New York ? Florida's Palm Beach County is cracking down on truancy by punishing parents, and it's hardly the first place in the nation to do so
A Florida county is holding an unusual threat over parents' heads: If your kids miss too much school ? specifically, more than 15 days over a 3-month period ? you could go to jail. And Palm Beach County isn't the first in the nation to resort to jailing parents to crack down on truancy. Four key questions:
What's going on? Florida's Palm Beach County has created a new court specifically focused on truancy cases. While Florida has long had a law that states that parents can face up to two months of jail time if their child (aged 6 to 16) has more than 15 unexcused absences in three months, there was no infrastructure to enforce it ? until now. Schools lacked the personnel to bring the cases to court, and prosecutors were more focused on violent crimes. The new truancy court is currently in a trial period, targeting kids from kindergarten to third grade.
SEE MORE: Are baby shampoos poisoning infants?
?
How big of a problem is truancy in Palm Beach? It's a significant issue. In in the 2009-2010 school year, 6.6 percent of the county's 198,351 students racked up 21 or more unexcused absences.
Is Florida the only state with such a law? No. Earlier this year, nearly a dozen parents in Baltimore City were sent to prison for their kids' truancy. In Orange County, Calif., at least five parents have gone to jail since a tough anti-truancy law went into effect earlier this year. Parents in Alabama, Texas, and North California have also been sent to the slammer for failing to ensure their kids attended classes.
SEE MORE: A restaurant's 'outrageous' 'baby tax'
?
Is this the right way to deal with truancy? Not everyone thinks so. This "seems extreme and maybe even counterproductive," says Amy Reiter at The Stir. "If the parent is in jail, how will she then help get her kid to school?" Teens especially need to learn to take responsibility for their own actions, not have their parents pay for their crimes. Earlier this year, the NAACP filed suit against a school district in Pennsylvania that had fined a woman $8,000 over her kids' truancy. The organization argued that the kids had stopped going to school because they were being bullied and harassed.
Sources: Baltimore Sun, The Stir, Sun Sentinel, Yahoo
View this article on TheWeek.com Get 4 Free Issues of The Week
Other stories from this topic:
Like on Facebook?-?Follow on Twitter?-?Sign-up for Daily Newsletter
Editor?s note: This is part four of our annual gift guide. Go to washingtonblade.com for past installments. Next week?s guide will offer ideas for excellent last-minute gifts.
Even pets deserve a little something this holiday season. Here are a few finds from local shops for the companion animals in your life.
The Big Bad Woof (117 Carroll St., N.W.)
Don?t like those typical dog beds that just get smelly and covered in fur after a while? Check out Molly Mutt and Molly Meow Cat Duvets. They come is a variety of designs and are green. The only things needed are the duvet cover, a ?stuff sack? and stuff like old blankets and clothes to fill the sack. The duvets run from $24.99 to $52.99.
Want something a little more stylish to give your pets water? The Pioneer Pet Stainless Steel Drinking Fountain is an alternative to water cooler-like dispensers. It keeps the water circulating and features a replaceable charcoal filter. These drinking fountains range from $59.99 to $89.99.
Chateau Animaux (733 8th St., S.E.)
Tired of feeling like you?re always giving your dog a new bone? Try giving him Naturally Shed Antlers. These are the longest-lasting part and range in price from $27.99 to $29.99 depending on size.
Dogs like to destroy their toys and it gets expensive replacing them. The Bottle Buddy lasts longer than your average toy because dogs destroy the replaceable 20-ounce bottle inside the sock-like toy. Once a bottle is too far gone, just put another one inside. The yellow duck Bottle Buddy is $9.99.
The Plush Puppies Hide-a-Squirrel and Hide-a-Bird feature three plush squeaker toys inside a plush tree stump and birdhouse and dogs must figure out how to get the squeakers out. Treats and other small toys can also be hidden inside. These puzzles run from $14 to $21.
Ever wondered what a dog would look like with a mustache? Throw the Humungastache Mini to your dog and when they grab on to the small ball on the back, they?ll be sporting a ?stache. The mini version costs $9.99.
