Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today commended state lawmakers for passing her legislative package that will deny convicted sex offenders access to Michigan�s children no matter where they are. The Governor first called for the legislation in a letter to lawmakers in early May.

�Michigan will not rest until we have done everything we can to keep the �bad guys� away from our children,� Granholm said. �This legislation will ensure that our children are safe in child care facilities, camps, schools, and while participating in extracurricular activities.

In her May letter, the Governor asked lawmakers to:

• establish �Predator Free Zones� � similar to existing drug-free zones � prohibiting convicted sex offenders from being within 1,000 feet of schools;
• create a �Protect Our Children Act� to require entities, such as schools and day care centers, to complete background checks on all employees and volunteers to make certain sex offenders are denied access to our children;
• as part of a �Protect Our Children Act,� prohibit anyone on the Sex Offender Registry from working or volunteering at locations such as child day care centers, schools, playgrounds, and youth leagues/organizations under the threat of a felony;
• enact a lifetime ban on teachers who are convicted sex offenders, keeping them out of the classroom and away from our children.

This morning, the Senate passed a number of bills implementing these provisions. The House is expected to take similar action this afternoon.

The Governor�s letter also included a request for changes in the rules of evidence to allow prior child molestation or sexual assault to be considered. Legislation to make that change remains in committee.

�Our children�s safety cannot be compromised,� Granholm said. �I appreciate the Legislature�s diligence in sending to my desk tough legislation that will ensure the safety of our children.�

Source: Michigan Newswire, August 31, 2005.
More on the story: Kelly Hassett and Stacey Range, "Lawmakers pass tougher sex offender restrictions; More background checks, pedophile-free zones added", Lansing State Journal, September 1, 2005.

Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today commended state lawmakers for passing her legislative package that will deny convicted sex offenders access to Michigan’s children no matter where they are. The Governor first called for the legislation in a letter to lawmakers in early May.

“Michigan will not rest until we have done everything we can to keep the ‘bad guys’ away from our children,” Granholm said. “This legislation will ensure that our children are safe in child care facilities, camps, schools, and while participating in extracurricular activities.”

In her May letter, the Governor asked lawmakers to:

• establish “Predator Free Zones” – similar to existing drug-free zones – prohibiting convicted sex offenders from being within 1,000 feet of schools;

  
  

• create a “Protect Our Children Act” to require entities, such as schools and day care centers, to complete background checks on all employees and volunteers to make certain sex offenders are denied access to our children;

  
  

• as part of a “Protect Our Children Act,” prohibit anyone on the Sex Offender Registry from working or volunteering at locations such as child day care centers, schools, playgrounds, and youth leagues/organizations under the threat of a felony;

  
  

• enact a lifetime ban on teachers who are convicted sex offenders, keeping them out of the classroom and away from our children.

The Governor’s letter also included a request for changes in the rules of evidence to allow prior child molestation or sexual assault to be considered. Legislation to make that change remains in committee.

“Our children’s safety cannot be compromised,” Granholm said. “I appreciate the Legislature’s diligence in sending to my desk tough legislation that will ensure the safety of our children.”

Source: Michigan Newswire, August 31, 2005.

More on the story: Kelly Hassett and Stacey Range, Lawmakers pass tougher sex offender restrictions; More background checks, pedophile-free zones added, Lansing State Journal, September 1, 2005.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison is continuing to work on its Foreign Relations of the United States Digital Project, adding dozens of volumes to the online collection over the summer. The volumes are presented as images, and are browseable and searchable (the search function searches uncorrected OCR text thats kept behind
the scenes).

There are now about 130 volumes on the site. The earliest volume on the site is from 1861; the most recent covers 1958-60. However, we are concentrating on the volumes through the FDR administration (ended
April 1944).

ALL the volumes covering the following years are available on the site: 1861, 1863, 1876, 1883, 1896-1900, 1903-1917, Paris Peace conference (1919), 1920-1930, and 1934.

SOME of the volumes covering the following years are also available: 1864, 1865, 1872, 1877, 1901, 1902, 1918, 1919, Lansing Papers (1914-1920), 1933, 1935-1944.

In some cases we have hard copy of volumes, but have not scanned and formatted them yet. In other cases, we need the hard copy of the volumes.

If you have the following volumes that youre willing to DONATE (and we are talking donating, not lending, because we will disbind these volumes), wed love to hear from you. :

1862 Part II,
1865 Part II,
1865 Part III,
1865 Part IV, Appendix,
1866 Part II,
1867 Part I,
1867 Part II,
1868 Part I,
1868 Part II,
1870,
1871,
1872 Part I,
1872 Part II vol I: Geneva arbitration,
1873 Part I vol. 1,
1873 Part I vol. 2,
1873 Part II--vol. 3,
1874,
1875 vol. I,
1875 vol. II,
1877 Appendix,
1878,
1879,
1880,
1881,
1882,
1884,
1885,
1886,
1887,
1888 Part I,
1888 Part II,
1889,
1890,
1891,
1892,
1893,
1894,
1894 Appendix I,
1894 Appendix II: Affairs in Hawaii,
1894 Appendix II: Nicaragua,
1895 Part I,
1895 Part II,
Index, 1861-1899,
1901 Appendix: Affairs in China,
1902 Appendix I: Whaling and Sealing Claims against Russia (1903),
1902 Appendix II: Pious Funds of the Californias (1903),
1902 Appendix III: Pious Funds of the Californias (1902),
1919 Vol III,
1919 Russia,
1943 vol VI, American Republics ??.

For more information, contact: Beth Harper, Government Documents Reference Librarian, Memorial Library, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Rm 276, 728 State St., Madison WI 53706; E-mail: bharper@library.wisc.edu; Telephone: 608/262-9852.

On September 17, 1787, the United States Constitution was signed by 39 of the 55 delegates attending the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. Delegates from 12 states had gathered at the Convention with the purpose or revising the nations first written charter, the Articles of Confederation. Instead, they discarded the nations first system of government and created a new one they believed would provide the United States with a strong national government to deal with the many challenges of the Confederation. The Constitution was subsequently ratified by each of the original 13 states.

In 2004 Congress designated September 17 as a day to memorialize the Constitution. This September will be the first time America sees a nation-wide effort to observe and remember its founding with the designation of Constitution Day. Commemoration will take place on Friday, September 16 so students and teachers can participate in activities and lesson plans related to Americas Founders and the Constitution.

This Web site provides a lesson plan and material from a variety of electronic CQ Press sources to help instructors and students observe Constitution Day. CQ Press resources include primary sources, pro/con debates on important constitutional issues, encyclopedia articles on the Constitution, expert commentary and analysis by CQ writers, and more. In addition, this site provides links to additional free sources available on the Web and links to CQ Press books and online collections related to the Constitution.

Additional resources:

Sources for the Study of the Constitutional Era: A Bibliographical and Historiographical Essay. 81 Law Library Journal 47-67 (1989) : Heightened interest in the nations founding and in the intentions of the founders enjoins law librarians to provide materials and reference service for research in the history of the constitutional period. This brief survey of both primary sources and historians interpretations is intended to aid librarians in selecting historical literature for their own collections and in directing patrons to other research libraries. Georgia Chadwick, Documents and Collection Development Librarian, Law Library of Louisiana, New Orleans, GOVDOC-L, August 19, 2005.

Peggy Garvin, Back to School for Constitution Day, LLRX.com, August 14, 2005. : The following guide to relevant web resources is intended to help those teachers, students, and federal employees—as well as an army of web site designers, reference librarians, non-profit organizations, and program planners—get ready for the day. And what is that day? September 17, the anniversary of the signing of the Constitution, which falls on a Saturday this year. So look for official programs immediately before or after that weekend.

The National Association of Student Personnel Administrators site includes a 12 page implementation guide with suggested activities, a list of web links, and some broadcast and video resources. Gayle R. Christian, Reference, Government Information and Maps Librarian, University Libraries, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GOVDOC-L, August 24, 2005.

NARAs Celebrate Constitution Day Web Page : This September, the National Archives continues its popular tradition of celebrating Constitution Day. The National Archives has the original Constitution on permanent display in the Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom. For the first time, National Archives programs in honor of Constitution Day, September 17, will extend far beyond one day and far beyond the Rotunda to reach thousands of citizens, teachers, and students nationwide. Cassandra Hartnett, University of Washington, GOVDOC-L, August 18, 2005.

Federal Resources for Educational Excellence (FREE) Constitution Resources. Barbara Anderson, Government Documents, Hilton M. Briggs Library, South Dakota State University, GOVDOC-L, August 19, 2005.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison is continuing to work on its Foreign Relations of the United States Digital Project, adding dozens of volumes to the online collection over the summer. The volumes are presented as images, and are browseable and searchable (the search function searches uncorrected OCR text that's kept "behind
the scenes").

There are now about 130 volumes on the site. The earliest volume on the site is from 1861; the most recent covers 1958-60. However, we are concentrating on the volumes through the FDR administration (ended
April 1944).

ALL the volumes covering the following years are available on the site: 1861, 1863, 1876, 1883, 1896-1900, 1903-1917, Paris Peace conference (1919), 1920-1930, and 1934.

SOME of the volumes covering the following years are also available: 1864, 1865, 1872, 1877, 1901, 1902, 1918, 1919, Lansing Papers (1914-1920), 1933, 1935-1944.

In some cases we have hard copy of volumes, but have not scanned and formatted them yet. In other cases, we need the hard copy of the volumes.

If you have the following volumes that you're willing to DONATE (and we are talking donating, not lending, because we will disbind these volumes), we'd love to hear from you. :
1862 Part II,
1865 Part II,
1865 Part III,
1865 Part IV, Appendix,
1866 Part II,
1867 Part I,
1867 Part II,
1868 Part I,
1868 Part II,
1870,
1871,
1872 Part I,
1872 Part II vol I: Geneva arbitration,
1873 Part I vol. 1,
1873 Part I vol. 2,
1873 Part II--vol. 3,
1874,
1875 vol. I,
1875 vol. II,
1877 Appendix,
1878,
1879,
1880,
1881,
1882,
1884,
1885,
1886,
1887,
1888 Part I,
1888 Part II,
1889,
1890,
1891,
1892,
1893,
1894,
1894 Appendix I,
1894 Appendix II: Affairs in Hawaii,
1894 Appendix II: Nicaragua,
1895 Part I,
1895 Part II,
Index, 1861-1899,
1901 Appendix: Affairs in China,
1902 Appendix I: Whaling and Sealing Claims against Russia (1903),
1902 Appendix II: Pious Funds of the Californias (1903),
1902 Appendix III: Pious Funds of the Californias (1902),
1919 Vol III,
1919 Russia,
1943 vol VI, American Republics ??.

For more information, contact: Beth Harper, Government Documents Reference Librarian, Memorial Library, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Rm 276, 728 State St., Madison WI 53706; E-mail: bharper@library.wisc.edu; Telephone: 608/262-9852.

On September 17, 1787, the United States Constitution was signed by 39 of the 55 delegates attending the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. Delegates from 12 states had gathered at the Convention with the purpose or revising the nation's first written charter, the Articles of Confederation. Instead, they discarded the nation's first system of government and created a new one they believed would provide the United States with a strong national government to deal with the many challenges of the Confederation. The Constitution was subsequently ratified by each of the original 13 states.

In 2004 Congress designated September 17 as a day to memorialize the Constitution. This September will be the first time America sees a nation-wide effort to observe and remember its founding with the designation of Constitution Day. Commemoration will take place on Friday, September 16 so students and teachers can participate in activities and lesson plans related to America's Founders and the Constitution.

This Web site provides a lesson plan and material from a variety of electronic CQ Press sources to help instructors and students observe Constitution Day. CQ Press resources include primary sources, pro/con debates on important constitutional issues, encyclopedia articles on the Constitution, expert commentary and analysis by CQ writers, and more. In addition, this site provides links to additional free sources available on the Web and links to CQ Press books and online collections related to the Constitution.

Additional resources:

"Sources for the Study of the Constitutional Era: A Bibliographical and Historiographical Essay." 81 Law Library Journal 47-67 (1989) : Heightened interest in the nation's founding and in the intentions of the founders enjoins law librarians to provide materials and reference service for research in the history of the constitutional period. This brief survey of both primary sources and historians' interpretations is intended to aid librarians in selecting historical literature for their own collections and in directing patrons to other research libraries." Georgia Chadwick, Documents and Collection Development Librarian, Law Library of Louisiana, New Orleans, GOVDOC-L, August 19, 2005.

Peggy Garvin, "Back to School for Constitution Day", LLRX.com, August 14, 2005. : The following guide to relevant web resources is intended to help those teachers, students, and federal employees—as well as an army of web site designers, reference librarians, non-profit organizations, and program planners—get ready for the day. And what is that day? September 17, the anniversary of the signing of the Constitution, which falls on a Saturday this year. So look for official programs immediately before or after that weekend.

The National Association of Student Personnel Administrators site includes a 12 page implementation guide with suggested activities, a list of web links, and some broadcast and video resources. Gayle R. Christian, Reference, Government Information and Maps Librarian, University Libraries, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GOVDOC-L, August 24, 2005.

NARA's Celebrate Constitution Day Web Page : This September, the National Archives continues its popular tradition of celebrating Constitution Day. The National Archives has the original Constitution on permanent display in the Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom. For the first time, National Archives programs in honor of Constitution Day, September 17, will extend far beyond one day and far beyond the Rotunda to reach thousands of citizens, teachers, and students nationwide. Cassandra Hartnett, University of Washington, GOVDOC-L, August 18, 2005.

Federal Resources for Educational Excellence (FREE) Constitution Resources. Barbara Anderson, Government Documents, Hilton M. Briggs Library, South Dakota State University, GOVDOC-L, August 19, 2005.

The Attorney General’s Health Care Fraud Division is one of 49 federally certified Medicaid Fraud Control Units. Medicaid fraud investigations and prosecutions include false billings, unlawful delivery of controlled substances, practicing medicine without a license, kickbacks, and bribery schemes. The division also initiates civil actions, including asset forfeiture and claims for Medicaid overpayments.

The August 28th issue of the Detroit News and Free Press contains a lengthy article called Michigan targets Medicaid thieves by Sharon Terlep. According to the article, the health care fraud unit, made up of 36 lawyers, investigators and experts, recovers only a sliver of whats stolen each year through phony claims. The cheating diverts money from other state priorities, such as roads and schools, while driving up costs for doctors and insurance companies that are ultimately passed on to consumers.

Thats why Attorney General Cox is pushing legislation that would award people who successfully sue thieving health care providers at least 15% of the settlement plus attorney fees.

To report Medicaid provider fraud or identity theft/patient abuse in a resident care facility, call the Attorney General’s 24-hour Hotline at 800-24-ABUSE (800-242-2873); e-mail hcf@michigan.gov; or visit the Attorney General’s Web site .

The Attorney General’s Health Care Fraud Division is one of 49 federally certified Medicaid Fraud Control Units. Medicaid fraud investigations and prosecutions include false billings, unlawful delivery of controlled substances, practicing medicine without a license, kickbacks, and bribery schemes. The division also initiates civil actions, including asset forfeiture and claims for Medicaid overpayments.

The August 28th issue of the Detroit News and Free Press contains a lengthy article called "Michigan targets Medicaid thieves by Sharon Terlep. According to the article, the health care fraud unit, made up of 36 lawyers, investigators and experts, recovers only a sliver of what's stolen each year through phony claims. The cheating diverts money from other state priorities, such as roads and schools, while driving up costs for doctors and insurance companies that are ultimately passed on to consumers.

That's why Attorney General Cox is pushing legislation that would award people who successfully sue thieving health care providers at least 15% of the settlement plus attorney fees.

To report Medicaid provider fraud or identity theft/patient abuse in a resident care facility, call the Attorney General’s 24-hour Hotline at 800-24-ABUSE (800-242-2873); e-mail hcf@michigan.gov; or visit the Attorney General’s Web site .

The Army and Navys service academies have tolerated hostile attitudes toward women, hampering efforts to eradicate sexual assault and harassment at the institutions, according to a new report.

The attitudes of a certain number of midshipmen at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., and cadets at the Military Academy in West Point, N.Y., have created an environment where sexual assault is more likely to occur, the report states.

The 96-page report is the work of a congressionally mandated 12-member task force—made up equally of military and civilian members—assigned the task of assessing the cultures of the Navy and Army academies and recommending changes in their operations.

Source: Daniel Pulliam, Sexual misconduct at Army, Navy academies persists, report finds, GovExec.com Daily Briefing, August 29, 2005.

Source document: Report of the Defense Task Force on Sexual Harassment and Violence at the Military Service Academies, June 2005, 96pp.

The Army and Navy's service academies have tolerated hostile attitudes toward women, hampering efforts to eradicate sexual assault and harassment at the institutions, according to a new report.

The attitudes of a certain number of midshipmen at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., and cadets at the Military Academy in West Point, N.Y., have created an environment where sexual assault is more likely to occur, the report states.

The 96-page report is the work of a congressionally mandated 12-member task force—made up equally of military and civilian members—assigned the task of assessing the cultures of the Navy and Army academies and recommending changes in their operations.

Source: Daniel Pulliam, "Sexual misconduct at Army, Navy academies persists, report finds", GovExec.com Daily Briefing, August 29, 2005.

Source document: Report of the Defense Task Force on Sexual Harassment and Violence at the Military Service Academies, June 2005, 96pp.

Beilstein-Institut has published the first issue Beilstein Journal of Organic Chemistry.

http://bjoc.beilstein-journals.org/

It covers organic chemistry in its broadest sense, including: organic synthesis, organic reactions and mechanisms, natural products chemistry, chemical biology, organic materials and macro- and supramolecular organic chemistry.

Beilstein Journal of Organic Chemistry is a peer-reviewed online journal
published by the Beilstein-Institut in co-operation with BioMed Central. As
an open access journal Beilstein Journal of Organic Chemistry will allow
readers free access to all content in perpetuity worldwide.

