If a state legislature sets a higher standard for individualized education programs, it must be met to receive federal special-education funding. However, an Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals decision in a case involving an autistic boy threatens to weaken IDEA's authorization of higher state standards. (MLH)

A 1996 U.S. General Accounting Office report indicates one-third of the nation's schools need $111 billion worth of repairs or partial replacement. Local school districts cannot keep up with enrollment increases or construction costs and will receive little help from federal or state governments. Capital improvement funding inequities are heating…

Presents and evaluates the National Education Association's for-pay software review program. Also reviews the 98th Congress's legislation relating to school software. (MD)

Keeping up with athletic equipment purchasing and safety/equity regulations is becoming increasingly complex. Schools should use a local dealer, have equipment suppliers help student athletes test new equipment, ensure that purchases meet all manufacture and design standards, attend to details, and order replacement parts beforehand. (MLH)

Although the federal government agreed to provide 40 percent of funding for the 1975 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and Amendments, Congress has never appropriated that amount. This failure has forced cutbacks in other programs, particularly education reforms, despite the public's demand for improvements in regular education. (MLH)

In "City of Boerne v. Flores, Archbishop of San Antonio," the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the 1993 Religious Freedom Restoration Act. RFRA was not intended to overrule a 1990 Supreme Court decision forbidding use of peyote in Native American religious ceremonies, but to "enforce" 14th-Amendment free-exercise rights. The…

This report delineates eight specific areas to consider when planning merit pay programs for a school system. It includes names and addresses of schools from which material can be requested describing their evaluation and merit pay procedures. (MD)

In response to growing threat of food-borne illness, the federal government launched the Food Safety Initiative. A key element is the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points system (HACCP), designed to make everyone in the food-delivery chain responsible for ensuring a safe food supply. The Food and Drug Administration also announced a beef…

Discusses one of two June 1997 rulings on church/state separation issued by the U.S. Supreme Court. In "Agostini v. Felton," the Court reversed an earlier decision ("Aguilar v. Felton") upholding a New York City taxpayer group's claims that a Title I program's employment of public school teachers in private/parochial schools…

Children often struggle in noisy classrooms. Many classrooms being planned duplicate acoustically inadequate 50-year-old designs that cannot accommodate group learning and hands-on science. The Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board, which enforces Individuals with Disabilities Education Act regulations, has been asked to…

In "Cedar Rapids Community School District v. Garret F.," the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that severely disabled students have a right to health services supporting their education. The decision, which clarifies the extent of medical services required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, will prove expensive for school…

So far the courts have supported most schools' zero-tolerance policies--even those banning toy weapons, over-the-counter drugs, and unseemly conduct. However, wide-ranging get-tough policies can draw criticism. Policy experts advise school boards to ask the community, decide what people want, allow some wiggle room, create an appeals process,…

Although state laws governing school district investing are quite conservative, there have been some notable investment failures leading to the loss of public funds. School districts must beware three kinds of investment risks involving credit, market, and interest rates and consider safety, legality, liquidity, and cash-flow requirements. (MLH)

School districts are on safer legal ground if they recommend appropriate educational services for each special-needs child, convene parents and school personnel for Individual Education Plan meetings, make placement decisions based on individualized, thorough evaluations; document alternative options; develop behavior-management programs, and use…

Despite federal and state regulations prohibiting the sale of nonnutritious foods in competition with school lunch programs, powerful market forces are keeping vending machines in schools. In 1997, schools generated $750 million for the vending machine market. Soft-drink companies are offering million-dollar contracts to some schools. Student…