[Ohio-talk] looking for advice

via Ohio-talk ohio-talk at nfbnet.org
Wed May 28 03:37:52 UTC 2014


Colleen,
I think you are partially right.  I think it's a  combination of both.  I 
don't think they like my involvement in the union  and my willingness to 
advocate for my fellow colleagues...but they also lack  respect for individuals 
with disabilities.  Some of the comments that have  been made by 
administrators and board members about students with disabilities  would make you 
cringe.  
Nicole
 
 
In a message dated 5/27/2014 1:49:02 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,  
ohio-talk at nfbnet.org writes:

Hello  Nicole,
Your involvement in the union may be the problem.
Your blindness  and your request for accommodations may actually be a way 
to make things  difficult for you.
Maybe the District is unhappy with your abilities and  willingness to help 
your fellow teachers.
Colleen Roth



-----  Original Message -----
From: via Ohio-talk  <ohio-talk at nfbnet.org>
To: ohio-talk at nfbnet.org
Date: Sunday, May  25, 2014 9:39 pm
Subject: Re: [Ohio-talk] looking for  advice

>
>
> Hi Colleen (and all),
> You are right  that sometimes you do have to go to the next  step.  I do 
>  believe I am probably at that point.  
> With that said, as you  stated, sometimes there are risks  involved.  To 
> further  complicate my situation, there is something I didn't  share in 
my  
> original message...ddbbc it really shouldn't matter...ddb it is   what is 
> making me hesitate on this.  
> You see, I am also  a union president.  We are negotiating  our contract 
> this  year and negotiations are slated to be done in June and  July.  My  
concern 
> is that if I do go outside the district and file a   complaint, that they 
> may take that and lash back by taking it out on  the union  during 
> negotiations.  Negotiations are already  anticipated to be tough this  
year and I am 
> fearful they would  retaliate...ddand I think it would be difficult  to 
prove that 
>  that is what they were actually doing.   Does that make  any  sense?   
> Like I sd...ddx shouldn't matter...b the reality  is, the  timing 
> stinks.  So that is what is making me  hesitate.  I meet with  the 
union's attorney 
> this week  about negotiations and am hoping to get her take  on the 
matter 
>  then.
> Thanks for your input!
> Nicole
>   
>  
> In a message dated 5/24/2014 3:13:22 P.M. Eastern  Daylight Time,  
> ohio-talk at nfbnet.org writes:
> 
>  Hello  Nicole,
> I can tell you from personal experience that  sometimes it is  necessary 
to 
> go to the next step when the  powers that be are not willing to  work 
with 
> you when you ask  for reasonable accommodations.
> While there are  some risks when  you go from the Soft Approach and 
Internal 
> Mediation sometimes   you have to decide that you need to go outside the 
> agency you work  for even if  this is somewhat intimidating.
> Sometimes people want  to make it difficult  for someone in hopes that 
they 
> will give  up and leave their position.
> As  Marianne said a good paper trail  is your best bet.
> Document, document,  document.
> You are  the only person who can decide what you want to do in  this 
>  situation.
> I would like to encourage you to go to the next step  sooner  rather than 
> later because the more you allow people to  ignore their agreement  and 
> reasonable accommodation request the  more they 
> will do so.
> Colleen  Roth
> 
>  
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: via Ohio-talk   <ohio-talk at nfbnet.org>
> To:  ohio-talk at nfbnet.org
>  Date:  Friday, May 23, 2014 11:09:15 PM
> Subject: [Ohio-talk]  looking for  advice
> 
> >
> >
> >   
> > Hi, 
> > I am not one to  put messages on  the  list very often and when I do, 
it 
> is 
> >   typically responding to someone else's  message.   
>  > I  am looking for some advice from  others though...ffget an  idea of 
what 
>  
> > others might do in my  situation.  I apologize for the  length.       
> > Just some quick background   information first.   I am legally  blind.  
 I 
> am 
> >   finishing my  12th year of teaching in an inner city public school  
> system  
> > as a  special education  teacher.  I have  taught in  the same school 
> district  
> > for my entire career.  They hired me  knowing that I  was legally  
blind 
> and 
> > might need a couple   reasonable accommodations.  For 10 years or so, 
the 
> >   district's  administration was very helpful and very willing to  
provide  
> any 
> > reasonable  accommodations to me  I requested.   I  certainly wasn't 
pushy 
> and only  
> > asked for things that were   essential.  They  were always more  than 
> willing 
> > to comply   with my requests and never questioned anything.   Even 
during   
> > those 10 years, I had  several different principals, 2  different  
Special 
> > Education directors, and a  couple  different  Superintendents that I 
> worked under.  
>  >  For the most part,  with the  exception of one principal  that caused 
> > problems for  everyone, I had no issues   with any administration and 
any 
> requests I  
> >  made.  The one issue I did have with the  principal, the   
Superintendent 
> at 
> > the time quickly corrected the  issue.     
> > In the last couple years, we  have  acquired a new  Superintendent, a 
new 
> > Special  Education director, and new   principals.   The response  I  
have 
> > received from the  current administration has  been very different.   
> > At the  beginning of  December of last  year, I made a request for a 
> >   reasonable accommodation to my principals.   They ignored my   
request.  
> I again asked 
> > a couple more times,   getting more  specific and more direct each 
time...
> > .while  still being  professional  and respectful.  I was still   
ignored.  
> Then  at 
> > the beginning of   January, I contacted the Superintendent in  an 
attempt 
> to  
> > resolve the issue,  which had worked the one other   time I had had 
issues 
> with 
> > a  principal.   The  Superintendent also ignored my  attempt to contact 
> him  
> > and never  responded.  After discussing it with our  union's  attorney 
> (who  
> > also happens to  practice disability law), it was decided that I   
would 
>  file an 
> > internal ADA complaint within the district.     I filed the complaint 
and 
> > chose to  have our union's  attorney  act as my representation.   The 
> district  
> > contacted  their  attorney who then contacted my  attorney.   After 
some  
> > discussion and  despite  my anger, I agreed to mediate the issue  
without 
>  the district 
> > having to go  through the investigation   process first.   Although I 
was 
> > angry because I  felt   that the district's actions were totally out of 
> line  and 
> > unnecessary,  I was not  going into this with an  attitude of "I'm out 
to 
> get 
> >  them".   I  just wanted to continue to be  treated in the same  manner 
I  
> had 
> > been for 10 years and be provided  reasonable   accommodations when I 
> > requested them,  nothing more.   We  held a meeting where it was  
myself,  
> my attorney, 
> > the district's  attorney, and  administration.   We came to a written 
and 
> >   signed  agreement between the district and myself as to the  
reasonable  
> > accommodations  that I needed and the  district was willing to  
provide.   
> I thought 
>  > with the signed  agreement and my  dismissal of the complaint,  that 
we'd 
> all 
> > be able to move on   and I'd  get what I needed.  The  agreement was 
> supposed 
>  > to  be distributed to all administrators that I work with  or  under 
so 
> that  
> > they were aware of the agreement  and its contents.   About  2 weeks 
> later, I 
>  > was  speaking to one of the administrators and  I mentioned the  
> agreement...ddand 
> > they  seemed to be unaware  of  the agreement or its contents.  This 
> concerned 
>  > me.  I asked  a couple other administrators  and received  the same 
> response.  
> >  So  I called my  attorney and told her my concerns.  I  said "How can 
I 
> >  expect these people to  follow an agreement that  they don't even  
seem to 
> be 
> > aware of?  I mean, that doesn't  seem  very fair to  them."   She then 
> contacted  
> > the   district's attorney and we ended up on a  three-way conference  
> call.   I 
> >  explained my concerns.  She did have  documentation that all  the  
> > administration had been informed of  it but  stated that she would make 
> contact  again 
> > with  the  Superintendent's office and tell them that they needed to 
check  
>  
> >  again with their administrators to ensure  they were well aware of the 
 