Soil survey maps have long been printed and bound into soil survey books free for the asking at local USDA Service Centers, NRCS field offices and public libraries. But theyre being slowly phased out. Thats because, starting today, the USDA Web Soil Survey site will provide secure public access to the national soils information system.

Currently, NRCS has soils maps and data available online for more than 95% of the nations counties and expects to have data for 100% of counties in the near future. The new site will be updated and maintained online as the single authoritative source of soil survey information, USDA says.

The site is a simple yet powerful way to access and analyze soils data.

Posting soil survey information on the internet is one more step in our effort to make information more accessible to the citizens we serve, Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns said in a release today.

When viewers visit the web soil survey, they are asked to Define a geographic area of interest by selecting a state and county or just by highlighting an area or areas. Once a location has been defined, the viewer has the choice to print the map and related information, save it to their hard drive or download the data for use in a geographic information system (GIS).

The viewer also can Explore a location for specific soils data on soil suitability in relationship to usage - offering a chance to build a customized report that addresses the viewers individual needs. Information
can be delivered in a variety of formats.

To view the website go to http://soils.usda.gov/survey.

Source: GOVDOC-L, August 26, 2005.

Soil survey maps have long been printed and bound into soil survey books free for the asking at local USDA Service Centers, NRCS field offices and public libraries. But they're being slowly phased out. That's because, starting today, the USDA Web Soil Survey site will provide secure public access to the national soils information system.

Currently, NRCS has soils maps and data available online for more than 95% of the nation's counties and expects to have data for 100% of counties in the near future. The new site will be updated and maintained online as the single authoritative source of soil survey information, USDA says.

The site is a simple yet powerful way to access and analyze soils data.

"Posting soil survey information on the internet is one more step in our effort to make information more accessible to the citizens we serve," Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns said in a release today.
When viewers visit the web soil survey, they are asked to "Define" a geographic area of interest by selecting a state and county or just by highlighting an area or areas. Once a location has been defined, the viewer has the choice to print the map and related information, save it to their hard drive or download the data for use in a geographic information system (GIS).

The viewer also can "Explore" a location for specific soils data on soil suitability in relationship to usage - offering a chance to build a customized report that addresses the viewer's individual needs. Information
can be delivered in a variety of formats.

To view the website go to http://soils.usda.gov/survey.

Source: GOVDOC-L, August 26, 2005.

As someone who has served in Congress for 20 terms, even I must confess that I am shocked by the brazen politicization of the Department. Recently, the Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics was preparing to issue a press release on their study of racial profiling in traffic stops. Apparently the conclusion, that racial profiling is an ongoing problem, somehow distrurbed the front office at Justice. The Department insisted that the factual conclusions regarding evidence of profiling be deleted. The highly respected (and GOP appointee) head of the statistics division, Lawrence Greenfeld, objected, and next thing we know, there was no press release at all and Mr. Greenfeld was threatened with termination, and eventually demoted. Its hard to imagine a more textbook case of politics trumping facts.


Fortunately, Eric Lichtblau of the New York Times wrote about this deed yesterday. After learning about it, I announced my intentions to ask for an independent review by GAO, as reported on by Dan Eggen of the Washington Post (and others). Much, much more will be coming on this.


Source: Congressman John Conyers Blog, August 25, 2005.

References: Eric Lichtblau, Profiling Report Leads to a Demotion, New York Times, August 24, 2005, and
Dan Eggen, Official in Racial Profiling Study Demoted, Washington Post, August 25, 2005; A07

Yesterday the ACLU revealed that the FBI has used Section 505 of the USA PATRIOT Act to obtain electronic library records at an institution in Connecticut whose identity cannot be disclosed because of constraints imposed by the PATRIOT Act. This is the further evidence that the FBI is indeed using provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act to obtain library patron reading records, an activity the American Library Association (ALA) has fought since the passage of the legislation in 2001.

ALA has argued that Section 505 of the USA PATRIOT Act gives the FBI overly broad authority to use a National Security Letter (NSL), an administrative subpoena which requires no judicial oversight, to secretly obtain the electronic library records of any person - whether or not that person is suspected of a crime - without any standard for protecting individual privacy. Records searched could include all the websites visited and all the e-mail sent and received by anyone who used the library's computers. Such open-ended fishing expeditions expose all library users to the search and seizure of their records and to the invasion of their privacy. A gag order accompanies the NSL that prevents its recipient from disclosing that a demand for records has been received.

"The Connecticut case illustrates exactly why ALA continues to fight sections of the PATRIOT Act that allow the government to secretly search the records of ordinary citizens without any judicial oversight," said ALA Immediate Past President Carol Brey-Casiano. "Despite the Justice Department's repeated assertions that it has no interest in Americans' reading records, this case again proves that the government is demanding patron information from America's libraries" she continued.

In 2004, a federal district court judge held that NSLs gave the FBI unchecked authority to obtain records from electronic communications service providers, including libraries, "without any judicial oversight or opportunity for challenge." In striking down the provision, the judge found that the secret administrative subpoenas violated the fourth amendment because they "effectively bar or substantially deter any judicial challenge to the NSL." It further found that even if judicial review were provided, the gag order violated the First Amendment because it represented "a prior restraint on speech that was sweeping in scope" and appeared to apply "in perpetuity."

Two bills reauthorizing the USA PATRIOT Act have passed in the House and Senate and will go to conference next month. The Senate bill, S. 1389 (the USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005), adds many of the safeguards for privacy of reading records that have been sought by ALA since the passage of the law, including tougher requirements for searching library records under Section 215 and an opportunity to challenge an NSL as violating a Constitutional or legal right and to challenge the gag order. The House Bill (H.R. 3199 - The USA PATRIOT and Terrorism Prevention Reauthorization Act of 2005) does not include improved reader privacy protections. ALA is encouraging Conferees to vote for the Senate bill.

Source: ALAWON: American Library Association Washington Office Newsline, Volume 14, Number 84,
August 26, 2005.

For more information, see Reform the Patriot Act Blog.

Good news. I just read a message from Beth Close indicating the new ERIC materials are now available via EBSCO Host. They added 6788 new records and will update the database as new data is received from the contractor. I have already done a little searching and things look good.

The Michigan Department of Education has issued its EducationYES! Report Cards to Michigan elementary, middle, and high schools along with the annual report on each school’s Adequate Yearly Progress as required by the federal No Child Left Behind law.

The data released show that while more Michigan schools meet the requirements of the federal law, Michigan ’s own system of evaluating academic progress has identified more schools in need of improvement.

This mid-August release of every school level complies with the requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law that is aimed at giving parents important data about their schools to help them make informed decisions on their children’s education.

Changes in the state’s assessment processes approved by the State Board of Education and state Legislature allowed for the coordinated release of Report Cards at all school levels. Until now, the public reports have been staggered throughout the year due to previous restrictions in state law.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Mike Flanagan said the new data show the state’s focus on school accountability is working.

“All across Michigan , we see schools where concerted efforts by committed educators are making a real difference in student learning,” Flanagan said. “The data also show us where we need to step up our efforts to help students achieve their academic goals.”

According to Flanagan, the Department will use this school performance data to target its school improvement funding for this coming school year.

EducationYES! is the state accreditation system based not only upon student achievement on the Michigan Education Assessment Program (MEAP) tests, but also other school performance indicators, including: curriculum, teacher quality and professional development, school facilities, and family involvement.

Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) is a state measurement of student achievement, governed and approved by the U.S. Department of Education (USDOE), and required by NCLB.

Schools that have not made AYP for two or more consecutive years are in various phases of federal NCLB sanctions – from allowing students to transfer to schools making AYP; providing supplemental educational services; to school restructuring.

From a statewide view, 88 percent of Michigan ’s 3,670 public schools made AYP for the 2005 school year, as did over 95 percent of the state’s school districts.

Nearly 75 percent of the state’s schools received an A or B grade on their EducationYES! state accreditation report cards. At the same time, the number of schools listed as D-Alert increased to 126 in 2005, compared to 70 the previous year.

Michigan school Report Cards can be accessed by logging on to the Michigan Department of Education website.

“We hope parents use this information to learn more about their children’s schools,” said State Board of Education President Kathleen N. Straus. “Our goal is to encourage those schools doing well to do better, and to continue providing assistance to schools not yet meeting the standards. We want all Michigan schools to be excellent.”

Although more Michigan schools made AYP this past year, Flanagan explained that assuming any trend is premature considering the evolving implementation of the complex federal No Child Left Behind law.

“As we’ve said all along, this NCLB accountability system is a work in progress,” Flanagan noted. “It will be difficult to show definitive trends between the years, at least in these initial years, because the system will continue to be refined and adjusted at both the state and federal levels.”

Both the EducationYES! Report Card and the AYP reports reflect changes designed to improve the accuracy of resulting data.

The State Board of Education in February approved changes to the state Report Card to limit the degree in which schools’ self-reported data could increase their overall performance grade. The USDOE recently approved Michigan to use a statistically more reliable calculation of test scores called a confidence interval used by 30 other states. The USDOE also is allowing all states to count more of their alternate assessment scores for students with special needs as being proficient.

“Together, these measures now give us a more accurate picture of where Michigan stacks up in comparison to other states, while allowing us to better identify the schools in our state that need to turn around their performance,” Flanagan said.

Requirements in the federal NCLB law also will result in more changes to student assessment in Michigan in the year ahead.

Whereas the past MEAP system tested students in fourth, fifth, seventh, and eighth grades, beginning this coming school year, federal law is requiring students in grades 3 through 8 be tested every year in at least math and English Language Arts. Fifth- and eighth-graders also will take a science assessment, and sixth-graders will take the social studies assessment.

“This year we will be testing hundreds of thousands of more children, in more grades, with entirely new tests,” Flanagan said. “And we expect that may have an impact on each school’s and each district’s AYP status.

The number of students being tested will jump from 520,000 last year to 910,000 students this October.

“Regardless of the fluctuations in the system or process, the common denominator must be that all of our students are progressing academically and receiving a quality education,” Straus said. “No matter what a school’s AYP status is, its focus must be on continued development and improvement.”

For more detail, refer to the Guide to Reading the Michigan School Report Cards 2005 Edition.

Source: Michigan Newswire, August 19, 2005.

Dr. Kimberlydawn Wisdom, Michigan Surgeon General, is urging businesses across Michigan to make small changes in their environment and policies to make it easier for employees to be healthier at work. The initiative aims to ultimately increase productivity and morale and reduce employee and employer health care costs.

Wisdom – joined by representatives from Michigan businesses and the Small Business Association of Michigan – announced the newest initiative in Michigan Steps Up, her statewide healthy lifestyles campaign. The campaign website, http://www.michiganstepsup.org, now provides resources for businesses to help employees move more, eat better, and lead a tobacco-free lifestyle.

Unhealthy lifestyles take a significant toll on Michigan’s physical health and fiscal health, Wisdom said. Today we are asking businesses to take an important step toward not only improving their bottom line but also to help our ailing workforce and economy.

Employees who move more, eat better, and avoid using tobacco products may have higher morale, higher productivity, reduced absenteeism, and lower turnover. Over time, a healthier workforce will reduce future increases in health insurance costs and healthy employees will benefit from lower out-of-pocket expenses for medical care and prescription drugs.

Worksites are the best places to reach the majority of Michigans adult citizens to encourage them to lead healthier lifestyles, according to Wisdom. While this can be difficult, especially for small businesses, Michigan businesses of all sizes now have access to low and no cost effective strategies that can assist them in promoting good health, including:

• Assessment tools that suggest changes for a healthier worksite
• Free, confidential employee health risk appraisals that can provide employees and employers with useful health information
• Incentives to make at least one change that supports healthy lifestyles at the worksite
• Low or no cost ways to support healthy lifestyle choices
• Contact information for businesses with exemplary health promotion programs

A recent health care cost comparison study, commissioned by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) and conducted by Altarum, compared the health of Michigans workforce to benchmark states that compete with Michigan for new corporations and jobs. The study found that the health of its workforce could hinder Michigan’s ability to compete. The study ranked Michigan first in death rates from heart disease and prescription drug use, second in obesity and diabetes, and sixth in number of smokers.

Roughly 62 percent of Michigan’s adults are overweight or obese, which increases their risk for more than 30 preventable chronic diseases and conditions, including the leading causes of death in Michigan: heart disease, cancer, stroke and diabetes. These diseases are mainly rooted in unhealthy eating, physical inactivity, and tobacco use.

About three-quarters of Michigan adults report getting less than the recommended 30 minutes of physical activity five or more days a week or not getting any physical activity at all. Physical inactivity in more than 4 million Michigan adults cost almost $8.9 billion in health care costs in 2002.

Source: Michigan Newswire, August 23, 2005.

The Base Realighment and Closure (BRAC) Commission voted on August 24th to close the U.S. Army Garrison at Selfridge Air National Guard Base in southwest Michigan, the U.S. Army Reserve Center Stanford C. Parisian in Lansing, and the Army Reserve Area maintenance Support Acitivity No. 135 in Battle Creek.

These units would be relocated to a new reserve center on the Fort Custer Reserve Training Center in Augusta, just outside Battle Creek.

Source: Ken Thomas, Commission Votes to Close Mich. National Guard Base, Lansing State Journal, August 25, 2005.

The Michigan Department of Education has issued its EducationYES! Report Cards to Michigan elementary, middle, and high schools along with the annual report on each school’s Adequate Yearly Progress as required by the federal No Child Left Behind law.

The data released show that while more Michigan schools meet the requirements of the federal law, Michigan ’s own system of evaluating academic progress has identified more schools in need of improvement.

This mid-August release of every school level complies with the requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law that is aimed at giving parents important data about their schools to help them make informed decisions on their children’s education.

Changes in the state’s assessment processes approved by the State Board of Education and state Legislature allowed for the coordinated release of Report Cards at all school levels. Until now, the public reports have been staggered throughout the year due to previous restrictions in state law.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Mike Flanagan said the new data show the state’s focus on school accountability is working.

“All across Michigan , we see schools where concerted efforts by committed educators are making a real difference in student learning,” Flanagan said. “The data also show us where we need to step up our efforts to help students achieve their academic goals.”

According to Flanagan, the Department will use this school performance data to target its school improvement funding for this coming school year.

EducationYES! is the state accreditation system based not only upon student achievement on the Michigan Education Assessment Program (MEAP) tests, but also other school performance indicators, including: curriculum, teacher quality and professional development, school facilities, and family involvement.

Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) is a state measurement of student achievement, governed and approved by the U.S. Department of Education (USDOE), and required by NCLB.

Schools that have not made AYP for two or more consecutive years are in various phases of federal NCLB sanctions – from allowing students to transfer to schools making AYP; providing supplemental educational services; to school restructuring.

From a statewide view, 88 percent of Michigan ’s 3,670 public schools made AYP for the 2005 school year, as did over 95 percent of the state’s school districts.

Nearly 75 percent of the state’s schools received an A or B grade on their EducationYES! state accreditation report cards. At the same time, the number of schools listed as D-Alert increased to 126 in 2005, compared to 70 the previous year.

Michigan school Report Cards can be accessed by logging on to the Michigan Department of Education website.

“We hope parents use this information to learn more about their children’s schools,” said State Board of Education President Kathleen N. Straus. “Our goal is to encourage those schools doing well to do better, and to continue providing assistance to schools not yet meeting the standards. We want all Michigan schools to be excellent.”

Although more Michigan schools made AYP this past year, Flanagan explained that assuming any trend is premature considering the evolving implementation of the complex federal No Child Left Behind law.

“As we’ve said all along, this NCLB accountability system is a work in progress,” Flanagan noted. “It will be difficult to show definitive trends between the years, at least in these initial years, because the system will continue to be refined and adjusted at both the state and federal levels.”

Both the EducationYES! Report Card and the AYP reports reflect changes designed to improve the accuracy of resulting data.

The State Board of Education in February approved changes to the state Report Card to limit the degree in which schools’ self-reported data could increase their overall performance grade. The USDOE recently approved Michigan to use a statistically more reliable calculation of test scores called a confidence interval used by 30 other states. The USDOE also is allowing all states to count more of their alternate assessment scores for students with special needs as being proficient.

“Together, these measures now give us a more accurate picture of where Michigan stacks up in comparison to other states, while allowing us to better identify the schools in our state that need to turn around their performance,” Flanagan said.

Requirements in the federal NCLB law also will result in more changes to student assessment in Michigan in the year ahead.

Whereas the past MEAP system tested students in fourth, fifth, seventh, and eighth grades, beginning this coming school year, federal law is requiring students in grades 3 through 8 be tested every year in at least math and English Language Arts. Fifth- and eighth-graders also will take a science assessment, and sixth-graders will take the social studies assessment.

“This year we will be testing hundreds of thousands of more children, in more grades, with entirely new tests,” Flanagan said. “And we expect that may have an impact on each school’s and each district’s AYP status.

The number of students being tested will jump from 520,000 last year to 910,000 students this October.

“Regardless of the fluctuations in the system or process, the common denominator must be that all of our students are progressing academically and receiving a quality education,” Straus said. “No matter what a school’s AYP status is, its focus must be on continued development and improvement.”

For more detail, refer to the Guide to Reading the Michigan School Report Cards 2005 Edition.

Source: Michigan Newswire, August 19, 2005.

Dr. Kimberlydawn Wisdom, Michigan Surgeon General, is urging businesses across Michigan to make small changes in their environment and policies to make it easier for employees to be healthier at work. The initiative aims to ultimately increase productivity and morale and reduce employee and employer health care costs.

Wisdom – joined by representatives from Michigan businesses and the Small Business Association of Michigan – announced the newest initiative in Michigan Steps Up, her statewide healthy lifestyles campaign. The campaign website, http://www.michiganstepsup.org, now provides resources for businesses to help employees move more, eat better, and lead a tobacco-free lifestyle.