Wagtime (1232 9th St., N.W.)
Wagtime has its own line of collars that vary in sizes and designs. They range anywhere from $16 to $25.
Taking the dog to a holiday party or just want something for him to wear on Christmas? Try one of these holiday-themed dresses. They range from $24 to $32.
Instead of the dog trying to eat the lights off the tree, try throwing one of these toys to him. There are two sizes good for almost any dog. The large bulb is $15 and the ??lil bulb? is $10.
Have a dog that likes squeaky toys? HuggleHounds, running at $15.25, feature five squeakers for your dog to find.
Christmas not your thing? Wagtime offers Chanukah items for dogs as well. The Chanukah clothes run anywhere from $18 to $26 and the plush menorah is $12.
Don?t forget your feline friends. Cat toys are all around $10.
Planet Pet (1711 Florida Ave., N.W.)
Want some holiday treats to give your dog while enjoying Christmas dinner? Give them one of these dog cookies in fun shapes like Christmas trees and snowmen. There?s even a Star of David for those celebrating Chanukah. The cookies are $1.99 each.
With eight days of Chanukah, give your dog a large dreidel plush toy for $9.99.
Jennifer Lopez‘s new boyfriend has lashed out at people that are criticizing his relationship with the singer. J-Lo and Casper Smart have been dating since [...]
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Dec. 2, 2011) ? University of Kentucky researchers recently received a $225,000 grant to study the differences in cancer survival in Appalachia.
?
The grant gives the team $225,000 for the first year, with potential funding for two additional years that could total $675,000. It is funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention through the UK-based Rural Cancer Prevention Center.
?
Published studies have shown a high incidence of cancer incidence and mortality and insufficient cancer care in Appalachia. However, differences in relative survival and avoidable death within sub-regions of Appalachia, and between Appalachian and non-Appalachian areas, have not yet been studied.?
?
The project will collect cancer incidence data from the?13 cancer registries in Appalachian states to identify differences in relative survival and avoidable death within sub-regions of Appalachia, and between Appalachian and non-Appalachian areas for lung, colorectal, female breast, prostate, ovarian and cervical cancer.
?
Bin Huang, director of Population-Based Cancer Research at the Kentucky Cancer Registry, will serve as a principle investigator for the project. The findings from the project will provide valuable information needed to develop and target effective evidence-based cancer control interventions for the Appalachian population, says Huang.
?
"Population-based survival is arguably the best single measure of the overall effectiveness of health service," Huang said. "Results of the study will have direct impact in cancer prevention research here at Markey as the Appalachian population is the focus of our research. With combined knowledge of cancer incidence, mortality, survival and health behavior, more effective or novel intervention strategies could be developed and conducted for this special population.?
?
Thomas Tucker, director of the Kentucky Cancer Registry, will serve as a co-principal investigator for the project, and Robin Vanderpool, deputy director of the Rural Cancer Prevention Center, will join as a co-principal investigator for the third year of the study and lead the efforts to disseminate study findings.
?
?Findings from this project have implications for multiple stakeholders, including state comprehensive cancer control coalitions; healthcare providers, including primary care and oncology specialists; hospitals and cancer centers; public and private insurers; cancer advocacy organizations; and policymakers," Vanderpool said. "It is important we disseminate our findings to state and local-level constituents, researchers, and organizations across Appalachia in order to improve cancer prevention, screening, treatment and survivorship services in this region of the country.?
?
"Bringing all of the?13 states with Appalachian counties together for a study of this magnitude is a significant undertaking," Tucker said. "Cancer survival has never been studied across the entire Appalachian area. Yet, the results of this important research will help to identify the areas in greatest need for cancer prevention and control interventions."
?
?
MEDIA CONTACT: Allison Perry, (859) 323-2399 or allison.perry@uky.edu
BC-US--Penn State-Abuse, 1st Ld-Writethru,709Sandusky accuser, charity settle legal disputeAP Photo NY138Eds: Adds details, quotes. With AP Photos.By MARK SCOLFORO and GENARO C. ARMASAssociated Press
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) ? Lawyers for a young man described in a grand jury report of a victim of sexual abuse by former Penn State assistant coach Jerry Sandusky said Thursday they settled a legal action regarding a charity's assets.