> agreement 
> >  and  expectations.  Again, I wasn't  out to  "get them"...I was  
simply 
> just 
> > trying to prevent another   issue.   This was like 2 months ago.   
> > So,  now  comes today.  I was at a district level professional   
> development  
> > meeting in which I was to be provided  a reasonable  accommodation  
that 
> would 
> > allow  me gain the information I needed  and fully participate in the   
> > professional development.   Mind you,  this  professional development 
is 
> information 
> > and   training on our new state level  teacher evaluation system...ddwh 
 
> in  
> > turn, directly correlates to my  evaluation  and ultimately, my  job.   
> So,   yes, 
> > it is extremely important  stuff.  The  accommodation I was to be 
provided 
> > today was on the  signed  agreement  we made months ago.  The two  
> >   administrators who ran the professional development were both people 
who  
>  were  provided 
> > the information...ddone of  which was ironically,  the Special 
Education  
> >  director.   Despite the   agreement, I was not provided  the 
> accommodation.   I had to 
> >  go  through the training  without it.   Needless to say,   I  am angry 
and 
> > frustrated.   I  had 10  great years with  no issues.   I've tried very 
> hard to  
> > work with the current  administration and have  tried  to understanding 
> and 
> >  forgiving.   I've  given them chances to make  things right and  do 
the 
> right  
> > thing.   They just don't seem to care!!!    
> > So, my question is......dd_what avenue  would you do   next?  Would you 
try 
>  and 
> > mediate yet again,  even though  they are obviously refusing to follow 
the 
>   
> > agreement that is  already made?   Would you file  a complaint outside 
the 
> >  district?   What  direction would you take from   here?   What 
>  suggestions do you  
> > have? 
> > Any  thoughts  are  appreciated! 
> > Thanks in  advance, 
>  >  Nicole
> >  _______________________________________________
> >  Ohio-talk  mailing list
> > Ohio-talk at nfbnet.org
> >   http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/ohio-talk_nfbnet.org
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>  >  
> 
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