"Unhealthy lifestyles take a significant toll on Michigan’s physical health and fiscal health," Wisdom said. "Today we are asking businesses to take an important step toward not only improving their bottom line but also to help our ailing workforce and economy."

Employees who move more, eat better, and avoid using tobacco products may have higher morale, higher productivity, reduced absenteeism, and lower turnover. Over time, a healthier workforce will reduce future increases in health insurance costs and healthy employees will benefit from lower out-of-pocket expenses for medical care and prescription drugs.

Worksites are the best places to reach the majority of Michigan's adult citizens to encourage them to lead healthier lifestyles, according to Wisdom. While this can be difficult, especially for small businesses, Michigan businesses of all sizes now have access to low and no cost effective strategies that can assist them in promoting good health, including:

• Assessment tools that suggest changes for a healthier worksite
• Free, confidential employee health risk appraisals that can provide employees and employers with useful health information
• Incentives to make at least one change that supports healthy lifestyles at the worksite
• Low or no cost ways to support healthy lifestyle choices
• Contact information for businesses with exemplary health promotion programs

A recent health care cost comparison study, commissioned by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) and conducted by Altarum, compared the health of Michigan's workforce to benchmark states that compete with Michigan for new corporations and jobs. The study found that the health of its workforce could hinder Michigan’s ability to compete. The study ranked Michigan first in death rates from heart disease and prescription drug use, second in obesity and diabetes, and sixth in number of smokers.

Roughly 62 percent of Michigan’s adults are overweight or obese, which increases their risk for more than 30 preventable chronic diseases and conditions, including the leading causes of death in Michigan: heart disease, cancer, stroke and diabetes. These diseases are mainly rooted in unhealthy eating, physical inactivity, and tobacco use.

About three-quarters of Michigan adults report getting less than the recommended 30 minutes of physical activity five or more days a week or not getting any physical activity at all. Physical inactivity in more than 4 million Michigan adults cost almost $8.9 billion in health care costs in 2002.

Source: Michigan Newswire, August 23, 2005.

State representative Rick Jones, R-Grand Ledge, intorduced House Bill 5100 on August 24 barring courts from using soldiers' active duty against them in custody cases.

State lawmakers from neighboring states have contacted Jones for copies of his bill already.

For a copy of the bill, see Michigan Legislature and type in the bill number.

Source: Stacey Range, "Grand Ledge Soldier's Battle for Custody Gains National Attention", Lansing State Journal, August 25, 2005.

Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today applauded the Base Realignment and Closing (BRAC) Commission on its decision to accept Department of Defense recommendations to consolidate military procurement operations at the Detroit Arsenal in Warren. The decision will add as many as 1,100 new civilian jobs at the Warren facility.

“I’m thrilled that the BRAC Commission has seen the wisdom of bringing nearly 1,100 new high-paying jobs to Macomb County,” said Granholm. “The jobs that are coming to Warren are precisely the kinds of jobs we need to transform Michigan’s economy – they’re high-tech and high paying. These jobs will help make Michigan the nation’s center for automotive research, design and technology.”

In April 2004 Granholm created a Michigan task force on military facilities to encourage the Department of Defense to maintain and expand its military installations in Michigan. In March of 2005, Granholm traveled to Washington, D.C. to advocate on Michigan’s behalf before the Department of Defense. Recently, she encouraged Anthony Principi, Chairman of the BRAC Commission, to accept the Department’s recommendation.

The 1,100 new jobs at Detroit Arsenal will come from facilities in other parts of the country, including Illinois and Alabama.

The Governor also worked closely with U.S. Senator Carl Levin, U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow and Congressman Sandy Levin to be sure that the recommendations were accepted. She applauded their work today.

“This was an extraordinary team effort on the part of our Senators and Congressman Levin” said Granholm, “they worked tirelessly on this issue and their work has paid off in the form of jobs.”

Source: Michigan Newswire, August 24, 2005.

More BRAC News: A federal commision voted on August 26th to keep open the Battle Creek Air National Guard Base, rejecting a Pentagon plan to close it and empowering Michigan how to distribute aircraft between two guard bases. The base will remain open as an "enclave", which would keep maintenance and operation workers at the enclave. The decision also allocated 24 A-10 Thunderbolt air to the Selfridge Air Force Base in Macomb County, but allows the state the option of how to distribute them between the two bases. Source: Ken Thomas, "Michigan air base spared by panel", Detroit Free Press, August 27, 2005.

Rep. Candice Miller hardened her position on 24 A-10 Thunderbolt aircraft tentatively destined for Michigan, saying she wanted them all for the Selfridge Air National Guard Base. But Rep. Joe Schwarz did not back off his goal of having 12 of the planes stationed at Battle Creek's Air National Guard base. In its wisdom, the Base Realignment and Closing (BRAC) Commission spared both Air National Guard bases, but left it up to Michigan Governor Granholm and her adjustant general, Major General Thomas Culter to divide the new planes allocated to Michigan. Source: Katherine Hutt Scott, "Reps. at odds over military aircraft, Lansing State Journal, August 30, 2005.

The Base Realighment and Closure (BRAC) Commission voted on August 24th to close the U.S. Army Garrison at Selfridge Air National Guard Base in southwest Michigan, the U.S. Army Reserve Center Stanford C. Parisian in Lansing, and the Army Reserve Area maintenance Support Acitivity No. 135 in Battle Creek.

These units would be relocated to a new reserve center on the Fort Custer Reserve Training Center in Augusta, just outside Battle Creek.

Source: Ken Thomas, "Commission Votes to Close Mich. National Guard Base", Lansing State Journal, August 25, 2005.

Try out SpecInfo now through September 30th - contains 434,000 spectra divided among 25 collections of MS (Mass Spectronomy), IR (Infrared) and NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance).
http://www.mrw2.interscience.wiley.com/specinfo/specinfo_nmrirms_fs.html
Please send feedback to Judy Matthews at matthe20@msu.edu.

In celebration of the 85th anniversary of women's right to vote in the United States, the Library of Congress is pleased to announce the online release of "Women of Protest: Photographs from the Records of the National Woman's Party" .

This presentation is a selection of 448 of the approximately 2,650 photographs in the Records of the National Woman's Party, housed in the Manuscript Division of the Library of Congress.

Representing the militant wing of the suffrage movement, the National Woman's Party (NWP) effectively commanded the attention of politicians and the public through its aggressive agitation, relentless lobbying, creative publicity stunts, and disarming examples of civil disobedience. It used tableaus, parades, demonstrations, and picketing--as well as its members' arrests, imprisonment and hunger strikes-to spur public discussion and win publicity for the suffrage cause. Women of Protest presents images that depict the NWP's broad range of tactics as well as individual portraits of organization leaders and members. The photographs span from about 1875 to 1938 but largely date between 1913 and 1922. They document the National Woman's Party's push for passage and ratification of the 19th Amendment, as well as its later campaign for passage of the Equal Rights Amendment.

The National Woman's Party was one of the most important national suffrage organizations in the U.S. as well as a leading advocate for women's political, social and economic equality throughout much of the 20th century. An offshoot of the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA), the NWP was instrumental in achieving passage and ratification of the 19th Amendment nationally extending suffrage to women on August 26, 1920.

"Women of Protest: Photographs from the Records of the National Woman's Party" is one of more than 125 thematic collections in American Memory (http://memory.loc.gov), the Library's multimedia Web site containing items ranging from the papers of U.S. presidents, Civil War photographs and early films of Thomas Edison to papers documenting the women's suffrage and civil rights movements, Jazz Age photographs and the first baseball cards.

Please direct any questions about this collection to the Library of Congress's American Memory "Ask A Librarian" Service .

Source: Laura Gottesman, Reference Specialist, The Library of Congress, via GOVDOC-L, August 24, 2005.

A group of Republican House members, with a little help from their Democratic colleagues, have proposed an odd way of fighting rising gasoline prices. They want to outlaw cheap gas.

Under a proposal (House Bill 4949) by state Rep. Tom Casperson, R-Escanaba, the state would set price controls on gasoline, banning retailers from selling below a price range it would determine through a formula. Gas station owners have complained that large retail chains such as Wal-Mart, Meijer and Costco are supposedly selling gasoline below cost.

In an era of discount stores, its becoming increasingly tiresome when certain businesses complain about unfair pricing. Such whining is usually code for: We dont want to compete. And since the price of gasoline not only cuts into family budgets but raises business costs, its amazing that presumably pro-business Republicans would propose such economically damaging nonsense.

Casperson says he is trying to protect small gas stations and stop large stores from gaining a monopoly. He sees the rapid fluctuations in gas prices as attempts by other retailers to put little stations out of business. But prices fluctuate all the time with all sorts of different products, especially in a global economy. Its called economic competition.

A copy of House Bill 4949 is available on the Michigan Legislature home page, search 4949.

Source: Detroit Free Press editorial, August 21, 2005, p. 18A.

State lawmakers are contemplating a $7.5 million to $9.7 million cut to MI Choice because of the states budget troubles and what some say are high administrative costs.

Designed to help people who need assistance to stay in their homes rather than go to nursing homes, Mi Choice provides help with everything from meals to cleaning to transportation.

Social Service officials say the cuts would effectively close the program to new enrollment, waiting lists will swell, and client care could suffer. There will be fewer social workers and nurses, which could affect care for patients. There will be fewer folks left that assess the client, determine their needs, what the families are capable of doing, what their living circumstances are, and what their financial circumstances are.

Advocates of the cuts say they are providing more money for client care by streamlining administrative costs.

Proponents of the status quo say that MI Choice gives people more freedom while costing less than placing clients in nursing homes. Michigan spends $100 million a year in Medicaid funds for MI Choice, which averages out to $39 a day per person.

Roughly $1.4 billion, meanwhile, goes to nursing home care, which costs an average of $119 per person each day. As the states population ages, the problem will only become worse.

A report released in May by the Michigan Medicaid Long-Term Care Task Force, assembled by Granholm to look at Michigans approach to long-term care, found the state has an overreliance on relatively expensive institutional care and should consider ways to allow consumers to receive care in settings of their choice.

For the full article, see Maureen Feighan, State May Slash Home Care, Detroit News, August 21, 2005, p.1D.

Related article: Granholm Accepts Long Term Care Task Force Report; Signs EO to Begin Implementing Recommendations

Related web page: Michigans Long Term Care Portal.

State lawmakers are contemplating a $7.5 million to $9.7 million cut to MI Choice because of the state's budget troubles and what some say are high administrative costs.

Designed to help people who need assistance to stay in their homes rather than go to nursing homes, Mi Choice provides help with everything from meals to cleaning to transportation.
Social Service officials say the cuts would effectively close the program to new enrollment, waiting lists will swell, and client care could suffer. There will be fewer social workers and nurses, which could affect care for patients. There will be fewer folks left that assess the client, determine their needs, what the families are capable of doing, what their living circumstances are, and what their financial circumstances are.

Advocates of the cuts say they are providing more money for client care by streamlining administrative costs.

Proponents of the status quo say that MI Choice gives people more freedom while costing less than placing clients in nursing homes. Michigan spends $100 million a year in Medicaid funds for MI Choice, which averages out to $39 a day per person.

Roughly $1.4 billion, meanwhile, goes to nursing home care, which costs an average of $119 per person each day. As the state's population ages, the problem will only become worse.

A report released in May by the Michigan Medicaid Long-Term Care Task Force, assembled by Granholm to look at Michigan's approach to long-term care, found the state has "an overreliance on relatively expensive institutional care" and should consider ways to allow consumers to receive care in settings of their choice.

For the full article, see Maureen Feighan, "State May Slash Home Care", Detroit News, August 21, 2005, p.1D.

Related article: Granholm Accepts Long Term Care Task Force Report; Signs EO to Begin Implementing Recommendations

Related web page: Michigan's Long Term Care Portal.

A group of Republican House members, with a little help from their Democratic colleagues, have proposed an odd way of fighting rising gasoline prices. They want to outlaw cheap gas.

Under a proposal (House Bill 4949) by state Rep. Tom Casperson, R-Escanaba, the state would set price controls on gasoline, banning retailers from selling below a price range it would determine through a formula. Gas station owners have complained that large retail chains such as Wal-Mart, Meijer and Costco are supposedly selling gasoline below cost.

In an era of discount stores, it's becoming increasingly tiresome when certain businesses complain about "unfair" pricing. Such whining is usually code for: We don't want to compete. And since the price of gasoline not only cuts into family budgets but raises business costs, it's amazing that presumably pro-business Republicans would propose such economically damaging nonsense.

Casperson says he is trying to protect small gas stations and stop large stores from gaining a monopoly. He sees the rapid fluctuations in gas prices as attempts by other retailers to put little stations out of business. But prices fluctuate all the time with all sorts of different products, especially in a global economy. It's called economic competition.

A copy of House Bill 4949 is available on the Michigan Legislature home page, search 4949.

Source: Detroit Free Press editorial, August 21, 2005, p. 18A.

With gas prices rising, the Michigan Department of Transportation reminds motorists of online resources to help save fuel, including:

• Michigan Carpool Parking Lot Program : The Michigan Carpool Parking Lot Program (sometimes referred to as Park and Ride) was initiated during the energy crisis of the early 70s. Originally starting with 11 parking lots in 1974, the program today offers about 215 carpool parking losts with about 8,000 spaces are available throughout the state. Visit the web site to determine where they are located.
• Michigan Rideshare : Rideshare is a free, computerized carpool and vanpool matching service that assists individuals and groups with their daily work commute. There are thirteen Local Rideshare Offices (LRO) in Michigan that provide services for commuters commuting into and within their region. Check the web site for a map of existing and possible future routes. Rideshare also provides a Guaranteed Ride Home Program (GRH) to all registered carpool and Vanpool participants. The program is designed to offer fare reimbursement should an emergency or unexpected overtime arise during the workday.
• SEMCOG Rideshare : Another option for carpooling is Rideshare, a free, computerized service sponsored by SEMCOG (the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments) that matches car and vanpool partners for work commuters in the Metro Detroit area.
• MichVan : MichiVan is a program developed by the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) for commuters who chooses to ride to and from work each day in a comfortable passenger van. One person volunteers to be the Primary Driver of the van and is allowed to ride free. Riders are assessed a monthly fee. Commuter vanpools are open to the public. Check for available routes and call MichiVan for more details.
• Alternatives to Driving : Offers information about alternatives to driving such as Amtrak, Greyhound Bus Lines, Indian Trails Bus Line, and Public Transit Authorities.
• Driving Cost Calculator : To learn how much you commute costs each year and how to save by carpooling.
• Gasoline Pricing and Savings Information : Provides gasoline price and savings information on fuel efficiency; tips for buying gasoline, and how to file an electronic price gouging report.
  
• AAA Michigan also has information on ways to save fuel, listings of gas prices, and other resources.

Dont forget that your own two legs are a source of energy. Find maps for bicycle routes at:

• On-Road Bike Maps
• Off-Road Bicycle Path and Trail Information

Source: Michigan Newswire, August 18, 2005.

With gas prices rising, the Michigan Department of Transportation reminds motorists of online resources to help save fuel, including:

• Michigan Carpool Parking Lot Program : The Michigan Carpool Parking Lot Program (sometimes referred to as Park and Ride) was initiated during the energy crisis of the early 70s. Originally starting with 11 parking lots in 1974, the program today offers about 215 carpool parking losts with about 8,000 spaces are available throughout the state. Visit the web site to determine where they are located.
• Michigan Rideshare : Rideshare is a free, computerized carpool and vanpool matching service that assists individuals and groups with their daily work commute. There are thirteen Local Rideshare Offices (LRO) in Michigan that provide services for commuters commuting into and within their region. Check the web site for a map of existing and possible future routes. Rideshare also provides a Guaranteed Ride Home Program (GRH) to all registered carpool and Vanpool participants. The program is designed to offer fare reimbursement should an emergency or unexpected overtime arise during the workday.
• SEMCOG Rideshare : Another option for carpooling is Rideshare, a free, computerized service sponsored by SEMCOG (the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments) that matches car and vanpool partners for work commuters in the Metro Detroit area.
• MichVan : MichiVan is a program developed by the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) for commuters who chooses to ride to and from work each day in a comfortable passenger van. One person volunteers to be the Primary Driver of the van and is allowed to ride free. Riders are assessed a monthly fee. Commuter vanpools are open to the public. Check for available routes and call MichiVan for more details.
• Alternatives to Driving : Offers information about alternatives to driving such as Amtrak, Greyhound Bus Lines, Indian Trails Bus Line, and Public Transit Authorities.
• Driving Cost Calculator : To learn how much you commute costs each year and how to save by carpooling.
• Gasoline Pricing and Savings Information : Provides gasoline price and savings information on fuel efficiency; tips for buying gasoline, and how to file an electronic price gouging report.
  
• AAA Michigan also has information on ways to save fuel, listings of gas prices, and other resources.

Don't forget that your own two legs are a source of energy. Find maps for bicycle routes at:

• On-Road Bike Maps
• Off-Road Bicycle Path and Trail Information

Source: Michigan Newswire, August 18, 2005.

Faced with a court order and unyielding demands from the families of victims, the city of New York yesterday opened part of its archive of records from Sept. 11, releasing a digital avalanche of oral histories, dispatchers tapes and phone logs so vast that they took up 23 compact discs.

For the first time, about 200 accounts of emergency medical technicians, paramedics and their supervisors were made public, revealing new dimensions of a day and an emergency response that had already seemed familiar.

In details large and small, the accounts of the medical personnel - uniformed workers who were often overlooked in many of the days chronicles, but were as vital to the response and rescue efforts as any others - provide vivid and alarming recollections.

For the full article, see Jim Dwyer, Vast Archive Yields New View of 9/11, New York Times, August 13, 2005.

