had been
carried out on it before it was made available. "There was a report out
recently saying that it couldn't be proved that 'flu vaccines do any good.
Here we are heading into the vaccination season and we still don't know if
this particular vaccine is going to stop people getting the 'flu or end up
killing others."

43. "Don't Blame TV for ADHD Symptoms- Research finds kindergarteners
exposed to TV no more likely to develop the disorder" by Serena Gordon from
HealthDay at
http://health.msn.com/centers/adhd/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100125657
<http://health.msn.com/centers/adhd/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100125657
> .

"Does watching the flickering lights and frenetically changing pace of some
children's TV programs affect a child's brain enough to cause symptoms of
attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder? Not likely, new research
suggests. While previous studies have linked early television exposure to
attention problems, a new study in the March issue of Pediatrics failed to
find a connection between ADHD and TV viewing habits. "TV is designed to
capture our attention and move us quickly from one subject to the next. The
question is, does the young brain become different because of this?" asked
study co-author Tara Stevens, an assistant professor in the department of
educational psychology and leadership at Texas Tech University. Stevens
said that from this study, it appeared that was not the case. And, as far as
ADHD symptoms were concerned, "It was clear that the relationship with TV
viewing was close to zero." She was quick to point out that she and
co-author Miriam Mulsow weren't advocating TV viewing in children, however.
But she added, "I think these findings take a little bit of the pressure off
parents. It's very likely that you did not do something wrong to make your
child develop ADHD." The researchers randomly selected two samples of
2,500 children each from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study -
Kindergarten. That study includes 22,000 youngsters who started kindergarten
during the 1998-1999 school year. Information is collected from the
children, parents and teachers. For the new analysis, only information from
parents and teachers was included. The researchers looked at the
children's behavior during their first year of kindergarten and then again
near the end of first grade. They included information on television
exposure, any limits placed on TV viewing, parental involvement,
socioeconomic status and symptoms of ADHD. They found no association
between television exposure and symptoms of ADHD. They also found that
parental involvement -- such as the amount of time parents spent in
children's activities that didn't involve TV -- didn't have a link to ADHD
symptoms. Stevens said it's important to note that the children who showed
ADHD symptoms hadn't been diagnosed with ADHD. Also, she said, at least one
previous study that found an association between TV and ADHD included much
younger children, so it's possible that results may be different for a child
under 3 who watches lots of TV. That's because the brain is much more
"plastic" or changeable the younger a child is, she said. So, TV viewing at
2 or 3 years of age may have more of an effect than TV viewing at 5 or 6.
Seeking to explain why previous research found an association between
television viewing and ADHD and the new study did not, Stevens said parents
of hyperactive children may use TV as a babysitter more than other parents,
simply because they need a break or need to capture their child's attention
while they make dinner or take a shower. Dr. Jess Shatkin, director of
education and training at the New York University Child Study Center, said
he wasn't prepared to fully accept the new findings. "This is a thoughtful
and interesting study, but there's not enough data to support the idea that
we shouldn't be cautious about kids' exposure to all media. This doesn't
change anything I would tell parents." The bottom line for parents, he
said, is "all things in moderation." Some educational TV may be good for
some children, Shatkin said, but "what's good for one isn't necessarily good
for another." And, as far as cartoons are concerned, he said, "Children
learn from observation. If they see it on TV, they often try it."

44. "In their eyes: Images could help KU researchers detect autism" in the
October edition of the KU Connection at
<http://www.kuconnection.org/2006oct/news_2.asp>
http://www.kuconnection.org/2006oct/news_2.asp.

"A recent KU research study may have found a clue to detect autism in
children at an earlier age. More than 1.5 million are afflicted with the
disorder, also known as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), in the United
States, and early identification and intervention may prevent many behaviors
associated with autism later in childhood. John Colombo, '85, professor of
psychology, and doctoral student Christa Anderson, g'05, used images of
children's faces, animal faces, toys and landscapes. The answer was in their
eyes. Three groups of children viewed 4-inch-square pictures on a computer
screen, while the team studied their pupils. "We looked at where exactly
(the children) were looking and how much time they spent looking at them,"
Anderson said. They gauged the child's arousal or level of attention by
whether the child's pupils dilated or constricted. Results showed that the
children with autism showed the strongest response to images of other faces,
especially other children's faces. "(They responded) with pupillary
constriction, which suggests they may have found it aversive," said Colombo,
who also is associate director for cognitive neuroscience at the
Schiefelbusch Institute for Life Span Studies. "They may not have been
processing it at all, sort of avoiding it." The constriction also may
reflect the activation of another type of arousal system, one that works in
opposition to the system that makes the child ready to receive input,
Colombo said. The study included one group of children with some form of
autism. A second group of children was developing typically but matched the
first group in age and gender. The third group of children had some form of
developmental delay other than autism and was the same mental age as the
first group. The second and third groups were included so that researchers
could conclude whether the marker was specific to autism.
Anderson used a small camera with near-infrared radiation to illuminate the
pupil and corneal reflection and then record and monitor the children's
pupillary responses. The other two groups tested did not show the same
reaction as the children with ASD. Colombo and Anderson explained that
because the children with ASD reacted uniquely, and because the reaction is
systemic, or bodily, they believe the pupillary constriction to face stimuli
is a specific marker that could identify autism spectrum disorder earlier in
life, possibly during infancy. Colombo and Anderson said this discovery
poses more questions to be answered in their next study: Which part of the
brain is responsible for this response? Is the response inherent to that
system or acquired over time? The children with ASD also showed an
unexpected response to the images of landscapes, such as water, a field of
pebbles or grass. "The children with autism tended to look at it, and then
kind of look away," Anderson said. "We found that it did not hold their
attention," Colombo said. "It's sort of as if they did not see anything
there to look at." He said this reaction is consistent with some theories
claiming that children with autism process visual content more quickly when
there is no clear or coherent focal object in an image or visual scene.
These results were published in the October issue of the Journal of Clinical
and Experimental Neuropsychology."

