Tonight at the AG Bell Speech Fair Tim Smith (USDB Superintendent) announced that the Utah State Legislature is giving $6 Million for a building in SLC and that the Alpine School District (Rob Smith, Mr. Smith's son, Alpine SD Assistant Superintendent) is giving USDB the land that they have used for the last 20 years by Orem Elementary to build a permanent structure to house all the disparate parts of the USDB South's programs.
The building he described sounded as though he was reading the J2H vision statement.
Mr. Smith said they are collecting bids for a lovely new modular building that they are going to pay for with nickles and dimes that they have saved over the years. Wow. What a great idea, great way to make it happen, what a great way to move ahead.
When I congratulated Mr. Smith he said that Marilyn Madsen deserved all the credit. Brilliance.
Showing posts with label Legislators. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Legislators. Show all posts
Friday, March 20, 2009
Saturday, February 21, 2009
No Money Again for the USDB
Briefly:
Kirsten Stewart of the Salt Lake Tribune wrote about the Legislative decision to NOT fund USDB's administration/building needs.
No remake for deaf and blind schools
'Window dressing' » Bill to fix problems is too weak, parents and advocates say.
By Kirsten Stewart
The Salt Lake Tribune
Posted: 02/14/2009 12:13:01 AM MST
If Kenneth Sumsion was hoping to avoid controversy with a "clean up" bill that makes minor tweaks to educational services for the deaf and blind, he missed the mark.
Parents and advocates were expecting a revamp of the Utah Schools for the Deaf and Blind (USDB). But HB296, the product of two years of study, falls short of that. The legislation is more remarkable, advocates say, for what it doesn't do.
The bill doesn't restrict enrollment to students who need it most, those with multiple and severe disabilities, as some have advocated. Other parents argue that even though the bill appears to make more children eligible for services, there is no guarantee that those with milder impairments will get early interventions, such as sign language and braille.
It makes small changes in governance, skirting the question of whether the institution should be split into one school for blind, and another for deaf students. And it does nothing about parents' calls for new technologies and nicer classrooms.
"At best, the bill changes a few words … It's window dressing," said Ron Gardner, president of the Utah chapter of the National Federation of the Blind. "It drives us nuts because for years we have been trying to draw attention to some of the failures and successes at this institution."
Rep. Sumsion appreciates Gardner's frustration, but doubts he can appease everyone.
The American Fork Republican took part in a two-year task force charged with improving USDB. The group was organized by the Utah Office of Education and included two parents who rarely agreed on the best course of action, said Sumsion. "I think the task force skirted some issues, because they are difficult issues. But this is a good first step."
Nevertheless, parents and advocates are lining up to oppose the bill and have taken their grievances to the governor.
... go HERE to read the entire article.
Thanks to David for alerting me to this!
Kirsten Stewart of the Salt Lake Tribune wrote about the Legislative decision to NOT fund USDB's administration/building needs.
No remake for deaf and blind schools
'Window dressing' » Bill to fix problems is too weak, parents and advocates say.
By Kirsten Stewart
The Salt Lake Tribune
Posted: 02/14/2009 12:13:01 AM MST
If Kenneth Sumsion was hoping to avoid controversy with a "clean up" bill that makes minor tweaks to educational services for the deaf and blind, he missed the mark.
Parents and advocates were expecting a revamp of the Utah Schools for the Deaf and Blind (USDB). But HB296, the product of two years of study, falls short of that. The legislation is more remarkable, advocates say, for what it doesn't do.
The bill doesn't restrict enrollment to students who need it most, those with multiple and severe disabilities, as some have advocated. Other parents argue that even though the bill appears to make more children eligible for services, there is no guarantee that those with milder impairments will get early interventions, such as sign language and braille.
It makes small changes in governance, skirting the question of whether the institution should be split into one school for blind, and another for deaf students. And it does nothing about parents' calls for new technologies and nicer classrooms.
"At best, the bill changes a few words … It's window dressing," said Ron Gardner, president of the Utah chapter of the National Federation of the Blind. "It drives us nuts because for years we have been trying to draw attention to some of the failures and successes at this institution."
Rep. Sumsion appreciates Gardner's frustration, but doubts he can appease everyone.
The American Fork Republican took part in a two-year task force charged with improving USDB. The group was organized by the Utah Office of Education and included two parents who rarely agreed on the best course of action, said Sumsion. "I think the task force skirted some issues, because they are difficult issues. But this is a good first step."
Nevertheless, parents and advocates are lining up to oppose the bill and have taken their grievances to the governor.
... go HERE to read the entire article.
Thanks to David for alerting me to this!
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