Faced with a court order and unyielding demands from the families of victims, the city of New York yesterday opened part of its archive of records from Sept. 11, releasing a digital avalanche of oral histories, dispatchers' tapes and phone logs so vast that they took up 23 compact discs.

For the first time, about 200 accounts of emergency medical technicians, paramedics and their supervisors were made public, revealing new dimensions of a day and an emergency response that had already seemed familiar.

In details large and small, the accounts of the medical personnel - uniformed workers who were often overlooked in many of the day's chronicles, but were as vital to the response and rescue efforts as any others - provide vivid and alarming recollections.

For the full article, see Jim Dwyer, Vast Archive Yields New View of 9/11, New York Times, August 13, 2005.

Newly declassified State Department documents show that government experts warned the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) in early 2003 about serious planning gaps for post-conflict public security and humanitarian assistance, well before Operation Iraqi Freedom began.

In a February 7, 2003, memo to Under Secretary of State Paula Dobriansky, three senior Department officials noted CENTCOMs focus on its primary military objectives and its reluctance to take on policing roles, but warned that a failure to address short-term public security and humanitarian assistance concerns could result in serious human rights abuses which would undermine an otherwise successful military campaign, and our reputation internationally. The memo adds We have raised these issues with top CENTCOM officials.

By contrast, a December 2003 report to Congress, also released by the State Department, offers a relatively rosy picture of the security situation, saying U.S. forces are increasingly successful in preventing planned hostile attacks; and in capturing former regime loyalists, would-be terrorists and planners; and seizing weapons caches. The document acknowledges that Challenges remain.

Since then, 1,393 U.S. military fatalities have been recorded in Iraq, including two on the day the report went to Congress.

The new documents, released this month to the National Security Archive under the Freedom of Information Act, also provide more evidence on when the Bush administration began planning for regime change in Iraq -- as early as October 2001.

The declassified records relate mainly to the so-called Future of Iraq Project, an effort, initially run by the State Department then by the Pentagon, to plan for the transition to a new regime after the overthrow of Saddam Hussein in 2003. They provide detail on each of the working groups and give the starting date for planning as October 2001.

Entire sections of a Powerpoint presentation the State Department prepared on November 1, 2002 -- including those covering What We Have Learned So Far and Implications for the Real Future of Iraq -- have been censored as still-classified information.

To examine the documents, see National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book No. 163, posted August 17, 2005.

In a case with far reaching implications for young adults and minors throughout Michigan, the ACLU of Michigan filed a federal lawsuit today challenging a state law that allows police to force pedestrians under age 21 to take a Breathalyzer test without first obtaining a search warrant.

"It's time to stop the widespread practice in this state of punishing young people who are walking down the street for refusing to submit to a breathalyzer test," said Kary Moss, executive director of the Michigan ACLU. "The Constitution is clear - no search warrant, no breathalyzer. Police cannot force pedestrians to submit to an unconstitutional search."

Michigan is the only state in the country to make it illegal for young adults and minors who are not driving to refuse a breathalyzer test when the police do not have a search warrant. Those who refuse to take tests in Michigan are guilty of a civil infraction and must pay a $100 fine. {Mich. Comp. Laws $$ 436.1703(6).}

The lawsuit has been filed on behalf of two Saginaw County women who were forced by Thomas Township police in Saginaw County to submit to breath tests although they had not been drinking, and two Mount Pleasant men forced to do the same by an interagency police task force that refers to itself as the "Party Patrol." The Party Patrol is comprised of officers from the Mount Pleasant Police Department, the Michigan State Police, Central Michigan University Police Department and the Isabella County Sheriff?s Department. In addition to these municipalities and agencies, the lawsuit also names Governor Jennifer Granholm and Colonel Tadarial Sturdivant, Director of the Michigan State Police Department, as defendants.

Source: American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan Press Release, August 4, 2005.

Newly declassified State Department documents show that government experts warned the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) in early 2003 about "serious planning gaps for post-conflict public security and humanitarian assistance," well before Operation Iraqi Freedom began.

In a February 7, 2003, memo to Under Secretary of State Paula Dobriansky, three senior Department officials noted CENTCOM's "focus on its primary military objectives and its reluctance to take on 'policing' roles," but warned that "a failure to address short-term public security and humanitarian assistance concerns could result in serious human rights abuses which would undermine an otherwise successful military campaign, and our reputation internationally." The memo adds "We have raised these issues with top CENTCOM officials."

By contrast, a December 2003 report to Congress, also released by the State Department, offers a relatively rosy picture of the security situation, saying U.S. forces are "increasingly successful in preventing planned hostile attacks; and in capturing former regime loyalists, would-be terrorists and planners; and seizing weapons caches." The document acknowledges that "Challenges remain."

Since then, 1,393 U.S. military fatalities have been recorded in Iraq, including two on the day the report went to Congress.

The new documents, released this month to the National Security Archive under the Freedom of Information Act, also provide more evidence on when the Bush administration began planning for regime change in Iraq -- as early as October 2001.

The declassified records relate mainly to the so-called "Future of Iraq Project," an effort, initially run by the State Department then by the Pentagon, to plan for the transition to a new regime after the overthrow of Saddam Hussein in 2003. They provide detail on each of the working groups and give the starting date for planning as October 2001.

Entire sections of a Powerpoint presentation the State Department prepared on November 1, 2002 -- including those covering "What We Have Learned So Far" and "Implications for the Real Future of Iraq" -- have been censored as still-classified information.

To examine the documents, see National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book No. 163, posted August 17, 2005.

Does approval of the one man-one woman marriage amendment by Michigan voters in 2004 preclude public employers from offering health care and other benefits to the same-sex partners of employees?

A small army of attorneys answered yes, no and maybe to that question Tuesday at a hearing in Ingham County on the first lawsuit to challenge the amendment. The legal struggle is likely to be lengthy.

Ingham Circuit Judge Joyce Draganchuk, who has to sort out the issue, gave no indication when she would rule on it, but said she would act as speedily as possible.

Deborah LaBelle, representing 21 same-sex couples who receive or hope to receive benefits from various state and local agencies and universities, said voters did not intend to cut off health-care benefits to children and families when they approved the amendment; they simply wanted to prevent state recognition of marriage or marriage-like arrangements between gay and lesbian couples.

Health-care benefits are a contractual arrangement that employers agree to for economic and other reasons that have nothing to do with marriage, LaBelle said.

The employees -- some of whom helped pack the courtroom to overflowing at Tuesdays hearing -- were joined by lawyers for Gov. Jennifer Granholm, who split with Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox on interpretation of the marriage amendment and has expressed a desire to offer same-sex benefits to state employees if the courts authorize them.

Assistant Attorney General Eric Restuccia, representing Cox, said the issue of health-care benefits may not have been at the heart of the campaign debate over the amendment, but that its language was clear.

The amendment said government recognition could be conferred on marriage or similar union for any purpose only to relationships between one man and one woman, he said.

For the full article, see Dawson Bell, Suit: Voters didnt mean to change health care; Side Effect of Marriage Amendment Goes to Court>, Detroit Free Press, August 17, 2005.

Related articles:

“This is our opportunity to convince the court that voters in Michigan never intended to take health care benefits away from families and children,” said Jay Kaplan, ACLU staff attorney for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Project. “Proponents of Proposal 2 consistently told voters that this amendment was limited to marriage and they believed them.” American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, Hearing Tomorrow on Domestic Parnership Benefits Lawsuit, August 16, 2005.

The ACLU of Michigan recently released “Families Under Attack: Real Stories of Michigan Families” to educate the public about the issues that LGBT families encounter on a daily basis. Dec. 2004. 16pp.

To read the legal documents and more about the plaintiffs in National Pride At Work v. Granholm, go to: http://www.aclumich.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=426

More than 350 foster parents and other adults living with foster children were convicted of crimes ranging from sexual assault to domestic violence to drug possession, according to a state audit.

The report by the Michigan Office of the Auditor General found 321 foster care providers and 32 other adults living with foster children who had criminal convictions as recent as 2003 that should have prevented the state from placing foster children with them.

In a randomly selected group of 16 foster care providers with criminal records, auditors said the state Department of Human Services could not show that caseworkers did the required background checks on 12. Among those 12, auditors found five drug convictions, five assaults, including one with a weapon, and two convictions of domestic violence.

Department director Marianne Udow said the audit only reviewed the way the state processes foster care cases, emphasizing that the 19,100 children in the system are safe.

While this audit is important, it is not looking overall at the issues of whether or not children are safe. We have independent data to show that overall, Michigan is doing a good job of keeping children safe, Udow said Tuesday in a telephone interview.

State auditors reviewed computerized criminal history information from December 1998 to December 2003 for 12,900 foster care providers and adults in licensed foster homes. The audit released Wednesday covers DHS records between Oct. 1, 2000 and May 31, 2004.

For the full article, see Wednesday, Amy F. Bailey, Audit Finds More than 320 Foster Parents with Criminal Pasts, Detroit Free Press, August 17, 2005.

Source document: Performance Audit of the Childrens Foster Care Program, Department of Human Services, August 2005, Michigan Office of the Auditor General, 60pp.

More developments: Amy F. Bailey, Foster care to get more scrutiny; State to do regular criminal checks on workers in system, Detroit Free Press, September 7, 2005.







BY AMY F. BAILEY
ASSOCIATED PRESS

Does approval of the one man-one woman marriage amendment by Michigan voters in 2004 preclude public employers from offering health care and other benefits to the same-sex partners of employees?

A small army of attorneys answered yes, no and maybe to that question Tuesday at a hearing in Ingham County on the first lawsuit to challenge the amendment. The legal struggle is likely to be lengthy.

Ingham Circuit Judge Joyce Draganchuk, who has to sort out the issue, gave no indication when she would rule on it, but said she would act as speedily as possible.

Deborah LaBelle, representing 21 same-sex couples who receive or hope to receive benefits from various state and local agencies and universities, said voters did not intend to cut off health-care benefits to children and families when they approved the amendment; they simply wanted to prevent state recognition of marriage or marriage-like arrangements between gay and lesbian couples.

Health-care benefits are a contractual arrangement that employers agree to for economic and other reasons that have nothing to do with marriage, LaBelle said.

The employees -- some of whom helped pack the courtroom to overflowing at Tuesday's hearing -- were joined by lawyers for Gov. Jennifer Granholm, who split with Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox on interpretation of the marriage amendment and has expressed a desire to offer same-sex benefits to state employees if the courts authorize them.

Assistant Attorney General Eric Restuccia, representing Cox, said the issue of health-care benefits may not have been at the heart of the campaign debate over the amendment, but that its language was clear.

The amendment said government recognition could be conferred on marriage "or similar union for any purpose" only to relationships between one man and one woman, he said.

For the full article, see Dawson Bell, "Suit: Voters didn't mean to change health care; Side Effect of Marriage Amendment Goes to Court">, Detroit Free Press, August 17, 2005.

Related articles:

“This is our opportunity to convince the court that voters in Michigan never intended to take health care benefits away from families and children,” said Jay Kaplan, ACLU staff attorney for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Project. “Proponents of Proposal 2 consistently told voters that this amendment was limited to marriage and they believed them.” American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, Hearing Tomorrow on Domestic Parnership Benefits Lawsuit, August 16, 2005.

The ACLU of Michigan recently released “Families Under Attack: Real Stories of Michigan Families” to educate the public about the issues that LGBT families encounter on a daily basis. Dec. 2004. 16pp.

To read the legal documents and more about the plaintiffs in National Pride At Work v. Granholm, go to: http://www.aclumich.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=426

More than 350 foster parents and other adults living with foster children were convicted of crimes ranging from sexual assault to domestic violence to drug possession, according to a state audit.

The report by the Michigan Office of the Auditor General found 321 foster care providers and 32 other adults living with foster children who had criminal convictions as recent as 2003 that should have prevented the state from placing foster children with them.

In a randomly selected group of 16 foster care providers with criminal records, auditors said the state Department of Human Services could not show that caseworkers did the required background checks on 12. Among those 12, auditors found five drug convictions, five assaults, including one with a weapon, and two convictions of domestic violence.

Department director Marianne Udow said the audit only reviewed the way the state processes foster care cases, emphasizing that the 19,100 children in the system are safe.

"While this audit is important, it is not looking overall at the issues of whether or not children are safe. We have independent data to show that overall, Michigan is doing a good job of keeping children safe," Udow said Tuesday in a telephone interview.

State auditors reviewed computerized criminal history information from December 1998 to December 2003 for 12,900 foster care providers and adults in licensed foster homes. The audit released Wednesday covers DHS records between Oct. 1, 2000 and May 31, 2004.

For the full article, see Wednesday, Amy F. Bailey, "Audit Finds More than 320 Foster Parents with Criminal Pasts", Detroit Free Press, August 17, 2005.

Source document: Performance Audit of the Children's Foster Care Program, Department of Human Services, August 2005, Michigan Office of the Auditor General, 60pp.

More developments: Amy F. Bailey, "Foster care to get more scrutiny; State to do regular criminal checks on workers in system", Detroit Free Press, September 7, 2005.
BY AMY F. BAILEY
ASSOCIATED PRESS

The Michigan Department of Community Health encourages smokers to call the Michigan QuitLine at 1-800-480-7848 for help and information on how to successfully quit smoking. In Michigan, there were 14,741 premature deaths due to smoking and about 2,400 deaths due to secondhand smoke in 2004.

The death of Peter Jennings has focused the spotlight on the devastating consequences of tobacco use, said Michigan Surgeon General Dr. Kimberlydawn Wisdom. Tobacco use affects us all; which is why we will continue our efforts to support tobacco cessation and encourage all smokers to quit.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, smoking kills an estimated 438,000 Americans each year. On average, smoking reduces adult life expectancy by approximately 14 years. Tobacco use costs Michigan more than $6.8 billion a year in lost productivity and smoking related costs.

“There is no safe cigarette, whether it is called ‘light,’ ultra-light,’ or any other name,” Wisdom said. “The science is clear: the only way to avoid the health hazards of smoking is to quit completely, never start smoking, and avoid exposure to secondhand smoke.”

For free help with quitting, call the Michigan QuitLine at 1-800-480-7848. For more information about cessation materials or prevention programs, call the Michigan Health Promotions Clearinghouse at 1-800-537-5666 or go to http://www.michigan.gov/tobacco.

Related materials are also available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office on Smoking and Health, at 1-800-CDC-1311 or online at http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco.

Source: Michigan Newswire, August 11, 2005.

Michigan has today (August 10) filed a motion to join fourteen other states in challenging a recent federal rule that fails to protect Michigan’s citizens from the dangers posed by mercury emissions.

Under the rule being implemented by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, each state is allocated a pollution limit with caps being placed on emissions from power plants. Plants exceeding their cap, however, can simply purchase pollution credits from those emitting less mercury than their cap allows.

“The federal rule falls far short of the measures needed to protect human health and the environment,” said Department of Environmental Quality Director Steven E. Chester. “Regional reductions are needed to protect Michigan’s citizens and our water bodies from mercury pollution.”

Michigan has filed a motion to intervene with the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, DC, asking to join the other states seeking a review of the EPA plan.

Coal-fired power plants are the largest source of mercury in the United States. Mercury from power plants settles in waterways and accumulates in fish. The Michigan Department of Community Health has a special health advisory in place for all inland lakes in Michigan due to mercury contamination. Mercury can cause neurological and developmental troubles, particularly in fetuses.

The federal rule calls for a 21 percent reduction in overall mercury emissions by 2010, and in certain cases, allows for states to increase their emissions. The rule would require a 66% reduction of mercury from Michigan power plants by 2018; however, this is a “soft cap” that the cap-and-trade program proposed by the EPA could allow utilities to continue to emit excess mercury well beyond 2020.

The Mercury Electric Utility Workgroup recently released their final report containing recommendations for Mercury reductions from coal-fired power plants in Michigan. The workgroup was formed by the DEQ at the request of Governor Jennifer M. Granholm to study the issue of Mercury emissions in our state. Director Chester is now reviewing the final report and will soon share his recommendations with Governor Granholm.

Michigan joins Wisconsin, Illinois, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, New York, Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Delaware, New Jersey, New Mexico, and California in challenging the rule.

Source: Michigan Newswire, August 10, 2005.

Related articles and reports:

Among the Great Lakes states, Michigan is the Great Lakes State - as it proudly calls itself. To live up to its own billing, Michigan must be in the forefront of protecting its lakes, great and small. Even if it means taking the federal government to court. Last week, Michigan became the 15th state to challenge the Environmental Protection Agencys new standards of mercury pollution as too weak. Michigan was right to join the lawsuit... Mercury: Michigan is right to join lawsuit opposing EPA regs, Lansing State Journal, August 16, 2005.

John Flesher, State joins challenge to federal mercury rule, Detroit Free Press, August 11, 2005.

Mercury that deposits out of the smoke causes harm as it works its way through the food chain in inland lakes. Michigan was among the leaders in spotting this problem and issuing warnings against eating too much fish from its lakes -- not that its done a sterling job of communicating the danger, however. To the states shame, the only place to find the advisory in this cash-strapped era is online at http://www.michigan.gov/mdch (click on MDCH Brochures in the quick links at the right). Methylmercury, the form mercury takes in the food chain, is a neurotoxin that can affect the brain and nervous system. Most at risk are children whose mothers enter pregnancy with high mercury levels, as well as children who consume too much of certain kinds of fish. In addition to those in inland lakes, some varieties of ocean fish, including swordfish and even some white tuna, have tested high in mercury. An excerpt from : MERCURY SUIT: State properly joins quest for tougher rule, Detroit Free Press, August 15, 2005.

2004 Michigan Family Fish Consumption Guide, MDCH Environmental and Occupational Epidemiology Division, 2004, 25pp.

The National Archives (NARA) has just released about 500 additional pages of records relating to Supreme Court nominee John Roberts tenure as Special Assistant to the Attorney General in 1981-82. The papers consist of notes, memoranda and other materials written by, or sent to John Roberts. NARA released the documents, many of which had previously been classified, in response to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests under the provisions of the Federal Records Act and as part of an ongoing process to review and make available materials found in the holdings of the National Archives that relate to Judge John Roberts.

