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Government rules U.S. schools must provide sports to disabled (Read 141 times)

TJoseph


    How do you think this will affect funding for track and field and cross country programs.  I remember the implementation of Title IX caused some men's sports to be cut.

     

    http://news.yahoo.com/government-rules-u-schools-must-sports-disabled-034926881--business.html

      And Title IX also gave many girls and women a chance to compete that didn't exist prior to that.

       

      I think a lot may depend on implementation (and sounds like there's questions about validity). Where I am, some of our hs have special programs, and if you want that program, you attend that hs (or maybe you can attend your closest hs and extra curricular activities at another hs - not sure). So we only have one hs with Jr ROTC pgm, one with ag program, one with Spanish immersion (charter school), etc. Many students are home schooled, but can compete with an actual hs.

       

      Given that background and existence of programs like Special Olympics, Paralympics, and other assorted programs for various challenges (Challenge Alaska being a local one), it could be a matter of pooling programs at certain schools or making students more aware of opportunities provided by these other organizations. I believe when flag football started in Anchorage, that several hs pooled to form teams. We've had girls ice hockey players on boys' teams - IF they make the grade.

       

      Should a wheelchair racer be racing against an able-bodied runner - no (although we do have some bike, foot, ski winter races where everyone competes together, but also within their divisions). But they can certainly race against each other. Should they be on the track or xc course at the same time: for safety reasons, I'm thinking not. And obviously, there's the cases like Oscar Pistorius. So, yea, there's some major issues.

       

      As I understand it, some schools were more creative than others in implementing Title IX, so the impact on boys/mens sports was at least partially a function of fiscal management. But the positive impact on women's sports was huge.

       

       

      We've been working on a trails plan, which typically is dirt trails or ADA stuff. Some disabilities are severe and people may be challenged just to get around on paved path. Other folks may be competitive athletes who lost their legs or whatever and are bored almost to tears on ADA trails, but some dirt trails may be a little too challenging. There's special wheelchairs with mtn bike tires that the more adventurous may use to get around. (in its present version, the consultant made no allowances for ADA) If they can race from Fairbanks to Anchorage (stage race where I've forgotten how many legs and miles, but a bunch and recently I think they changed the route to hill climbs), they should be able to handle some easy dirt trails with the right equipment.

      "So many people get stuck in the routine of life that their dreams waste away. This is about living the dream." - Cave Dog


      Tiefsa

        They already have wheelchair races for track in WI, and they run them at the state meet.  I know that's just one thing, but it's a start.  They have much different wheelchairs for those races.  I don't think it would be too expensive to start up wheelchair basketball either.


        Feeling the growl again

          It will all come down to implementation and, I am sure, there will be successes as well as times when common sense goes out the window.

           

          Budget cuts have hit my old HS so hard that it is now pay-to-play...there are kids who can't afford the fees and while the community tries to help there are some kids who don't get to play.  It is hard to see where any money for new programs would come from....and the population base is so small that even if all the disabled kids chose the same sport you would need to pull every one within a one hundred mile radius to form any sort of team.

           

          To be clear on Title IX, it was not Title IX itself that hurt men's sports in most institutions, but the way the institution itself chose to implement.  They wanted to keep their large football and basketball programs, so they cut the "lesser" men's teams to balance things out.  Same thing with scholarships, if you were a man and not a football/basketball player there were no scholarships, but the corresponding women's team might have many of them.

          "If you want to be a bad a$s, then do what a bad a$s does.  There's your pep talk for today.  Go Run." -- Slo_Hand

           

          I am spaniel - Crusher of Treadmills

           

          TJoseph


            and the population base is so small that even if all the disabled kids chose the same sport you would need to pull every one within a one hundred mile radius to form any sort of team.

             

            This is a good point I hadn't thought of.

            Trent


            Good Bad & The Monkey

              Sweet! Now maybe schools may even provide sports to able bodied kids!

              TJoseph


                I don't think that is a given Trent.  Budgets are pretty tight with the bad economy and poor tax revenues in many parts of the country.  I think high schools will try to preserve the big three sports, baseball, basketball, and football as Spaniel suggested.  I was wondering if cross country or track may see cutbacks.  I started running for fun in middle school, but I enjoyed competitive running in in high school even though I was a middle of the packer and I think it helped my grades and other areas of my life because I participated in sports.

                 

                I agree that Title IX was a good thing for women's sports and this may be a good thing for getting disabled kids involved in athletics and exercising also.  I was a kid when Title IX was implemented, so I don't remember all the issues that schools had to work through.  I just vaguely remember there was controversy.

                  I don't think that is a given Trent.  Budgets are pretty tight with the bad economy and poor tax revenues in many parts of the country.  I think high schools will try to preserve the big three sports, baseball, basketball, and football as Spaniel suggested.  I was wondering if cross country or track may see cutbacks.  I started running for fun in middle school, but I enjoyed competitive running in in high school even though I was a middle of the packer and I think it helped my grades and other areas of my life because I participated in sports.

                   

                  I agree that Title IX was a good thing for women's sports and this may be a good thing for getting disabled kids involved in athletics and exercising also.  I was a kid when Title IX was implemented, so I don't remember all the issues that schools had to work through.  I just vaguely remember there was controversy.

                  I was out of college (actually, just past my masters) when Title IX was passed. You *really* don't want to get me started on not just the lack of opportunity but the inequalities of treatment. Granted some of that was football vs the rest of the world. And it didn't matter whether the football team won any games or not. (while the softball team went undefeated) Some schools had strong women's intercollegiate athletic programs. Others had none. Choose your school for education or athletics. (I went for education.)

                   

                   

                  Just wanted to add to Spaniel's comment about the population size. I was also thinking about that with females being roughly 50% of the population whereas the disabled would be a lower pct.

