Special Education Law Blog

#MeToo and the Disability Community

Women across the world are embracing the hashtag #MeToo to publicly share their own experiences with sexual abuse and assault and to seek empowerment. The result of this movement has sent shock waves through our society as powerful figures in politics, journalism, and entertainment have been identified as abusers and suffered consequences.  Yet one group has been conspicuously absent from this conversation—the disabled.  And unfortunately, the disabled are among the most vulnerable in our society to sexual abuse and assault. Nancy Thaler, deputy secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, said, “If this were any other population, the world would be up in arms.  We would be irate and it would be the No. 1 health crisis in this country.” 

Will New Tax Bill Result in Education Cuts?

The dust has begun to settle since the passing of last month’s tax bill, which is informally known as The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.  Being neither an accountant nor a tax specialist, It’s difficult to discern what remains in the final passed version of the bill, given that many of the Senators and Representatives who voted for the hastily passed legislation seem surprised by some of the contents. Yet, we must try to understand what the impact of the bill will be on educational matters.