Harrisburg attorneys Ben Andreozzi and Jeffrey Fritz said the settlement protected the claim their client plans to assert to the assets of The Second Mile, a nonprofit for at-risk children Sandusky founded in 1977.
"We intend to initiate a civil lawsuit seeking damages from the organizations and individuals responsible for the sexual assaults upon our clients," the lawyers said in a release. "However, our priority at this time is to support our clients, including Victim No. 4, who will be testifying against Mr. Sandusky at the preliminary hearing."
Sandusky, 67, has been charged with sexual abuse of eight boys over a 15-year period. His preliminary hearing on 40 criminal counts is scheduled for Dec. 13 at the Centre County Courthouse in Bellefonte.
Andreozzi and Fritz said that under terms of the settlement, The Second Mile has agreed to obtain court approval before transferring assets or closing and give their client the ability to weigh in before a judge regarding any distribution of assets.
The Second Mile released a statement calling the agreement a reiteration of its existing legal liabilities and saying it does not include a finding of liability.
The Second Mile said earlier this week that its donors should consider giving money to the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape, the latest sign that the charity may not be a going concern much longer. The Second Mile said its December programs would go on as scheduled, however.
Prosecutors said Sandusky found his alleged victims through The Second Mile, which is based in State College.
Also Thursday, state Rep. Ronald Waters, D-Philadelphia, asked the Pennsylvania Department of Welfare ? the agency that licenses programs dealing with youth and children ? to provide him with detailed information about The Second Mile's activities.
Penn State President Rodney Erickson said Thursday the school would conduct a wide-open search for a new football coach, following the dismissal of head coach Joe Paterno shortly after Sandusky was arrested. Paterno has not been charged with any crime, although two other high-ranking administrators, former athletic director Tim Curley and vice president Gary Schultz, have been charged with lying to a grand jury and failure to properly report suspected child abuse.
They have denied the allegations and await a preliminary hearing in Harrisburg Dec. 16.
Penn State's trustees said Thursday they would hold an early morning session on Friday to formally approve decisions made in the immediate aftermath of the arrests of Sandusky, Curley and Schultz.
The conference call meeting at the Nittany Lion Inn in State College begins at 8 a.m. and is open to the public.
Erickson said the university will donate $1.5 million in bowl proceeds to a pair of sex-crime advocacy organizations in the wake of shocking sex-abuse allegations levied against a once-revered assistant football coach.
He said Big Ten bowl revenue, which usually goes back to the athletic department, will go instead to the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape and the National Sexual Violence Resource Center.
"This presents an excellent opportunity for Penn State to raise the national visibility of this issue," Erickson said. "Our students and fans are focused on a cause to play for, to cheer for."
In addition on Thursday, Sandusky's lawyer said he has not discussed pleading guilty with his client and that the former coach continues to maintain he is innocent of the charges against him.
Joe Amendola said Sandusky has never considered a plea in his case and the topic of a guilty plea came up as a "what-if" question from a reporter about potential additional charges.
"My answer to the 'what if' question was analogous to saying, if weather forecasters were predicting a blizzard next week, which they are not, I would have to at least consider the possibility of postponing my scheduled trip to Philadelphia," Amendola said in an email.
Authorities say the sex abuse allegations were not immediately brought to the attention of authorities even though investigators say high-level people at Penn State apparently knew about at least some of them.
School President Graham Spanier was ousted as a result.
Interethnic marriage between African- and Native-Americans produced many childrenPublic release date: 30-Nov-2011 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Joan Robinson joan.robinson@springer.com 49-622-148-78130 Springer
Study investigates why Indians with African ancestry were more fertile
American Indians with African ancestry outdid 'full bloods' in reproductive terms in the early 1900s, despite the odds being against them, according to a new study by Michael Logan from the University of Tennessee in the US. Their increased fertility occurred at a time when things were not going particularly well for full bloods either - in social, economic and health terms. The work is published online in Springer's journal, Human Ecology.