45. "On 2nd try, autistic Idaho boy makes football team" from KHQ News at
<http://www.khq.com/Global/story.asp?S=5610731&nav=menu438_1>
http://www.khq.com/Global/story.asp?S=5610731&nav=menu438_1.

"Just a year ago, Robert Langdon had to quit his city league football team
because officials feared the 14-year-old boy's autism-caused behaviors posed
a danger to others.But now the Coeur d'Alene teen has returned to the sport.
Robert's family credits his teachers at Woodland Middle School, the school
district, the Boy Scouts of America and friends and church members for his
improved social skills. He's playing with the Eighth Grade Packers team.
Autism is a complex disorder that can include symptoms such as repetitive
behaviors, avoiding physical or eye contact and difficulty communicating.
Robert says he likes football because of the intricacies of the game and the
friendship of his teammates. The Langdon family has encouraged Robert to
participate in sports because physical therapists believe it will help
refine his large motor skills. Lisa Langdon said she's been amazed by his
progress this season."

46. "New school provides opportunities for students with special needs-
With the loss of Grafton earlier this year, parents welcome another option"
dated 1 November 2006 by Chris Robinson from The Gazzette at
<http://www.gazette.net/stories/110106/poolnew185411_31969.shtml>
http://www.gazette.net/stories/110106/poolnew185411_31969.shtml.

"A new school in Gaithersburg for the mentally disabled has received praise
for helping to fill an educational gap created by the sudden closure of a
Rockville special needs school in February. The Marcia D. Smith School,
privately operated by Community Support Services Inc., offers a program on
life skills, vocational training and functional academics for students age
16 to 21 with severe autism and mental retardation. When the Grafton School
closed last February amid financial concerns and quality issues, it sent
families and the Montgomery County Public Schools scrambling to find new
educational outlets for its 42 students. This forced some families to look
beyond Montgomery County or even state lines to find the most appropriate
programs, said Community Support Services Executive Director Susan Ingram.
The goal of the Smith School is to ensure local options are available for
those with intensive and complex disabilities, and ''it's been a pretty
well-supported effort," Ingram said. Debbie Van Brunt's 16-year-old son
attends the Smith School, and she said she's ''thrilled beyond belief" to
have this program. She also said that with the autistic population steadily
growing, the school is a step in the right direction by making more
specialized training available. ''We're just very excited to have this
opportunity. It's going to be a great school," Van Brunt said. The Smith
School, located on Comprint Court off Shady Grove Road, was officially
dedicated Saturday during Community Support Services' second annual fall
festival. The school was named after Dr. Marcia Datlow Smith, a pioneer in
behavioral science for children and adults with autism and who also offers
psychological consultation for Community Support Services. Currently six
students are enrolled at the school, but company officials hope to meet the
maximum capacity of 25 in about three years. Students are referred from
MCPS, and are eligible only if they live in Montgomery County. MCPS has a
total special education population of 17,000, 603 of which attend 59
non-public schools, said MCPS spokesman Brian K. Edwards."

47. "Football lights autistic boy's athletic fire" dated 1 November 2006
by LAURA TODE from the Billings Gazette at
<http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2006/11/01/news/local/30-football.t
xt>
http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2006/11/01/news/local/30-football.tx
t.

