[nfbmi-talk] but....

[joe harcz Comcast]

Oh but adult students couldn't have a markmanship program at the so-called training center for the blind! Michigan's infamy lives on!
Students with disabilities must have equal sports options, U.S. tells schools By Philip Elliott Associated Press WASHINGTON -- Breaking new ground, the

U.S. Education Department is telling schools they must include students with disabilities in sports programs or provide equal alternative options. The

directive, reminiscent of the Title IX expansion of athletic opportunities for women, could bring sweeping changes to school budgets and locker rooms for

years to come. Schools would be required to make "reasonable modifications" for students with disabilities or create parallel athletic programs that have

comparable standing to mainstream programs. Sports can provide invaluable lessons in discipline, selflessness, passion and courage, and this guidance will

help schools ensure that students with disabilities have an equal opportunity to benefit from the life lessons they can learn on the playing field or on

the court," Education Secretary Arne Duncan said in a statement announcing the new guidance Thursday. Federal laws, including the 1973 Rehabilitation Act

and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, require states to provide a free public education to all students and bans schools that receive federal

funds from discriminating against students with disabilities. Going further, the new directive from the Education Department's civil rights division explicitly

tells schools and colleges that access to interscholastic, intramural and intercollegiate athletics is a right. This is a landmark moment for students

with disabilities. This will do for students with disabilities what Title IX did for women," said Terri Lakowski, who led a coalition pushing for the changes

for a decade. This is a huge victory. Education Department officials emphasized they did not intend to change sports' traditions dramatically or guarantee

students with disabilities a spot on competitive teams. Instead, they insisted schools cannot exclude students based on their disabilities if they can

keep up with their classmates. It's not about changing the nature of the game or the athletic activity," said Seth Galanter, the acting assistant secretary

for civil rights at the Education Department. It's not clear whether the new guidelines will spark a sudden uptick in sports participation. There was a

big increase in female participation in sports after Title IX guidance instructed schools to treat female athletics on par with male teams. There is no

deadline for schools to comply with the new disabilities directive. But activists cheered the changes. This is historic," said Bev Vaughn, the executive

director of the American Association of Adapted Sports Programs, a nonprofit group that works with schools to set up sports programs for students with

disabilities. It's going to open up a whole new door of opportunity to our nation's schoolchildren with disabilities.