The Michigan Department of Community Health encourages smokers to call the Michigan QuitLine at 1-800-480-7848 for help and information on how to successfully quit smoking. In Michigan, there were 14,741 premature deaths due to smoking and about 2,400 deaths due to secondhand smoke in 2004.

"The death of Peter Jennings has focused the spotlight on the devastating consequences of tobacco use," said Michigan Surgeon General Dr. Kimberlydawn Wisdom. "Tobacco use affects us all; which is why we will continue our efforts to support tobacco cessation and encourage all smokers to quit."

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, smoking kills an estimated 438,000 Americans each year. On average, smoking reduces adult life expectancy by approximately 14 years. Tobacco use costs Michigan more than $6.8 billion a year in lost productivity and smoking related costs.

“There is no safe cigarette, whether it is called ‘light,’ ultra-light,’ or any other name,” Wisdom said. “The science is clear: the only way to avoid the health hazards of smoking is to quit completely, never start smoking, and avoid exposure to secondhand smoke.”

For free help with quitting, call the Michigan QuitLine at 1-800-480-7848. For more information about cessation materials or prevention programs, call the Michigan Health Promotions Clearinghouse at 1-800-537-5666 or go to http://www.michigan.gov/tobacco.

Related materials are also available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office on Smoking and Health, at 1-800-CDC-1311 or online at http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco.

Source: Michigan Newswire, August 11, 2005.

I received the following message from a CSA rep. Although the info about the content upload was not new, the statement about the thesaurus is. I guess we will have to watch this one closely.
Judy Walker
UNC Charlotte
Dear CSA Customers,
The long-awaited update for the ERIC database was received from the ERIC contractor last week and the 6,788 records were added to the database on August 12, 2005. The database is now up-to-date and we anticipate receiving and loading subsequent updates during the first week of each month. A new edition of the thesaurus is expected in early October and this will be made available online as soon as we receive it.
Amy Mather
Senior Project Specialist, Web Development CSA

The National Archives (NARA) has just released about 500 additional pages of records relating to Supreme Court nominee John Roberts' tenure as Special Assistant to the Attorney General in 1981-82. The papers consist of notes, memoranda and other materials written by, or sent to John Roberts. NARA released the documents, many of which had previously been classified, in response to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests under the provisions of the Federal Records Act and as part of an ongoing process to review and make available materials found in the holdings of the National Archives that relate to Judge John Roberts.

Michigan has today (August 10) filed a motion to join fourteen other states in challenging a recent federal rule that fails to protect Michigan’s citizens from the dangers posed by mercury emissions.

Under the rule being implemented by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, each state is allocated a pollution limit with caps being placed on emissions from power plants. Plants exceeding their cap, however, can simply purchase pollution credits from those emitting less mercury than their cap allows.

“The federal rule falls far short of the measures needed to protect human health and the environment,” said Department of Environmental Quality Director Steven E. Chester. “Regional reductions are needed to protect Michigan’s citizens and our water bodies from mercury pollution.”

Michigan has filed a motion to intervene with the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, DC, asking to join the other states seeking a review of the EPA plan.

Coal-fired power plants are the largest source of mercury in the United States. Mercury from power plants settles in waterways and accumulates in fish. The Michigan Department of Community Health has a special health advisory in place for all inland lakes in Michigan due to mercury contamination. Mercury can cause neurological and developmental troubles, particularly in fetuses.

The federal rule calls for a 21 percent reduction in overall mercury emissions by 2010, and in certain cases, allows for states to increase their emissions. The rule would require a 66% reduction of mercury from Michigan power plants by 2018; however, this is a “soft cap” that the cap-and-trade program proposed by the EPA could allow utilities to continue to emit excess mercury well beyond 2020.

The Mercury Electric Utility Workgroup recently released their final report containing recommendations for Mercury reductions from coal-fired power plants in Michigan. The workgroup was formed by the DEQ at the request of Governor Jennifer M. Granholm to study the issue of Mercury emissions in our state. Director Chester is now reviewing the final report and will soon share his recommendations with Governor Granholm.

Michigan joins Wisconsin, Illinois, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, New York, Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Delaware, New Jersey, New Mexico, and California in challenging the rule.

Source: Michigan Newswire, August 10, 2005.

Related articles and reports:

Among the Great Lakes states, Michigan is the Great Lakes State - as it proudly calls itself. To live up to its own billing, Michigan must be in the forefront of protecting its lakes, great and small. Even if it means taking the federal government to court. Last week, Michigan became the 15th state to challenge the Environmental Protection Agency's new standards of mercury pollution as too weak. Michigan was right to join the lawsuit... "Mercury: Michigan is right to join lawsuit opposing EPA regs", Lansing State Journal, August 16, 2005.

John Flesher, "State joins challenge to federal mercury rule", Detroit Free Press, August 11, 2005.

Mercury that deposits out of the smoke causes harm as it works its way through the food chain in inland lakes. Michigan was among the leaders in spotting this problem and issuing warnings against eating too much fish from its lakes -- not that it's done a sterling job of communicating the danger, however. To the state's shame, the only place to find the advisory in this cash-strapped era is online at http://www.michigan.gov/mdch (click on MDCH Brochures in the quick links at the right). Methylmercury, the form mercury takes in the food chain, is a neurotoxin that can affect the brain and nervous system. Most at risk are children whose mothers enter pregnancy with high mercury levels, as well as children who consume too much of certain kinds of fish. In addition to those in inland lakes, some varieties of ocean fish, including swordfish and even some white tuna, have tested high in mercury. An excerpt from : "MERCURY SUIT: State properly joins quest for tougher rule", Detroit Free Press, August 15, 2005.

2004 Michigan Family Fish Consumption Guide, MDCH Environmental and Occupational Epidemiology Division, 2004, 25pp.

ERIC is pleased to announce that the ERIC database is now being updated with new 2004 and 2005 education-related materials. ERIC has added 5,400 new bibliographic journal records (320 journal articles are available in full-text), and an additional 1,100 free full-text documents from publishers and organizations that signed new authorization agreements with ERIC this year. More agreements are in progress with previous providers to ERIC and newly identified sources of high-quality education literature. The ERIC database is updated weekly with newly acquired materials.

The ERIC updates add more than 200 comprehensively indexed journals to the database, including titles from publishers such as Blackwell, Taylor & Francis, Baywood, and other distinguished publishers of education
journals. Most of the newly added articles are peer reviewed. Peer-reviewed materials can now be easily identified by checking the new Peer Reviewed field in the ERIC Search Results.

In addition to indexed journals, ERIC is recognized for its wealth of grey literature resources that are not included in other major databases. Grey literature orginates from a wide variety of contributing organizations, including the U.S. Department of Education, federal, state, and private entities including: the Government Accounting Office, the Education Commission for the States, the Council of Chief State School Officers, Educational Testing Service, the Success for All Foundation, and the Southern Regional Education Board, among others. Submitted materials include research reports, conference papers, dissertations, literature reviews, and other documents in education.

Visit the News section of the ERIC Web site at http://www.eric.ed.gov for quick links to information on new content, lists of ERIC journals, and other recent enhancements. Notable new features include improvements to the
ERIC search function, and Journals Indexed in ERIC. In addition to these features, more enhancements are under development and will be announced this summer in the ERIC Web sites News section.

Source: Aimee Quinn, Govdoc-L, August 12, 2005.

ERIC is pleased to announce that the ERIC database is now being updated with new 2004 and 2005 education-related materials. ERIC has added 5,400 new bibliographic journal records (320 journal articles are available in full-text), and an additional 1,100 free full-text documents from publishers and organizations that signed new authorization agreements with ERIC this year. More agreements are in progress with previous providers to ERIC and newly identified sources of high-quality education literature. The ERIC database is updated weekly with newly acquired materials.

The ERIC updates add more than 200 comprehensively indexed journals to the database, including titles from publishers such as Blackwell, Taylor & Francis, Baywood, and other distinguished publishers of education
journals. Most of the newly added articles are peer reviewed. Peer-reviewed materials can now be easily identified by checking the new "Peer Reviewed" field in the ERIC Search Results.

In addition to indexed journals, ERIC is recognized for its wealth of grey literature resources that are not included in other major databases. Grey literature orginates from a wide variety of contributing organizations, including the U.S. Department of Education, federal, state, and private entities including: the Government Accounting Office, the Education Commission for the States, the Council of Chief State School Officers, Educational Testing Service, the Success for All Foundation, and the Southern Regional Education Board, among others. Submitted materials include research reports, conference papers, dissertations, literature reviews, and other documents in education.

Visit the News section of the ERIC Web site at http://www.eric.ed.gov for quick links to information on new content, lists of ERIC journals, and other recent enhancements. Notable new features include improvements to the
ERIC search function, and Journals Indexed in ERIC. In addition to these features, more enhancements are under development and will be announced this summer in the ERIC Web site's News section.

Source: Aimee Quinn, Govdoc-L, August 12, 2005.

Better late than never!
Steven Aftergood of the Federation of American Scientists has posted an article on "The Age of Missing Information : The Bush Administration's Campaign Against Openness" in the March 17, 2005 issue of Slate.

The government does a remarkable job of counting the number of national security secrets it generates each year. Since President George W. Bush entered office, the pace of classification activity has increased by 75 percent, said William Leonard in March 2 congressional testimony. His Information Security Oversight Office oversees the classification system and recorded a rise from 9 million classification actions in fiscal year 2001 to 16 million in fiscal year 2004.

Yet an even more aggressive form of government information control has gone unenumerated and often unrecognized in the Bush era, as government agencies have restricted access to unclassified information in libraries, archives, Web sites, and official databases. Once freely available, a growing number of these sources are now barred to the public as "sensitive but unclassified" or "for official use only." Less of a goal-directed policy than a bureaucratic reflex, the widespread clampdown on formerly public information reflects a largely inarticulate concern about "security." It also accords neatly with the Bush administration's preference for unchecked executive authority.

No comprehensive catalog of deleted information exists, which is part of the problem. What follows is a representative selection of categories of data that have been withdrawn from public access in the Bush years, with reflections on what they mean.

Examples cited include:

• Department of Defense Telephone Directory
• Los Alamos Technical Report Library
• Historical Records at the National Archives
• "Orbital Elements" and Launch Dates
• The Military Retreat from the Web
• Energy Department Intelligence Budget
• Aeronautical Maps and Data

The information blackout may serve the short-term interests of the present administration, which is allergic to criticism or even to probing questions. But it is a disservice to the country. Worst of all, the Bush administration's information policies are conditioning Americans to lower their expectations of government accountability and to doubt their own ability to challenge their political leaders.

In summary, Aftergood states, "Information is the oxygen of democracy. Day by day, the Bush administration is cutting off the supply. "

Source: Denise Johnson, Bradley University, Peoria, IL 61625. Posted on Govdoc-L, March 17, 2005.

Better late than never!

Steven Aftergood of the Federation of American Scientists has posted an article on The Age of Missing Information : The Bush Administrations Campaign Against Openness in the March 17, 2005 issue of Slate.

The government does a remarkable job of counting the number of national security secrets it generates each year. Since President George W. Bush entered office, the pace of classification activity has increased by 75 percent, said William Leonard in March 2 congressional testimony. His Information Security Oversight Office oversees the classification system and recorded a rise from 9 million classification actions in fiscal year 2001 to 16 million in fiscal year 2004.

Yet an even more aggressive form of government information control has gone unenumerated and often unrecognized in the Bush era, as government agencies have restricted access to unclassified information in libraries, archives, Web sites, and official databases. Once freely available, a growing number of these sources are now barred to the public as sensitive but unclassified or for official use only. Less of a goal-directed policy than a bureaucratic reflex, the widespread clampdown on formerly public information reflects a largely inarticulate concern about security. It also accords neatly with the Bush administrations preference for unchecked executive authority.

No comprehensive catalog of deleted information exists, which is part of the problem. What follows is a representative selection of categories of data that have been withdrawn from public access in the Bush years, with reflections on what they mean.

Examples cited include:

• Department of Defense Telephone Directory
• Los Alamos Technical Report Library
• Historical Records at the National Archives
• Orbital Elements and Launch Dates
• The Military Retreat from the Web
• Energy Department Intelligence Budget
• Aeronautical Maps and Data

The information blackout may serve the short-term interests of the present administration, which is allergic to criticism or even to probing questions. But it is a disservice to the country. Worst of all, the Bush administrations information policies are conditioning Americans to lower their expectations of government accountability and to doubt their own ability to challenge their political leaders.

In summary, Aftergood states, Information is the oxygen of democracy. Day by day, the Bush administration is cutting off the supply.

Source: Denise Johnson, Bradley University, Peoria, IL 61625. Posted on Govdoc-L, March 17, 2005.

Of all the agonies of the ongoing base-closure process, none has prompted louder howls than the Air Forces proposal to strip 23 Air National Guard units of their planes.

Three states are filing suit (Illinois, Oregon, and Pennsylvania), and an internal memo by the commission counsel shows that the independent Base Realignment and Closure Commission, which vets the Pentagons recommendations, has seriously considered rejecting some or all of the Air Guard plan.

So on Sept. 8, when the commission presents its final list, many now-anxious communities could end up breathing a sigh of relief. But they shouldnt kid themselves.

Regardless of what happens in September, some Air National Guard units that fly high today will be gone or grounded in the next 10 years. If BRAC does not pick the victims, someone else will have to later, because the Air Force simply does not have enough airplanes to go around.

Source: Sydney J. Freedburg Jr., National Journal, via GovExec.com Daily Briefing, August 12, 2005.

CSC released the new ERIC content to vendors in the end of July. There were some problems with the original feeds but vendors have been working out the kinks. As of 8/15/05 Cambridge Scientific Abstract is showing new content. Beth Close, from EBSCO indicates that they should have it up shortly. Please, play with the content and let them know if you find any problems.
Judy Walker, Chair
EBSS ERIC User Group

Of all the agonies of the ongoing base-closure process, none has prompted louder howls than the Air Force's proposal to strip 23 Air National Guard units of their planes.

Three states are filing suit (Illinois, Oregon, and Pennsylvania), and an internal memo by the commission counsel shows that the independent Base Realignment and Closure Commission, which vets the Pentagon's recommendations, has seriously considered rejecting some or all of the Air Guard plan.

So on Sept. 8, when the commission presents its final list, many now-anxious communities could end up breathing a sigh of relief. But they shouldn't kid themselves.

Regardless of what happens in September, some Air National Guard units that fly high today will be gone or grounded in the next 10 years. If BRAC does not pick the victims, someone else will have to later, because the Air Force simply does not have enough airplanes to go around.

Source: Sydney J. Freedburg Jr., National Journal, via GovExec.com Daily Briefing, August 12, 2005.

The sight of crossing guards and bright yellow buses mean the “dog days of summer” and the traditional summer break have come to a close — our nation’s schools have reopened! This edition of Facts for Features about Back to School highlights the many interesting statistics evolving from students and teachers returning to the classrooms.

A few examples include:

74.9 million : The number of people enrolled in school throughout the country — from nursery school to college. That amounts to more than one-fourth of the U.S. population age 3 and older.

$6.0 billion : The amount of money spent at family clothing stores in August 2004. Only in October, November and December — the holiday shopping season — were sales higher. Similarly, bookstore sales in August 2004 totaled $2.0 billion, an amount equaled in 2004 only by sales in December and January. (The dollar volume estimates have not been adjusted for seasonal variations, holiday or trading day differences or price changes.)

9.9 million : Number of school-age children (5 to 17) who speak a language other than English at home. These children make up nearly 1-in-5 in this age group. Most of them (7.0 million) speak Spanish at home.

$74,602 : Average annual earnings of workers age 18 and over with an advanced degree. This compares with $51,206 a year for those with bachelor’s degrees, $27,915 for those with a high school diploma only and $18,734 for those without a high school diploma.

The sight of crossing guards and bright yellow buses mean the “dog days of summer” and the traditional summer break have come to a close — our nation’s schools have reopened! This edition of Facts for Features about Back to School highlights the many interesting statistics evolving from students and teachers returning to the classrooms.

A few examples include:

74.9 million : The number of people enrolled in school throughout the country — from nursery school to college. That amounts to more than one-fourth of the U.S. population age 3 and older.

$6.0 billion : The amount of money spent at family clothing stores in August 2004. Only in October, November and December — the holiday shopping season — were sales higher. Similarly, bookstore sales in August 2004 totaled $2.0 billion, an amount equaled in 2004 only by sales in December and January. (The dollar volume estimates have not been adjusted for seasonal variations, holiday or trading day differences or price changes.)

9.9 million : Number of school-age children (5 to 17) who speak a language other than English at home. These children make up nearly 1-in-5 in this age group. Most of them (7.0 million) speak Spanish at home.

$74,602 : Average annual earnings of workers age 18 and over with an advanced degree. This compares with $51,206 a year for those with bachelor’s degrees, $27,915 for those with a high school diploma only and $18,734 for those without a high school diploma.

Search and analyze the published opinions of Supreme Court nominee, Judge John G Roberts via askSam. On July 19, 2005, Judge John G. Roberts was nominated by President George W. Bush to fill the vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court left by the retirement of Associate Justice Sandra Day OConnor. In two years on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, Judge Roberts has helped decide about 120 cases and written 49 published opinions. Source: askSam via ResourceShelf, August 5, 2005.

On a related note, the Michigan eLibrary has posted the 67-page Statement of Judge John G. Roberts Jr. to the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary. According to Debbie Gallagher who posted this document, the Committee says that it doesnt intend to post the statement on the Web. Hats off to the MeL for doing the Committees work for it and keeping us informed. Item spotted in the Memory Blog.