                   

                  I live in the equivalent of suburbia up here. We have decent medical facilities, but the big city Anchorage obviously has more and more specialties. The remote villages might have a nurse and maybe have visits from doctors on a weekly or monthly basis (not sure). Anyone with a major health issue is likely to migrate to Anchorage (or Fairbanks). Some have challenges where they can still live remotely. I'd expect the greater % of disabled folks may be in the more urban areas. And there may be enough kids in a metropolitan area and the needed resources to have such teams, but not in remote areas. Heck, the remote areas may only have one sport (likely basketball since gyms also serve as emergency shelters.).

                  "So many people get stuck in the routine of life that their dreams waste away. This is about living the dream." - Cave Dog
                  Trent


                  Good Bad & The Monkey

                    I don't think that is a given Trent.

                     

                    That was my point.


                    Dream Maker

                      The examples given seem reasonable.

                      "Examples of reasonable modifications schools might make to meet their responsibilities included providing "visual clues" alongside a starter pistol to allow hearing disabled students to compete in track events, and waiving the "two-hand touch" finish at swim meets to allow one-armed swimmers to compete."

                      It's shocking if it's not already that way.

                      Implementation could be an effect on good.  It needs a lot more details on what it actually means, though.

                       

                      Title IX was a general good, but did hurt some things... even now, you hear about cross country coaches listing girls who aren't active to keep school numbers round, or a sport being cut because of lack of female interest to make numbers--- letter of law vs intent always causes that, though, I suspect.  Trouble with mandates.

                       

                       


                      Feeling the growl again

                        Heh.  Yeah, so one comment on "common sense going out the window".  This is what gets me with decisions like this this that otherwise seem positive.

                         

                        There was this girl about 3-4 years younger than me...her family went to my church.  Overall good folks.  We all felt for them as their daughter had a condition that would eventually be fatal (I believe she died at 16-17).  I cannot remember what it was exactly, but she had some sort of degenerative neuromuscular condition where both her mental faculties and physical abilities deteriorated over time.

                         

                        By the time she entered junior high school, she had gotten to the point that she could not talk, walk, and was apparently completely unaware of her surroundings (I can recall a few years previously when she could sort of communicate).  Now the junior high school in this poor farm town was an old structure built around 1910 that was scheduled to be demolished in 1-2 years.  A new HS was already under construction, and the junior high would move into the old HS once the HS moved.  The junior high was really in terrible shape, they had fences around it 15ft out to keep people away because several 300lb concrete windowsills had simply fallen off.  (disturbingly, if you got punished during recess they made you stand INSIDE that fence).

                         

                        These parents were adamant that their daughter get a normal education.  So, this financially-strapped district, second-lowest spending per student in the state, had to spring for a full-time caretaker to get her through the school day, even though there was no sign she was even aware that she was in school and her outbursts frequently disrupted learning.  They had to spend $50K to make this old building accessible for her.  Since 6th grade had been on the 2nd story, which could not be made accessible, they had to pay to completely switch the setup of the school to move 6th grade downstairs and 7th grade facilities upstairs.  For one year before it was demolished.

                         

                        In all, it was likely >$100K spent for the one year, for one student, who likely was not even aware they were there.  Of course that was cheaper than the lawsuits that were threatened if they did not do it.

                         

                        My heart went out to this family for their plight....but the whole series of events and the expense were just absurd.

                         

                        I think it is good if disabled students have opportunities for sports.  I just hope some rational thought is applied to the implementation.

                        "If you want to be a bad a$s, then do what a bad a$s does.  There's your pep talk for today.  Go Run." -- Slo_Hand

                         

                        I am spaniel - Crusher of Treadmills

                         

                          The examples given seem reasonable.

                          ...and waiving the "two-hand touch" finish at swim meets to allow one-armed swimmers to compete."

                          It's shocking if it's not already that way.

                           

                           

                          I am equally shocked, but I cannot imagine a 1 armed swimmer swim the breast stroke or the butterfly.  Those 2 strokes require the 2 hand touch, and the others don't.  Those 2 strokes seem impossible to do (balance and strength) without a 2nd arm.

                          Life Goals:

                          #1: Do what I can do

                          #2: Enjoy life

                           

                           


                          Feeling the growl again

                            or a sport being cut because of lack of female interest to make numbers--- letter of law vs intent always causes that, though, I suspect.  Trouble with mandates.

                             

                            Then there's that.  I did my undergrad at an engineering school, 3:1 male:female.  And the women who went there were simply less interested in sports, on average, than your typical school.  So while the school was providing OPPORTUNITY as they were supposed to, they couldn't fill the teams.  Well, the gov't didn't care about the lack of interest, only the numbers participating.  So additional scholarship dollars had to be taken from men's sports specifically to recruit new female students who otherwise would not have attended the school.

                             

                            The Law of Unintended Consequences.

                            "If you want to be a bad a$s, then do what a bad a$s does.  There's your pep talk for today.  Go Run." -- Slo_Hand

                             

                            I am spaniel - Crusher of Treadmills

                             

                            clintmorningwood


                              I dont know how well this would work out with most schools that have a small number of disabled people. If there were too few participants to justify having a separate team/competition they would just go to the regular team and that might make them uncomfortable being with non disabled people. My track team allowed anyone who wanted to to join. I all for everyone to be treated "normally", but i have seen a few people get hit and shoved when trying to pass someone with a mental disability.

                              AmoresPerros


                              Options,Account, Forums

                                Men's sports being cut because of Title IX is not something that only happened decades ago - it's happened to collegiate cross country and track teams in recent years.

                                It's a 5k. It hurt like hell...then I tried to pick it up. The end.

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