One of the major characteristics of the demographic history of American Indians is interethnic marriage. While the majority of these unions involved Indian women and Caucasian men, a sizeable number occurred between Indians and African Americans. The children of these bicultural marriages were "mixed bloods" who in turn typically married non-Indians or other mixed bloods.
Logan investigated factors affecting the fertility of American Indians and explored why those with African ancestry enjoyed particularly high fertility, using data from the 1910 Census on American Indians in the US and Alaska. His analyses show that a host of interrelated factors affected the reproductive success of these people, including genetics, cultural practices and the socio-economic and health environments they lived in.
Based on the reproductive histories of 295 women of mixed Indian-black and Indian-black-white heritage, Logan found that Indian-black marriages proved to be advantageous in terms of fertility, fecundity (the average number of births per woman) and offspring survival.
The lower infant-childhood death rates recorded for mixed couples, together with variations in sterility and fecundity, help to elucidate why mixed bloods as a population grew so rapidly in comparison to full bloods during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, explains Logan.
He concludes: "The fact that mixed blood Indians with African ancestry did so well reproductively speaks to their resolve to make the best of life for themselves and their children, in a social and political milieu marked by pronounced racism against all peoples of color. The data clearly demonstrate that those who faced the most challenges from racism also fared well reproductively, despite the many hurdles they encountered."
###
Reference
Logan MH (2011). American Indians with African ancestry: differential fertility and the complexities of social identity. Human Ecology. DOI 10.1007/s10745-011-9439-2
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Interethnic marriage between African- and Native-Americans produced many childrenPublic release date: 30-Nov-2011 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Joan Robinson joan.robinson@springer.com 49-622-148-78130 Springer
Study investigates why Indians with African ancestry were more fertile
American Indians with African ancestry outdid 'full bloods' in reproductive terms in the early 1900s, despite the odds being against them, according to a new study by Michael Logan from the University of Tennessee in the US. Their increased fertility occurred at a time when things were not going particularly well for full bloods either - in social, economic and health terms. The work is published online in Springer's journal, Human Ecology.
One of the major characteristics of the demographic history of American Indians is interethnic marriage. While the majority of these unions involved Indian women and Caucasian men, a sizeable number occurred between Indians and African Americans. The children of these bicultural marriages were "mixed bloods" who in turn typically married non-Indians or other mixed bloods.
Logan investigated factors affecting the fertility of American Indians and explored why those with African ancestry enjoyed particularly high fertility, using data from the 1910 Census on American Indians in the US and Alaska. His analyses show that a host of interrelated factors affected the reproductive success of these people, including genetics, cultural practices and the socio-economic and health environments they lived in.
Based on the reproductive histories of 295 women of mixed Indian-black and Indian-black-white heritage, Logan found that Indian-black marriages proved to be advantageous in terms of fertility, fecundity (the average number of births per woman) and offspring survival.
The lower infant-childhood death rates recorded for mixed couples, together with variations in sterility and fecundity, help to elucidate why mixed bloods as a population grew so rapidly in comparison to full bloods during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, explains Logan.
He concludes: "The fact that mixed blood Indians with African ancestry did so well reproductively speaks to their resolve to make the best of life for themselves and their children, in a social and political milieu marked by pronounced racism against all peoples of color. The data clearly demonstrate that those who faced the most challenges from racism also fared well reproductively, despite the many hurdles they encountered."
###
Reference
Logan MH (2011). American Indians with African ancestry: differential fertility and the complexities of social identity. Human Ecology. DOI 10.1007/s10745-011-9439-2
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
![[ Back to EurekAlert! ]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_tXst2npQwOXeRhh5uyvT0y_QENsUDR1tjArcK-X7-_N4ki5Bhi7WR95rntP3wwHPkK6eSMXnjdra4ipoGRCya9YfmxB6RDhyJRDyvebHE=s0-d){kind=small}
Public release date: 30-Nov-2011
Share ]