[nagdu] Jury finds IA Dept. for Blind's guide dog policy doesnot discriminate
Margo and Elmo
margo.downey at verizon.net
Wed Feb 25 19:58:11 UTC 2009
Well, Rebecca, her's another thing. People who want to go to centers which
practice NFB philosophy and methods and do not wish to go somewhere with
the policies our Centers have will not get as good training most likely
where guide dog usage is more flexible.
margo and Elmo
----- Original Message -----
From: "Pickrell, Rebecca M (IT)" <REBECCA.PICKRELL at ngc.com>
To: "NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users"
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Wednesday, February 25, 2009 1:22 PM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Jury finds IA Dept. for Blind's guide dog policy
doesnot discriminate
> Am just now seeing this.
> I suppose this is really a question of "Do people truly have a choice".
> If so, where can a listing of providers be found, much like the guide
> dog school survey?
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
> Behalf Of Angie Matney
> Sent: Friday, February 20, 2009 1:57 PM
> To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Jury finds IA Dept. for Blind's guide dog policy
> doesnot discriminate
>
> Hi Rebecca,
>
> Your position presupposes that Stephanie did, in fact, have other
> choices available to her. I don't know that this is the case. Please,
> somebody, correct me if I'm wrong; but if memory serves, she was a
> day-student. For her to attend another program would have required
> leaving her home and family.
>
> I'mnot suggesting that she should therefore be able to unilaterally
> modify center policies, but the idea that people seeking rehab services
> always have other options is one that sounds nice in theory but is often
> not supported in reality.
>
> Best,
>
> Angie
>
>
>
> -original message-
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Jury finds IA Dept. for Blind's guide dog policy
> doesnot discriminate
> From: "Pickrell, Rebecca M (IT)" <REBECCA.PICKRELL at ngc.com>
> Date: 02/20/2009 1:25 PM
>
> Hmm, reading this (and Dan W, your post was the one that got my
> attention) I agree with the decition.
> Stephanie chose this program and presumably knew the requirements. Why
> did she do that if she couldn't or wouldn't fulfill her end of the deal.
>
> It'd be like taking survival type training and then complaining that you
> couldn't go to the grocery store and get a steak when it was dinnertime.
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
> Behalf Of Dan Weiner
> Sent: Thursday, February 19, 2009 5:46 PM
> To: 'NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users'
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Jury finds IA Dept. for Blind's guide dog policy
> doesnot discriminate
>
> Absolutely shameful verdict, the Iowas Center is wrong.
>
> JMO
>
> Dan W.
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
> Behalf Of Wilson,Joanne (by way of David Andrews <dandrews at visi.com>)
> Sent: Thursday, February 19, 2009 5:25 PM
> To: david.andrews at nfbnet.org
> Subject: [nagdu] Jury finds IA Dept. for Blind's guide dog policy does
> not discriminate
>
>
> ----------
> From: Brammer, Robert [AG] [mailto:rbrammer at ag.state.ia.us]
> Sent: Thursday, February 19, 2009 1:53 PM
> To: Brammer, Robert [AG]
> Subject: Atty. Gen. release: Jury finds IA Dept.
> for Blind's guide dog policy does not discriminate
>
> To News Editors. From Bob Brammer (Iowa
> Attorney General's Office - 515-281-6699.) Please find a release pasted
> below. This will be posted soon at
> <http://www.iowaattorneygeneral.org/>www.IowaAttorneyGeneral.org
> . A jury entered a verdict Wednesday in this case in Polk County
> District Court.
> Best regards, Bram
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> ----
> -
>
> For immediate release - Thursday, February 19, 2009.
> Contact Bob Brammer - 515-281-6699
>
> Jury finds Iowa Department for the Blind's Guide Dog Policy Does Not
> Discriminate
>
> Des Moines. A Polk County jury has rejected a Des Moines
> woman's claim that the State of Iowa Department for the Blind
> discriminated against her by refusing her request to use a guide dog
> while she attended the Department's orientation and adjustment training
> program.
>
> The Department for the Blind orientation and training
> program is a comprehensive program that utilizes a totally non-visual
> approach to teaching blindness skills. Students with partial vision are
> required to wear eyeshades to prevent reliance upon any visual cues
> during training.
> Department policies prohibit the use of any visual aids within the
> orientation and training program, including guide dogs. The Department
> has no objection to guide dogs in other situations.
>
> Stephanie Dohmen, who is legally blind, attended the
> program for several months beginning in September 2000 and sought to
> re-enter the program in June 2002 accompanied by her guide dog.
>
> Dohmen claimed in her lawsuit that the Department's policy
> violated her rights under the Iowa Civil Rights Act and under federal
> laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability.
>
> After a six-day trial, the eight-person jury rejected
> Dohmen's claims in a verdict entered Wednesday.
>
>
> The Department for the Blind, which was represented in the
> trial by the Iowa Attorney General's Office, argued that a totally
> non-visual approach - and training without assistance of a guide-dog or
> other visual aids - is the most effective approach for visually-impaired
> persons who are learning skills and techniques for dealing with
> blindness.
>
> The Department places no limitations upon the use of guide
> dogs in other settings, including in the Department for the Blind
> building in downtown Des Moines. For example,
> Karen Keninger, the Director of the Department, uses a guide dog, and
> the dog accompanied Keninger during her testimony at the trial.
>
> The orientation program typically includes about six months
> of full-time training in various problem-solving skills, such as
> cane-travel on public streets, using Braille, using computers, and
> dealing with many other situations.
>
> The Department for the Blind's orientation and adjustment
> program was established in 1959 and is considered by many to be one of
> the most effective in the country.
>
> During the trial, the State Department for the Blind
> presented testimony from Joanne Wilson and Frederic K. Schroeder, each a
> former Commissioner of the U.S. Rehabilitation Services Administration,
> which oversees programs for the blind around the country.
>
> "Iowa's orientation program profoundly changes lives," said
> Wilson, who also is Executive Director of the National Federation of the
> Blind. "It works. It's a cutting-edge program and a model for other
> states." Wilson is a Webster City native and ISU graduate who went
> through the Iowa Department for the Blind's orientation program herself.
>
> Schroeder said: "To me the central point is that
> individuals have a choice in the type of training they take. While
> programs must and should make reasonable accommodations, they cannot be
> required to alter the fundamentals of the program."
>
> - 30 -
>
>
>
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