And heres a link to a biography prepared by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Legal Policy, when Roberts was nominated for the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.

Eliot Christian is the person behind the Global Information Locator Service (GILS). He works for USGS and conceived of the system, which responds to searches that reference information by title, subject, author, date and location. How? Government employees are to assign those five labels to each piece of public government information, thereby systematically indexing and filing all public government data. The sytem is based on ISO standards, and has been in place for ten years, though it is considered litte used.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology and General Services Administration are no longer on board. The argument goes that modern search tools have surpassed such a vision.

Popular commercial search engines such as Google, Yahoo and MSN Search might soon replace a 10-year-old government search standard intended as an electronic card catalog of public government information.

Members of the library community, who accepted GILS when others didnt, say they are upset that NIST is considering dropping GILS as a mandatory standard and that GSA is excluding it from the FirstGov search service.

Patrice McDermott, deputy director of the American Library Associations Office of Government Relations, said the community is concerned that the W3C standard proposed for FirstGov is not a true ISO standard.

It would not allow the public to be confident that they were getting access to all government information with a single search, she said.

FirstGov developers will work with librarians so their systems can communicate with the portals search service, Pizzella said. Its a group we are very concerned about, she said. We are going to make sure that we stay interoperable for them.

Source: All Points Blog, August 15, 2005.

Librarians like maps and know patrons want to look at them. So, new tech, like The National Map, makes them nervous.

How will it be archived? How will patrons print out a whole county? Those are questions USGS has yet to address, though it acknowledges these are important questions. Also noted in an article in FCW is GIS jargon. “Another complication is that many people dont understand geographic information system jargon, which features monstrosities such as digital orthophoto quadrangles and digital raster graphics.”

Source: All Points Blog, August 2, 2005.

Librarians like maps and know patrons want to look at them. So, new tech, like The National Map, makes them nervous.

How will it be archived? How will patrons print out a whole county? Those are questions USGS has yet to address, though it acknowledges these are important questions. Also noted in an article in FCW is GIS jargon. “Another complication is that many people don't understand geographic information system jargon, which features monstrosities such as digital orthophoto quadrangles and digital raster graphics.”

Source: All Points Blog, August 2, 2005.

Eliot Christian is the person behind the Global Information Locator Service (GILS). He works for USGS and conceived of the system, which responds to searches that reference information by title, subject, author, date and location. How? Government employees are to assign those five labels to each piece of public government information, thereby systematically indexing and filing all public government data. The sytem is based on ISO standards, and has been in place for ten years, though it is considered "litte used."

The National Institute of Standards and Technology and General Services Administration are no longer on board. The argument goes that modern search tools have surpassed such a vision.

Popular commercial search engines such as Google, Yahoo and MSN Search might soon replace a 10-year-old government search standard intended as an electronic card catalog of public government information.

Members of the library community, who accepted GILS when others didn't, say they are upset that NIST is considering dropping GILS as a mandatory standard and that GSA is excluding it from the FirstGov search service.

Patrice McDermott, deputy director of the American Library Association's Office of Government Relations, said the community is concerned that the W3C standard proposed for FirstGov is not a true ISO standard.

"It would not allow the public to be confident that they were getting access to all government information with a single search," she said.

FirstGov developers will work with librarians so their systems can communicate with the portal's search service, Pizzella said. "It's a group we are very concerned about," she said. "We are going to make sure that we stay interoperable for them."

Source: All Points Blog, August 15, 2005.

In 1968, Congress authorized President Lyndon B. Johnson to proclaim a week in September as National Hispanic Heritage Week. The observance was expanded in 1988 to a monthlong celebration (Sept. 15-Oct. 15). During this month, America celebrates the culture and traditions of U.S. residents who trace their roots to Spain, Mexico and the Spanish-speaking nations of Central America, South America and the Caribbean. Sept. 15 was chosen as the starting point for the celebration because it is the anniversary of independence of five Latin American countries: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. In addition, Mexico and Chile celebrate their independence days on Sept. 16 and Sept. 18, respectively.

Facts for Features about America's Hispanic Heritage Month 2005 (Sept. 15-Oct. 15), a U.S. Census Bureau News Release, July 29, 2005, pulls together statistical material for the nation's reporters.

A few of the facts reported include:
41.3 million : The estimated Hispanic population of the United States as of July 1, 2004, making people of Hispanic origin the nation’s largest race or ethnic minority. Hispanics constitute 14 percent of the nation’s total population. (This estimate does not include the 3.9 million residents of Puerto Rico.)
and

49% : The percentage of the Hispanic-origin population that lives in California and Texas. California is home to 12.2 million Hispanics, and Texas is home to 7.6 million.
[Note: Texas has now joined Hawaii, New Mexico and California as a majority-minority state, along with the District of Columbia, the U.S. Census Bureau reported today. Five states — Maryland, Mississippi, Georgia, New York and Arizona — are next in line with minority populations of about 40 percent. Source: Census Bureau News Release, August 11, 2005.]

11 : The number of states with at least half a million Hispanic residents. These states are: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Texas and Washington. Three more states — Massachusetts, Nevada and North Carolina — fall just short of this threshold.

30 million : The number of U.S. residents age 5 and older who speak Spanish at home. Spanish speakers constitute a ratio of more than 1-in-10 U.S. household residents. Among all those who speak Spanish at home, more than one-half say they speak English “very well.”

"Search and analyze the published opinions of Supreme Court nominee, Judge John G Roberts via askSam. On July 19, 2005, Judge John G. Roberts was nominated by President George W. Bush to fill the vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court left by the retirement of Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. In two years on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, Judge Roberts has helped decide about 120 cases and written 49 published opinions." Source: askSam via ResourceShelf, August 5, 2005.

On a related note, the Michigan eLibrary has posted the 67-page Statement of Judge John G. Roberts Jr. to the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary. According to Debbie Gallagher who posted this document, the Committee says that it doesn't intend to post the statement on the Web. Hats off to the MeL for doing the Committee's work for it and keeping us informed. Item spotted in the Memory Blog.

And here's a link to a biography prepared by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Legal Policy, when Roberts was nominated for the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.

Theres a home movie of Marilyn Monroe swinging a golf club. And Michael Jordan playing basketball _ in junior high. Theres the score of an operetta by John Philip Sousa, the march king.

College students who spent their summer combing through old copyright records have discovered a trove of historical oddities at the Library of Congress, home of the nations copyright office.

The finds wont be shown publicly right away. Some await clearance from the copyright-holders before they can be exhibited.

Besides the 1954 movie of Monroe at a driving range and video of a 13-year-old Jordan shooting hoops, the curiosities include a pair of photos of the 1901 race between a Detroit mechanic named Henry Ford and successful auto builder and racer Alexander Winton. Fords surprise victory, in his only race, generated the financing to launch Ford Motor Co.

Another copyrighted photo shows a stained fragment of a program from Fords Theater for April 14, 1865.

It was researched by one of the special interns selected for the project, Mary Brazelton, a Harvard University student from Washingtons Maryland suburbs. She found that one member of the plays audience that night _ T.D. Bancroft _ saved the fragment, and later wrote that the dark stains were blood that dripped from President Lincoln as he was carried out of the theater after being shot by John Wilkes Booth.

Bancroft wrote about his treasure in a pamphlet issued to celebrate Lincolns 100th birthday, preserved among the librarys rare books. He donated the stained fragment to the Kansas Historical Society, and took the precaution of copyrighting a photo of it.

Source: Carl Hartman, Oddities Turn Up at Copyright Office, WTOP News, August 12, 2005l

There's a home movie of Marilyn Monroe swinging a golf club. And Michael Jordan playing basketball _ in junior high. There's the score of an operetta by John Philip Sousa, the march king.

College students who spent their summer combing through old copyright records have discovered a trove of historical oddities at the Library of Congress, home of the nation's copyright office.

The finds won't be shown publicly right away. Some await clearance from the copyright-holders before they can be exhibited.

Besides the 1954 movie of Monroe at a driving range and video of a 13-year-old Jordan shooting hoops, the curiosities include a pair of photos of the 1901 race between a Detroit mechanic named Henry Ford and successful auto builder and racer Alexander Winton. Ford's surprise victory, in his only race, generated the financing to launch Ford Motor Co.

Another copyrighted photo shows a stained fragment of a program from Ford's Theater for April 14, 1865.

It was researched by one of the special interns selected for the project, Mary Brazelton, a Harvard University student from Washington's Maryland suburbs. She found that one member of the play's audience that night _ T.D. Bancroft _ saved the fragment, and later wrote that the dark stains were blood that dripped from President Lincoln as he was carried out of the theater after being shot by John Wilkes Booth.

Bancroft wrote about his treasure in a pamphlet issued to celebrate Lincoln's 100th birthday, preserved among the library's rare books. He donated the stained fragment to the Kansas Historical Society, and took the precaution of copyrighting a photo of it.

Source: Carl Hartman, "Oddities Turn Up at Copyright Office", WTOP News, August 12, 2005l

Keyholing is the practice of individuals launching and storing boats on lakefront property without owning or having rights to the property. Waterfront owners, who usually pay higher taxes because of their propertys location, are annoyed by the practice and are seeking redress throug legislation.

State Rep. John Stakoe, R-Highland Township, is taking on the issue with House Bill 4576, regarding public roadways that end at the water and what activities are allowed there.

The bill defines public access as being ingress and egress only, not including boat hoists or construction of docks - unless to aid in public access authorized by a local government entity. It allows no overnight mooring or docking of unoccupied boats.

State Rep. Joel Sheltrown, D-West Branch, has drafted an amendment to the legislation which would enable local municipalities to create ordinances that regulate, but dont eliminate the road-end activities. Without local control, the bill would privatize all inland lakes, rivers, and streams in Michigan.

For more information, consult the Michigan Legislature web site and type in 4576 under bill number. It will provide a legislative analysis plus a list of supporters and opponents of this legislation.

Source: Natalie Lombardo, Oakland Press, August 14, 2005.

Keyholing is the practice of individuals launching and storing boats on lakefront property without owning or having rights to the property. Waterfront owners, who usually pay higher taxes because of their property's location, are annoyed by the practice and are seeking redress throug legislation.

State Rep. John Stakoe, R-Highland Township, is taking on the issue with House Bill 4576, regarding public roadways that end at the water and what activities are allowed there.

The bill defines public access as being ingress and egress only, not including boat hoists or construction of docks - unless to aid in public access authorized by a local government entity. It allows no overnight mooring or docking of unoccupied boats.

State Rep. Joel Sheltrown, D-West Branch, has drafted an amendment to the legislation which would enable local municipalities to create ordinances that regulate, but don't eliminate the road-end activities. Without local control, the bill would privatize all inland lakes, rivers, and streams in Michigan.

For more information, consult the Michigan Legislature web site and type in 4576 under bill number. It will provide a legislative analysis plus a list of supporters and opponents of this legislation.

Source: Natalie Lombardo, Oakland Press, August 14, 2005.

The space shuttle Discovery landed safely today (August 9) at Edwards Air Force Base in California, ending a 14-day mission. The flight was the first for the space shuttle program since the 2003 breakup of space shuttle Columbia upon re-entry. Thunderstorms prevented Discovery from returning to its home base in Cape Canaveral, Fla.

During its two weeks in space, the crew demonstrated new methods to inspect and repair the shuttle in orbit. It also delivered supplies, and performed maintenance on the International Space Station. A number of these tasks were conducted during three spacewalks.

For more information, the National Academies offers a collection of reports on NASA's space shuttle program and the planning, operations, and research activities of the International Space Station.

For even more information, see

• Return to Flight web page;
• History of the Space Shuttle web page; and
• NASA Human Space Flight web page.

The space shuttle Discovery landed safely today (August 9) at Edwards Air Force Base in California, ending a 14-day mission. The flight was the first for the space shuttle program since the 2003 breakup of space shuttle Columbia upon re-entry. Thunderstorms prevented Discovery from returning to its home base in Cape Canaveral, Fla.

During its two weeks in space, the crew demonstrated new methods to inspect and repair the shuttle in orbit. It also delivered supplies, and performed maintenance on the International Space Station. A number of these tasks were conducted during three spacewalks.

For more information, the National Academies offers a collection of reports on NASAs space shuttle program and the planning, operations, and research activities of the International Space Station.

For even more information, see

• Return to Flight web page;
• History of the Space Shuttle web page; and
• NASA Human Space Flight web page.

The quality of science laboratory experiences is poor for most U.S. high school students, but educators can improve these experiences by following four key principles of effective instruction, says a new report from the National Academies National Research Council. The shift would make lab activities more likely to help students reach important goals of science education, including cultivating an interest in science, developing scientific reasoning skills, and mastering science subjects.

The committee that wrote the report conducted a comprehensive review of research on how U.S. high school science labs affect science learning, and on the whole, available knowledge is inadequate, it said. Research gaps, including a lack of consensus on how to define these labs or their purpose, make it difficult to reach conclusions on the best approaches to laboratory teaching and learning. However, sufficient evidence shows that the nations high school science labs generally do not follow four established principles for effective science instruction:

• Design science lab experiences with clear learning outcomes in mind
• Thoughtfully sequence lab experiences into science instruction
• Integrate learning science content and learning about the processes of science
• Incorporate ongoing student reflection and discussion

Americas Lab Report: Investigations in High School Science

Source: National Academies Press Release, August 8, 2005.

The Internal Revenue Service will close 68 out of 400 walk-in centers this fall because more people now use online tax services, agency officials say.

Compared to the past, fewer taxpayers are choosing to write or call us, IRS Commissioner Mark Everson said in a statement. Even fewer taxpayers are using our walk-in taxpayer assistance centers.

Slightly more than half of all returns filed through April 22 were done electronically, an increase of 11 percent compared to the same period last year. The agency is required under the IRS Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998 to receive 80 percent of tax returns electronically by 2007.

Taxpayer assistance is cheaper via the Internet or telephone costs less than a walk-in visit, according to tax agency officials. Downloading forms from the IRS Web site costs the tax agency less than one-ninth the expense of distributing them at assistance center, the IRS says. Questions about taxes can also be handled less expensively and more accurately over the phone via a toll-free number than in person, the IRS states.

Congress is skeptical, so the IRS will not be able to close all Taxpayer Assistance Centers.

For more information, see David Perera, IRS walks out on walk-ins, Federal Computer Week, May 31, 2005.

The quality of science laboratory experiences is poor for most U.S. high school students, but educators can improve these experiences by following four key principles of effective instruction, says a new report from the National Academies' National Research Council. The shift would make lab activities more likely to help students reach important goals of science education, including cultivating an interest in science, developing scientific reasoning skills, and mastering science subjects.

The committee that wrote the report conducted a comprehensive review of research on how U.S. high school science labs affect science learning, and on the whole, available knowledge is inadequate, it said. Research gaps, including a lack of consensus on how to define these labs or their purpose, make it difficult to reach conclusions on the best approaches to laboratory teaching and learning. However, sufficient evidence shows that the nation's high school science labs generally do not follow four established principles for effective science instruction:

• Design science lab experiences with clear learning outcomes in mind
• Thoughtfully sequence lab experiences into science instruction
• Integrate learning science content and learning about the processes of science
• Incorporate ongoing student reflection and discussion

America's Lab Report: Investigations in High School Science

Source: National Academies Press Release, August 8, 2005.

The Internal Revenue Service will close 68 out of 400 walk-in centers this fall because more people now use online tax services, agency officials say.

"Compared to the past, fewer taxpayers are choosing to write or call us," IRS Commissioner Mark Everson said in a statement. "Even fewer taxpayers are using our walk-in taxpayer assistance centers."

Slightly more than half of all returns filed through April 22 were done electronically, an increase of 11 percent compared to the same period last year. The agency is required under the IRS Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998 to receive 80 percent of tax returns electronically by 2007.

Taxpayer assistance is cheaper via the Internet or telephone costs less than a walk-in visit, according to tax agency officials. Downloading forms from the IRS Web site costs the tax agency less than one-ninth the expense of distributing them at assistance center, the IRS says. Questions about taxes can also be handled less expensively and more accurately over the phone via a toll-free number than in person, the IRS states.

Congress is skeptical, so the IRS will not be able to close all Taxpayer Assistance Centers.

For more information, see David Perera, "IRS walks out on walk-ins", Federal Computer Week, May 31, 2005.

Four state lawmakers today (July 28) announced they are seeking a formal ruling by the Michigan attorney general regarding the legality of the state’s abrupt new tactic on designating contaminated property.

Reps. John Moolenaar of Midland and Roger Kahn of Saginaw Township, and Sens. Tony Stamas of Midland and Mike Goschka of Brant Township, said the latest ploy on facility designations will likely continue to negatively impact hundreds of mid-Michigan homeowners and create new problems for people across the state.

The lawmakers are asking whether the state Department of Environmental Quality has the authority to designate property as contaminated without direct evidence such as soil samples, and whether it violated state law by failing to issue a public notice or sponsor a public hearing on the rule change.

“The DEQ’s covert approach to public policy shows a lack of respect for a truly open government and is an affront to the rights of all homeowners in Michigan,” Moolenaar said. “The facility designation is affecting residents’ lives and livelihoods, and it’s unfortunate the people’s wishes were not sought before the secret policy switch.”

Goschka said: “This is nothing more than a blatant last minute, desperate attempt on the part of Director Chester and the DEQ to prolong their subterfuge over the innocent homeowners of the Tittabawassee River floodplain. At a time when open government is clearly the rule of the day, it is simply amazing that the department would try to usurp the remedy that has been working its way through the Legislature via House Bill 4617 and Senate Bill 390. It is incumbent upon all of us to stand up and defend not only our own constituents, but all of the innocent, hard-working homeowners throughout the state of Michigan.”

Moolenaar and Goschka, who introduced the Homeowner Fairness Act to provide greater fairness and protection for homeowners, also said the language is too ambiguous. Lawmakers are questioning the state’s use of the words “reasonable inference” when deciding whether to issue a facility designation.