"When you ask Skyview freshman Beau Thompson about school, he won't have
much to say. In fact, the 15-year-old is always pretty quiet. But ask him
about football and his eyes light up, he leans forward in his shoes and his
hands come out of his blue jeans pockets. Thompson is autistic and his
verbal skills are minimal, but the message is clear. He loves football.
"Football, the game, the team," he says. "I was good playing football. It's
what I like." Thompson finished his first season on the Skyview freshman
football team last week, and his life hasn't been the same since. He's still
talking about football, the game, the team, and his favorite pro team, the
Denver Broncos. When Ron Lebsock, the head football coach at Skyview, heard
that Thompson wanted to play, he wasn't sure at first whether it would work.
But once he got to know Thompson, he discovered he understood the game well
enough that he wouldn't get too frustrated and that he wouldn't get hurt
physically. So Lebsock let him join practice and get into the game. It was
still a risk, but he figured it would be a good experience for Thompson, and
the team could probably learn a few things, too. "We're not just here to
coach football. We're here to help kids," Lebsock said. On the field,
several of his teammates volunteered to tell officials when Thompson took
the field, and before each game coaches on the opposing team were made aware
of his disability. Still, on the field, Thompson was as much a threat as any
defensive tackle. He dished some hard hits, said teammate Wesley Elston, 14,
and took almost as many hits as the rest of the linemen. "He had an
ear-to-ear grin every time he went out there and every time he came in,"
said Shawn Holt, the Skyview activities coordinator. Thompson played in
nine of 10 games, and the team finished the season with a 9-1 record.
"Every game he played in, we won," Elston said. Generally, Thompson would
take the field in the third or fourth quarter, when the team had established
a lead. "We'd chant his name to get him pumped up," said Sam Holt, 15, one
of his teammates. On the line, Holt and Elston would remind him how to get
into his stance and make sure his helmet was properly strapped on. In
dealing with people who have autism, routine and consistency are very
important. All the plays Thompson ran were the same and were simplified so
Thompson was able to participate. "By the end of the season, he was
remembering his stance," Elston said. Once in a while, the other team would
recognize Thompson's disability and purposely target him during play. When
that happened, the guys on the defensive line would make it clear the next
play with some targeted tackles of their own that Thompson was not to be
messed with. "We took care of that as his teammates," Holt said.
Sometimes, the boys would chant Thompson's name after a game to show their
solidarity. "Not only did we help Beau, but Beau taught us all a lesson in
the fact that we're all here for each other," Lebsock said. "He helped us
realize you can do anything you want as long as you take the risk and go and
do it." Without football, Thompson would never have been anyone Holt or
Elston would have noticed, especially because he wasn't in regular classes
with them. And Thompson wouldn't have had many friends without football.
"He's one of the guys now," said Lucas Olson, 14, another player. The boys
are already looking forward to next year's season and said they won't be
playing without Thompson."

48. "Stalled autism bill shows funding rift- Advocates want money
earmarked, not put in general pot for research" dated 3 November 2006 by
JEANNIE KEVER from the Houston Chronicle at
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/4307489.html
<http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/4307489.html> .

"In labs across the country, the increasingly vocal demands for more
research into the causes and treatment of autism have been a good thing.
"People are convinced it's an important problem to work on," said Dr. Arthur
Beaudet, a geneticist at Baylor College of Medicine. "You see it on the
covers of magazines and on your TV screens. It's increasing the funding."
Recent rants by radio talk-show host Don Imus are bringing even more
attention to the developmental disability, as he has labeled U.S. Rep. Joe
Barton, R-Ennis, "a lying, fat little skunk" for holding funding hostage.
As many as 1.5 million Americans have autism, although the severity of
symptoms varies widely. It especially affects communication and social
interaction. The rising number of autism diagnoses is one of the biggest
public health mysteries of the past 15 years. Between 1994 and 2003, the
number of children classified as having an autism spectrum disorder
increased sixfold, from 22,664 to 141,022, according to the U.S. Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention. But there is little agreement on what that
means. The increase has been variously attributed to better diagnosis, a
widening of the diagnostic net and an actual increase in cases. Many
parents and some advocacy groups blame vaccines for the surging numbers,
undeterred by a 2004 Institute of Medicine report that found no association
between autism and the mercury compound formerly found in vaccines.
(Nevertheless, mercury-based preservatives have been phased out of most, but
not all, vaccines.) The first of 5,000 or so lawsuits on the issue is
expected to go to trial next summer. A report by a group of Cornell
University economists last month suggested early exposure to television
could explain the increase, drawing a lot of attention but quickly
discounted by many people in the field. Most experts suspect a genetic link
- among identical twins, the likelihood of both developing autism is as high
as 60 percent, and many of the rest have some autistic features - perhaps
triggered by some environmental exposure. Researchers are investigating
toxins such as heavy metals, pesticides and flame retardants, as well as
immunologic, infectious, metabolic and other factors. Whatever the
explanation, the increased numbers have sparked a huge rise in organizations
formed to push the issue. Funding has increased as well. National Institutes
of Health funding for autism rose from $22 million in 1997 to $102 million
this year. But there is the tantalizing possibility of far more research
money in the future, and that's where the "lying, fat little skunk" comes
in. ..."


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