“‘Reasonable inference’ is a sadly vague term that would institutionalize the state’s ability to arbitrarily threaten Michigan homeowners,” Kahn said. “Local residents have been living under this bureaucratic straightjacket for too long, and the DEQ’s disingenuous policy change will only confuse the issue.”

The Homeowner Fairness Act was introduced after residents living along the Tittabawassee River were told by the state that their property was contaminated, even though no on-site testing had been done.

“While the actions of the DEQ are impacting the homeowners of Midland and Saginaw counties now, it must be pointed out that with this action, homeowners across the state could face the same ramifications if the DEQ is allowed to proceed in this fashion unchecked,” Stamas said.

The facility label has had a negative impact on home values, thwarted economic development, and cost jobs for area residents. Residents living on the properties are being required to restrict moving or disturbing the soil.

The lawmakers have requested that the DEQ not implement the new language until the attorney general has ruled.

U.S. Congressman Dave Camp commended the lawmakers for their efforts to protect area homeowners.

“Determining the real levels of dioxin present in our community and its true impact on our health is something we are all focused on and working toward,” Camp said. “I applaud local leaders like Reps. Moolenaar and Kahn, and Sens. Stamas and Goschka for ensuring sound science, not arbitrary designation by bureaucrats, drive this process. This is no small issue for those of us who live in, grew up in, and are raising our children in the area. It is important that any change in state policy be fully vetted and gives local residents a chance to be heard.”

Source: House Republican Caucus News Release, July 28, 2005.

Furor over dioxin contamination downstream from Dow Chemical Co.s Midland headquarters has spilled into the Legislature, where a controversial bill aims to change how pollution cleanup is handled in Michigan.

Proponents say the Homeowner Fairness Bill would prevent overzealous environmental regulators from unfairly branding clean properties as contaminated.

Opponents say it would make cleanups lengthier and more expensive in cases ranging from toxic groundwater in Ann Arbor to lead-laced soil in Detroit.

The bill, sponsored by State Rep. John Moolenaar, R-Midland, passed the House last month with bipartisan support. It could be taken up in the Senate later this month.

It requires individual tests of properties in order to designate those parcels as polluted. Currently, the Department of Environmental Quality can broadly designate areas as polluted when tests of nearby areas create a reasonable assumption that they are polluted.

But whats reasonable to DEQ scientists differs from whats reasonable to their critics, including Midland-area residents angry over the agencys role in the dioxin cleanup.

For the full article, see Hugh McDiarmid, Jr., Pollution cleanup bill getting messy, Detroit Free Press, August 9, 2005.

The Michigan Public Sex Offender Registry (PSOR) is now available on the United States Department of Justice National Sex Offender Public Registry (NSOPR), joining 22 other states whose registries are currently available on the national site. The NSOPR is available online at http://www.nsopr.gov.

Using the NSOPR, citizens can conduct a single search to identify sex offenders nationwide, allowing access to offender information beyond state boundaries without having to visit each state’s individual registry. In addition, Michigan’s information can be searched from the NSOPR using the first and last names of offenders. The Michigan PSOR requires a zip-code or name and approximate age.

There are 37,300 offenders on the Michigan Sex Offender Registry (SOR) and 20,500 on the PSOR. The PSOR is available online at http://www.mipsor.state.mi.us/.

For more information, contact Diane Sherman, MSP Criminal Justice Information Center, (517) 322-5511.

Source: Michigan Newswire, August 5, 2005.

The Michigan Public Sex Offender Registry (PSOR) is now available on the United States Department of Justice National Sex Offender Public Registry (NSOPR), joining 22 other states whose registries are currently available on the national site. The NSOPR is available online at http://www.nsopr.gov.

Using the NSOPR, citizens can conduct a single search to identify sex offenders nationwide, allowing access to offender information beyond state boundaries without having to visit each state’s individual registry. In addition, Michigan’s information can be searched from the NSOPR using the first and last names of offenders. The Michigan PSOR requires a zip-code or name and approximate age.

There are 37,300 offenders on the Michigan Sex Offender Registry (SOR) and 20,500 on the PSOR. The PSOR is available online at http://www.mipsor.state.mi.us/.

For more information, contact Diane Sherman, MSP Criminal Justice Information Center, (517) 322-5511.

Source: Michigan Newswire, August 5, 2005.

Furor over dioxin contamination downstream from Dow Chemical Co.'s Midland headquarters has spilled into the Legislature, where a controversial bill aims to change how pollution cleanup is handled in Michigan.

Proponents say the Homeowner Fairness Bill would prevent overzealous environmental regulators from unfairly branding clean properties as contaminated.

Opponents say it would make cleanups lengthier and more expensive in cases ranging from toxic groundwater in Ann Arbor to lead-laced soil in Detroit.

The bill, sponsored by State Rep. John Moolenaar, R-Midland, passed the House last month with bipartisan support. It could be taken up in the Senate later this month.

It requires individual tests of properties in order to designate those parcels as polluted. Currently, the Department of Environmental Quality can broadly designate areas as polluted when tests of nearby areas create a reasonable assumption that they are polluted.

But what's reasonable to DEQ scientists differs from what's reasonable to their critics, including Midland-area residents angry over the agency's role in the dioxin cleanup.

For the full article, see Hugh McDiarmid, Jr., "Pollution cleanup bill getting messy", Detroit Free Press, August 9, 2005.

Four state lawmakers today (July 28) announced they are seeking a formal ruling by the Michigan attorney general regarding the legality of the state’s abrupt new tactic on designating contaminated property.

Reps. John Moolenaar of Midland and Roger Kahn of Saginaw Township, and Sens. Tony Stamas of Midland and Mike Goschka of Brant Township, said the latest ploy on facility designations will likely continue to negatively impact hundreds of mid-Michigan homeowners and create new problems for people across the state.

The lawmakers are asking whether the state Department of Environmental Quality has the authority to designate property as contaminated without direct evidence such as soil samples, and whether it violated state law by failing to issue a public notice or sponsor a public hearing on the rule change.

“The DEQ’s covert approach to public policy shows a lack of respect for a truly open government and is an affront to the rights of all homeowners in Michigan,” Moolenaar said. “The facility designation is affecting residents’ lives and livelihoods, and it’s unfortunate the people’s wishes were not sought before the secret policy switch.”

Goschka said: “This is nothing more than a blatant last minute, desperate attempt on the part of Director Chester and the DEQ to prolong their subterfuge over the innocent homeowners of the Tittabawassee River floodplain. At a time when open government is clearly the rule of the day, it is simply amazing that the department would try to usurp the remedy that has been working its way through the Legislature via House Bill 4617 and Senate Bill 390. It is incumbent upon all of us to stand up and defend not only our own constituents, but all of the innocent, hard-working homeowners throughout the state of Michigan.”

Moolenaar and Goschka, who introduced the Homeowner Fairness Act to provide greater fairness and protection for homeowners, also said the language is too ambiguous. Lawmakers are questioning the state’s use of the words “reasonable inference” when deciding whether to issue a facility designation.

“‘Reasonable inference’ is a sadly vague term that would institutionalize the state’s ability to arbitrarily threaten Michigan homeowners,” Kahn said. “Local residents have been living under this bureaucratic straightjacket for too long, and the DEQ’s disingenuous policy change will only confuse the issue.”

The Homeowner Fairness Act was introduced after residents living along the Tittabawassee River were told by the state that their property was contaminated, even though no on-site testing had been done.

“While the actions of the DEQ are impacting the homeowners of Midland and Saginaw counties now, it must be pointed out that with this action, homeowners across the state could face the same ramifications if the DEQ is allowed to proceed in this fashion unchecked,” Stamas said.

The facility label has had a negative impact on home values, thwarted economic development, and cost jobs for area residents. Residents living on the properties are being required to restrict moving or disturbing the soil.

The lawmakers have requested that the DEQ not implement the new language until the attorney general has ruled.

U.S. Congressman Dave Camp commended the lawmakers for their efforts to protect area homeowners.

“Determining the real levels of dioxin present in our community and its true impact on our health is something we are all focused on and working toward,” Camp said. “I applaud local leaders like Reps. Moolenaar and Kahn, and Sens. Stamas and Goschka for ensuring sound science, not arbitrary designation by bureaucrats, drive this process. This is no small issue for those of us who live in, grew up in, and are raising our children in the area. It is important that any change in state policy be fully vetted and gives local residents a chance to be heard.”

Source: House Republican Caucus News Release, July 28, 2005.

Department of Environmental Quality Director Steven E. Chester today (August 5th) announced the completion of a two-year project to inventory and map Michigan’s groundwater resources. The DEQ partnered with the United States Geological Survey and Michigan State University to produce a new database that shows groundwater aquifers and features, users of large quantities of groundwater, and other valuable groundwater information.

“The information this project has provided allows us to have a greater understanding of the nature of Michigan’s groundwater resources,” said Director Chester. “Now that we have this information available to us, we must take appropriate action to ensure that these resources are protected, and move toward comprehensive water withdrawal legislation for the state.”

The report, mandated and funded through Public Act 148 of 2003, will be submitted to the Ground Water Conservation Advisory Council in preparation of their final report to the Legislature in February, 2006.

“I am looking forward to reviewing these maps to know where we have ample groundwater supply and where there are inadequate amounts,” said Senator Patricia Birkholz (R - Saugatuck), Chair of the Senate Natural Resources & Environmental Affairs Committee. “This will help us as we move forward on groundwater issues and protecting our natural resources.”

“It is urgent now that we have this information that we move ahead with meaningful legislation to protect the Great Lakes from water diversion,” added Senator Liz Brater (D - Ann Arbor).

While the maps will be available in traditional paper copy, a highly interactive digital format is available on the internet as well. This one of a kind internet product will make data easily available to users looking for information to help develop and manage the state’s groundwater resources.

The Director will unveil the tool at today’s Senate Natural Resources and Environment Committee meeting in Saginaw. For those interested in a detailed demonstration, the DEQ and their partners will present the Ground Water Inventory and Mapping at an August 25, 2005 meeting in Lansing. The presentation will be held at the State of Michigan Library and Museum Forum Room at 10:00 a.m.

The interactive website is located at http://gwmap.rsgis.msu.edu.

Source: Michigan Newswire, August 5, 2005.

Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox announced today (August 9th) that he is charging Rep. George C. Cushingberry, Jr. (D-Detroit) with two counts of Felony Perjury and one count of Misdemeanor Failure to File 2 or More Campaign Statements, and Rep. LaMar Lemmons III (D-Detroit) with one count of Misdemeanor Failure to File 2 or More Campaign Statements. The charges conclude a five-month Attorney General investigation into the representatives’ alleged noncompliance with Michigan’s Campaign Finance Act and Election Law during the 2004 election.

“Our election and campaign finance laws are premised on public disclosure and citizens have a right to trust their public officials,” said Cox. “Public officials have an obligation to earn that trust by being forthright and honest.”

The charges against Reps. Cushingberry and Lemmons arose out of their respective campaigns for the Michigan House of Representatives during the November 2004 elections. On March 15, 2005, the Michigan Secretary of State referred both cases to the Attorney General for criminal prosecution. An exhaustive five-month investigation by the Attorney General’s office involving numerous interviews and the review of hundreds of pages of documents followed.

That investigation revealed allegations that Rep. Cushingberry committed perjury twice by making false statements in a May 7, 2004 affidavit of identity, as well as in a post-election statement in January of 2005.

The investigation also uncovered allegations that Rep. Cushingberry failed to file campaign finance reports despite receiving 21 notices from the Secretary of State, Bureau of Elections, and three notices from the Attorney General’s Public Employment, Elections & Tort Division.

Rep. Cushingberry will be charged with one count of Election Law Perjury – False Statement in Post Election Statement, and one count of Election Law Perjury – False Statement in Affidavit of Identity. Both charges carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison and/or a $1,000 fine. He also faces one count of misdemeanor Failure to File 2 or More Campaign Statements, which carries a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail and/or a $1,000 fine.

The Attorney General’s investigation alleged that Rep. Lemmons failed to timely file four documents required by the Michigan Campaign Finance Act despite receiving 19 notices from the Secretary of State and five notices from the Attorney General. The four documents included: a 2004 Annual Campaign Statement, a 2004 Post Primary Campaign Statement, a 2004 Pre General Campaign Statement, and a 2004 Post General Statement.

Rep. Lemmons will be charged with one count of Campaign Finance – Failure to File 2 or More Campaign Statements. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail and/or a $1,000 fine.

The charges are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

The cases are the latest assigned to the Attorney General’s Office of Special Investigations, formed by Cox in 2003 to investigate and prosecute public corruption cases and cold case homicides. The unit has conducted more than 50 public corruption investigations, has secured the conviction of former Oakland Intermediate School District Superintendent James Redmond for misconduct in office, and convicted serial killers Coral Watts and John Rodney McRae.

Source: August 9, 2005.

The ERIC database continues to grow. I checked the list of journals indexed and found many new titles that had not been on the list two weeks ago. I'll paste them here as a way to give readers a sense of how fast the database is growing. I won't be able to generate this list in an ongoing way because it is too time consuming.
This new set of journals includes some titles that I'm surprised to see being given priority. Some seem only peripherally related to education. Still, generally speaking, growth is good.
Active Learning in Higher Education the Journal of the Institute for Learning and Teaching
Advances in Physiology Education
Alberta Journal of Educational Research
American Annals of the Deaf
American Indian Quarterly
American Journal of Evaluation
American Journal of Health Behavior
American Journal of Health Promotion
Applied Psychological Measurement
Assessment
Autism: The International Journal of Research and Practice
British Journal of Learning Disabilities
Bulletin of Science Technology and Society
Childhood A Global Journal of Child Research
Counseling Psychologist
Curriculum Inquiry
Early Childhood Research Quarterly
Education and Urban Society
Educational Administration Quarterly
Educational and Psychological Measurement
Educational Policy
Educational Psychology
Educational Studies
Educational Theory
Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties
Environment and Behavior
European Journal of Education
European Journal of Special Needs Education
Evaluation Review
Exceptionality Education Canada
Family Journal Counseling and Therapy for Couples and Families
Gender and Education
High School Journal
Higher Education in Europe
Higher Education Quarterly
International Journal of Art and Design Education
International Journal of Disability Development and Education
Journal of Adolescent Research
Journal of Black Psychology
Journal of Child and Adolescent Substance Abuse
Journal of Classroom Interaction
Journal of College Admission
Journal of College Student Retention Research Theory and Practice
Journal of Computer Assisted Learning
Journal of Drug Education
Journal of Early Adolescence
Journal of Early Childhood Literacy
Journal of Education and Work
Journal of Educational Measurement
Journal of Experimental Psychology Applied
Journal of Experimental Psychology General
Journal of Experimental Psychology Human Perception and Performance
Journal of Experimental Psychology Learning Memory and Cognition
Journal of Family Issues
Journal of Hispanic Higher Education
Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability
Journal of Interpersonal Violence
Journal of Loss and Trauma
Journal of Marriage and Family
Journal of Philosophy of Education
Journal of Research in Reading
Journal of Research in Rural Education
Journal of Research on Adolescence
Journal of Research on Technology in Education
Journal of Social Studies Research
Journal of Visual Impairment & Blindness
Kappa Delta Pi Record
Language Learning
Learning Disabilities Research and Practice
Literacy
Modern Language Journal
Perspectives in Education
Perspectives London policy and practice in higher education
Policy Review
Psychological Bulletin
Psychological Review
Quality in Higher Education
Reading in a Foreign Language
Religious Education
Rural Sociology
Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research
School Psychology International
School Psychology Quarterly
School Psychology Review
Sign Language Studies
Social Forces
Studies in Continuing Education
Suicide and Life Threatening Behavior
Support for Learning
The Educational Forum
Urban Education
World Englishes
Written Communication

Governor Jennifer Granholm has begun offering a weekly radio address to share opinions or insights with the states residents.

The first installment, broadcast on August 5th, focuses on her recent trade mission to Japan.

The addressess will be released each Friday at 10 a.m. and may be heard on broadcast stations across the state affiliated with the Michigan Assocition of Broadcasters. They also can be downloaded to MP3 players and computers from the Governors web site on Mondays.

This weekly radio address gives me an opportunity to talk directly with the citizens of Michigan about what their government is doing to improve their state for them, Granholm said in a written statement.

Students working at Michigan State Universitys radio sation The Impact record the governors address and prepare it for distribution. A handful of governors across the country regularly give a radio address, including those in Arkansas, Alaska, Minnesota, and California, the National Governors Association reported.

Ganholms predecessor, Republican John Engler, began a montyly radio show early in his 12 years in office.

Source: Amy F. Bailey, Granholm Kicks Off Weekly Radio Address, Lansing State Journal, August 6, 2005, p.4B.

Governor Jennifer Granholm has begun offering a weekly radio address to share opinions or insights with the state's residents.

The first installment, broadcast on August 5th, focuses on her recent trade mission to Japan.

The addressess will be released each Friday at 10 a.m. and may be heard on broadcast stations across the state affiliated with the Michigan Assocition of Broadcasters. They also can be downloaded to MP3 players and computers from the Governor's web site on Mondays.

"This weekly radio address gives me an opportunity to talk directly with the citizens of Michigan about what their government is doing to improve their state for them", Granholm said in a written statement.

Students working at Michigan State University's radio sation "The Impact" record the governor's address and prepare it for distribution. A handful of governors across the country regularly give a radio address, including those in Arkansas, Alaska, Minnesota, and California, the National Governors Association reported.

Ganholm's predecessor, Republican John Engler, began a montyly radio show early in his 12 years in office.

Source: Amy F. Bailey, "Granholm Kicks Off Weekly Radio Address", Lansing State Journal, August 6, 2005, p.4B.

The National Security Archive, along with other secrecy experts, today filed a “friend of the court” brief in a lawsuit challenging the FBI’s authority to issue national security letters (NSLs) without any judicial oversight and under a blanket gag order that prohibits the recipient from speaking with anyone about the NSL. The amicus curiae brief was filed with the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, which is reviewing a lower court decision that held that the NSL authority violated the First and Fourth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.

The brief argues that secrecy does not always serve the goal of protecting national security, as the numerous investigations into the September 11 attacks on the United States all concluded. Noting that there has been an upsurge in secrecy over the last four years – and that military and intelligence officials ranging from Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld to now-Director of the CIA Porter Goss all admit that a significant amount of the secrecy is unnecessary – the brief argues that the judiciary must provide a meaningful review of government claims for secrecy.

In the case of the NSL authority, the brief points out the particular dangers associated with a permanent and categorical ban on speech by recipients of NSLs and demonstrates the terrible impact that the rule has on government accountability.

In addition to the Archive, the brief was filed on behalf of the Project on Government Secrecy of the Federation of American Scientists, the Electronic Privacy Information Center, and the National Whistleblower Coalition. More information about the lawsuit is available at http://www.aclu.org.

Source: National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book No. 160 New Release posted August 3, 2005.

The National Security Archive, along with other secrecy experts, today filed a “friend of the court” brief in a lawsuit challenging the FBI’s authority to issue national security letters (NSLs) without any judicial oversight and under a blanket gag order that prohibits the recipient from speaking with anyone about the NSL. The amicus curiae brief was filed with the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, which is reviewing a lower court decision that held that the NSL authority violated the First and Fourth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.

The brief argues that secrecy does not always serve the goal of protecting national security, as the numerous investigations into the September 11 attacks on the United States all concluded. Noting that there has been an upsurge in secrecy over the last four years – and that military and intelligence officials ranging from Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld to now-Director of the CIA Porter Goss all admit that a significant amount of the secrecy is unnecessary – the brief argues that the judiciary must provide a meaningful review of government claims for secrecy.

In the case of the NSL authority, the brief points out the particular dangers associated with a permanent and categorical ban on speech by recipients of NSLs and demonstrates the terrible impact that the rule has on government accountability.

In addition to the Archive, the brief was filed on behalf of the Project on Government Secrecy of the Federation of American Scientists, the Electronic Privacy Information Center, and the National Whistleblower Coalition. More information about the lawsuit is available at http://www.aclu.org.

Source: National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book No. 160 New Release posted August 3, 2005.

After 140 years away from home, North Carolinas original draft of the U.S. Bill of Rights returned Thursday to the state Capitol, where it was stolen at the end of the Civil War.

Federal authorities delivered the faded cream-color parchment to North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley during an afternoon ceremony in the Old Senate Chamber, one floor above its last repose in the possession of the people of North Carolina.

A Union soldier reportedly swiped the prized paper in April 1865, and it was in private hands until federal agents seized it two years ago.

The handwritten document, copies of which President Washington sent to each colony in 1789 to encourage support for the new U.S. Constitution, had 12 proposed amendments.

Only after Congress proposed the amendments did North Carolina approve the Constitution.

Ten of the amendments became the Bill of Rights, which define the basic rights of U.S. citizenship and set limits on government powers, such as free speech, religious freedom and protection against unreasonable searches and seizures.

U.S. Attorney Frank Whitney, who formally signed over the document to Easley, credited a team of federal and state law enforcers for bringing it home.

My heart is beating so fast, he said after the transfer. It was stolen from this building in 1865. And now its back.

State and federal authorities think a Union soldier from Ohio stole the document from the Capitol when Gen. William T. Shermans Army occupied Raleigh.

The next year, another Ohio man bought the purloined parchment for $5. He later offered to sell it to North Carolina, which refused to pay for stolen goods. The relic remained in the mans family, which in 1995 again offered to sell it to the state but refused to return it for free.

Then five years ago, Connecticut antiques dealer Wayne Pratt bought it from the family for $200,000 -- half paid by friend and investor Bob Matthews, a Connecticut developer.

The pair later offered to sell it to a Philadelphia history museum for $5 million. Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell called Easley in March 2003 to see whether he wanted to help buy it.

Easley had other ideas.

At his instruction, and with the help of Whitney and state Attorney General Roy Cooper, a team of state and federal lawyers devised a trick to get it back without paying. At a meeting in Philadelphia, an FBI agent posing as a buyer arranged a bogus bank wire transfer, then seized the document as contraband.

The legal wrangling over who actually owned the document then began and still goes on.

Source: Bill of Rights is Home Raleigh, N.C. News and Observer, August 5, 2005.

After 140 years away from home, North Carolina's original draft of the U.S. Bill of Rights returned Thursday to the state Capitol, where it was stolen at the end of the Civil War.

Federal authorities delivered the faded cream-color parchment to North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley during an afternoon ceremony in the Old Senate Chamber, one floor above its last repose in the possession of the people of North Carolina.

A Union soldier reportedly swiped the prized paper in April 1865, and it was in private hands until federal agents seized it two years ago.

The handwritten document, copies of which President Washington sent to each colony in 1789 to encourage support for the new U.S. Constitution, had 12 proposed amendments.

Only after Congress proposed the amendments did North Carolina approve the Constitution.

Ten of the amendments became the Bill of Rights, which define the basic rights of U.S. citizenship and set limits on government powers, such as free speech, religious freedom and protection against unreasonable searches and seizures.

U.S. Attorney Frank Whitney, who formally signed over the document to Easley, credited a team of federal and state law enforcers for bringing it home.

"My heart is beating so fast," he said after the transfer. "It was stolen from this building in 1865. And now it's back."

State and federal authorities think a Union soldier from Ohio stole the document from the Capitol when Gen. William T. Sherman's Army occupied Raleigh.

The next year, another Ohio man bought the purloined parchment for $5. He later offered to sell it to North Carolina, which refused to pay for stolen goods. The relic remained in the man's family, which in 1995 again offered to sell it to the state but refused to return it for free.

Then five years ago, Connecticut antiques dealer Wayne Pratt bought it from the family for $200,000 -- half paid by friend and investor Bob Matthews, a Connecticut developer.

The pair later offered to sell it to a Philadelphia history museum for $5 million. Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell called Easley in March 2003 to see whether he wanted to help buy it.

Easley had other ideas.

At his instruction, and with the help of Whitney and state Attorney General Roy Cooper, a team of state and federal lawyers devised a trick to get it back without paying. At a meeting in Philadelphia, an FBI agent posing as a buyer arranged a bogus bank wire transfer, then seized the document as contraband.

The legal wrangling over who actually owned the document then began and still goes on.

Source: "Bill of Rights is Home" Raleigh, N.C. News and Observer, August 5, 2005.

Senator Durbin:

We want to share with you this clip from the remarks of Sen. Richard Durbin (IL) on the Senate floor during discussion of the USA PATRIOT and Terrorism Prevention Reauthorization Act of 2005:

Let me say a word as I close. One of the most unlikely groups became so important in this debate -- the American Library Association. I cannot recall a time in recent memory when this organization showed such leadership. Time and again, they came forward to tell us that they wanted to protect the privacy of their patrons at libraries across America who might come in and take out a magazine or book, and they certainly didnt want to do that with the knowledge that the Government could sweep up all of the library records and sift through them to see if anybody had checked out a suspicious book. They sent us petitions gathered
from libraries across the Nation, and I think they really did good work on behalf of our Constitution and our rights and liberties guaranteed under the Bill of Rights.

I wish to dedicate any success we have with this revision of the PATRIOT Act to the American Library Association and all those who stood with them in asking that we make meaningful changes to the act without eliminating the important provisions that continue to make America safe.

Source: Congressional Record, July 29, 2005, S9561.

Shared via ALAWON: American Library Association Washington Office Newsline, Volume 14, Number 74,
August 2, 2005.

Senator Durbin:

We want to share with you this clip from the remarks of Sen. Richard Durbin (IL) on the Senate floor during discussion of the USA PATRIOT and Terrorism Prevention Reauthorization Act of 2005:
Let me say a word as I close. One of the most unlikely groups became so important in this debate -- the American Library Association. I cannot recall a time in recent memory when this organization showed such leadership. Time and again, they came forward to tell us that they wanted to protect the privacy of their patrons at libraries across America who might come in and take out a magazine or book, and they certainly didn't want to do that with the knowledge that the Government could sweep up all of the library records and sift through them to see if anybody had checked out a suspicious book. They sent us petitions gathered
from libraries across the Nation, and I think they really did good work on behalf of our Constitution and our rights and liberties guaranteed under the Bill of Rights.

I wish to dedicate any success we have with this revision of the PATRIOT Act to the American Library Association and all those who stood with them in asking that we make meaningful changes to the act without eliminating the important provisions that continue to make America safe.

Source: Congressional Record, July 29, 2005, S9561.

Shared via ALAWON: American Library Association Washington Office Newsline, Volume 14, Number 74,
August 2, 2005.

Here are sample APA reference list formats for ERIC documents, provided on consultation with the American Psychological Association.
For technical reports obtained through ERIC online:
Mead, J. V. (1992). Looking at old photographs: Investigating the
teacher tales that novice teachers bring with them (Report No.
NCRTL-RR-92-4). East Lansing, MI: National Center for Research on
Teacher Learning. Retrieved July 21, 2005, from the ERIC database. (ERIC
No. ED346082)
For journal article obtained through ERIC online:
Klassen, R. M. (2004). A cross-cultural investigation of the efficacy
beliefs of South Asian immigrant and Anglo Canadian nonimmigrant early
adolescents. Journal of Educational Psychology, 96, 731-742. Retrieved
July 21, 2005, from the ERIC database. (ERIC No. EJ685035)

All of the above formats assume the researcher used the full text. If
they used only the abstract, they would simply change "Retrieved" to
"Abstract retrieved."

Late on Friday, July 29, the final day before its summer recess, the Senate passed S. 1389 (the USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005) on unanimous consent (no debate, no amendments, no roll call vote). The bill adds to the USA PATRIOT Act many of the safeguards for library and reader privacy that
have been sought by the library community since the passage of the law in 2001, including tougher requirements for searching library records under Section 215.

The vote was a surprise, coming just one week after the Senate Judiciary Committee passed the S. 1389 and the House passed H.R. 3199 and just when everyone thought the Senate was rushing out the door for its summer recess. The two bills will now need to be reconciled by a Conference Committee.

Sunsets

Both bills reauthorize sections of the PATRIOT Act that would expire at the end of this year. The House bills extends the sunset period for Section 215 to 2015; the Senate to 2009. The shorter sunset is preferable because it will cause more oversight by Congress.

Section 215

The House legislation allows the FBI to obtain library records of anyone whenever they are relevant to a counter-terrorism or counter-espionage investigation. The Senate bill requires the FBI to give facts showing reason to believe that the records sought are relevant to counter terrorism or counter intelligence investigation, and that items pertain to a foreign power, agent of a foreign power, or person in contact with a suspected agent or are relevant to the activities of a suspected agent who is the subject of the investigation. It also requires the FISA Court to find these facts (i.e., not just rubber-stamp the request). The Senate bill also requires records or other things to be described with sufficient particularity to allow them to be identified - reducing the danger that that the FBI will engage in fishing expeditions in library or bookstore records.

The House legislation requires the Director of FBI to personally approve any request for records from a library. The Senate legislation requires the personal approval of Director or Deputy Director of the FBI for library, bookstore, firearms or medical records. Both bills allow disclosure of receipt of a Section 215 order to any person necessary to produce the tangible things pursuant to an order under this section or an attorney to obtain legal advice. The Senate version allows a recipient to consult an attorney to obtain legal advice in response to an order under this section; the House version only with respect to an order
under this section.

Both bills allow the recipient of a Section 215 order to challenge the order. The House version allows this only in special petition review panel of the FISA court and only to determine legality of the order. The Senate bill gives recipient of the order the right to challenge both the order itself (on same basis as for a grand jury subpoena) and the secrecy/gag order, but only in the FISA court.

The Senate bill improves the reporting required of the Justice Department. It requires that the DOJ report annually on the total number of applications made for Section 215 orders approving requests for the production of tangible things, and the total number of orders either granted, modified, or denied, when the
application or order involved the production of tangible things from a library (as defined in section 213(2) of the Library Services and Technology Act), or the production of tangible things from a person or entity primarily engaged in the sale, rental, or delivery of books, journals, magazines, or other similar forms of
communication whether in print or digitally, as well as records related to the purchase of a firearm, health information (as defined in section 1171(4) of the Social Security Act), taxpayer return information.

Section 505

Both the Senate version and the House version allow a recipient of a National Security Letter to challenge the request in a U.S. District Court. The House version allows the court to set aside if it is unreasonable or oppressive. The Senate version permits the court to set it aside if unreasonable or oppressive or it
would violate a constitutional or legal right.

In regard to the gag order, both bills allow a challenge to the gag order in a U.S. District Court. In the House bill, the gag order is no longer automatic but is based on a certification that disclosure would harm national security, interfere with diplomatic relations, harm an investigation or endanger life or physical safety. In the Senate version the court can set it aside unless doing so would harm national security, interfere with an
investigation, interfere with diplomatic relations, or endanger life or physical safety. In both bills ,if the government certifies this would result, certification must be treated as conclusive. In the House bill, if a year has elapsed since issuance of the order (or previous challenge), issuing official must re-certify but certification is still conclusive.

Both bills allow the government to go to a U.S. District Court to seek enforcement of the NSL. The Senate stops there. The House bill makes violation of the enforcement order punishable as contempt. It establishes new penalties for violating the gag order of up to 1 year in prison, or up to 5 years if committed with intent to obstruct an investigation or judicial proceeding.

Source: ALAWON: American Library Association Washington Office Newsline, Volume 14, Number 73,
August 1, 2005.

Late on Friday, July 29, the final day before its summer recess, the Senate passed S. 1389 (the USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005) on unanimous consent (no debate, no amendments, no roll call vote). The bill adds to the USA PATRIOT Act many of the safeguards for library and reader privacy that
have been sought by the library community since the passage of the law in 2001, including tougher requirements for searching library records under Section 215.

The vote was a surprise, coming just one week after the Senate Judiciary Committee passed the S. 1389 and the House passed H.R. 3199 and just when everyone thought the Senate was rushing out the door for its summer recess. The two bills will now need to be reconciled by a Conference Committee.

Sunsets

Both bills reauthorize sections of the PATRIOT Act that would expire at the end of this year. The House bills extends the sunset period for Section 215 to 2015; the Senate to 2009. The shorter sunset is preferable because it will cause more oversight by Congress.

Section 215

The House legislation allows the FBI to obtain library records of anyone whenever they are "relevant" to a counter-terrorism or counter-espionage investigation. The Senate bill requires the FBI to give facts showing reason to believe that the records sought are "relevant to" counter terrorism or counter intelligence investigation, and that items "pertain to" a foreign power, agent of a foreign power, or person in contact with a suspected agent or are "relevant to" the activities of a suspected agent who is the subject of the investigation. It also requires the FISA Court to "find" these facts (i.e., not just rubber-stamp the request). The Senate bill also requires records or other things to be described with "sufficient particularity" to allow them to be identified - reducing the danger that that the FBI will engage in fishing expeditions in library or bookstore records.

The House legislation requires the Director of FBI to personally approve any request for records from a library. The Senate legislation requires the personal approval of Director or Deputy Director of the FBI for library, bookstore, firearms or medical records. Both bills allow disclosure of receipt of a Section 215 order to "any person necessary to produce the tangible things pursuant to an order under this section" or "an attorney to obtain legal advice." The Senate version allows a recipient to consult an attorney to obtain legal advice "in response to an order under this section;" the House version only "with respect to an order
under this section."

Both bills allow the recipient of a Section 215 order to challenge the order. The House version allows this only in special "petition review panel" of the FISA court and only to determine "legality" of the order. The Senate bill gives recipient of the order the right to challenge both the order itself (on same basis as for a grand jury subpoena) and the secrecy/gag order, but only in the FISA court.

The Senate bill improves the reporting required of the Justice Department. It requires that the DOJ report annually on the total number of applications made for Section 215 orders approving requests for the production of tangible things, and the total number of orders either granted, modified, or denied, when the
application or order involved the production of tangible things from a library (as defined in section 213(2) of the Library Services and Technology Act), or the production of tangible things from a person or entity primarily engaged in the sale, rental, or delivery of books, journals, magazines, or other similar forms of
communication whether in print or digitally, as well as records related to the purchase of a firearm, health information (as defined in section 1171(4) of the Social Security Act), taxpayer return information.

Section 505

Both the Senate version and the House version allow a recipient of a National Security Letter to challenge the request in a U.S. District Court. The House version allows the court to set aside if it is "unreasonable" or "oppressive." The Senate version permits the court to set it aside if "unreasonable" or "oppressive" or it
would violate a constitutional or legal right.

In regard to the gag order, both bills allow a challenge to the gag order in a U.S. District Court. In the House bill, the gag order is no longer automatic but is based on a certification that disclosure would harm national security, interfere with diplomatic relations, harm an investigation or endanger life or physical safety. In the Senate version the court can set it aside unless doing so would harm national security, interfere with an
investigation, interfere with diplomatic relations, or endanger life or physical safety. In both bills ,if the government certifies this would result, certification must be treated as "conclusive." In the House bill, if a year has elapsed since issuance of the order (or previous challenge), issuing official must re-certify but certification is still conclusive.

Both bills allow the government to go to a U.S. District Court to seek enforcement of the NSL. The Senate stops there. The House bill makes violation of the enforcement order punishable as contempt. It establishes new penalties for violating the gag order of up to 1 year in prison, or up to 5 years if committed with intent to obstruct an investigation or judicial proceeding.

Source: ALAWON: American Library Association Washington Office Newsline, Volume 14, Number 73,
August 1, 2005.