State Schools Settlement Agreement Only a Start
Michael Nicholson died in June in an incident with Lubbock State School staff members This year, Texas officials signed a settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice to improve conditions at state schools for people with disabilities. The five-year agreement followed a four-year federal investigation into civil rights violations at Texas’ 13 state schools as a response to years of reports about abuse and neglect inside the facilities.
The 61-page agreement provides numerous definitions of how services and conditions in state schools are to be evaluated and monitored, but fails to address the human factor of unnecessary institutionalization. Disturbingly, even while negotiations for the agreement were concluding, news agencies reported further violations of human safety and dignity as evidenced by the operation of a "fight club” at the Corpus Christi State School, the March homicide of a resident at the Denton State School, the May suicide of a resident of the San Angelo State School, and the June death of a resident of the Lubbock State School during an incident with staff members.
Disability advocates said that the measure tries to fix a system that is fundamentally broken, and will do little to move institutionalized people into more integrated community settings. “We’re not here to impede this settlement,” said Dennis Borel, executive director for the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities, “but we are interested in ensuring nobody stays in an institution who is able and wants to get out.”
Proposition 8 Seeks Texas Support for Veterans' Hospitals
Representative Kino Flores and Senator Juan "Chuy" Hinojosa succeeded in getting Proposition 8 added to the November 3rd Ballot. The ballot measure seeks to amend the Texas Constitution by "authorizing the state to contribute money, property, and other resources for the establishment, maintenance, and operation of veterans hospitals in this state."
The impetus for this proposal came from the fact that many Texas veterans, especially in South Texas, must travel hundreds of miles to obtain the specialized care that they receive because of service-connected disabilities. With the amendment, Flores hopes that Texas would fund the construction of additional facilities for underserved veterans and the Veterans Administration would fund the operation and maintenance of these facilities.
Chase Bearden Wins Advocacy Award
Chase Bearden (left) of CTD with Terry Murphy, the Commissioner of the Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services
Chase Bearden, CTD’s Director of Advocacy and Community Organizing, was honored at the Texas Rehabilitation Association's 2009 conference in San Antonio where he received the TRA’s Legislative Award for achieving distinction in his advocacy on behalf of people with disabilities.
The TRA recognized Chase's work during the 2008-2009 legislative session, when he took the lead in efforts to make businesses owned by people with disabilities eligible for Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) status, in addition to his involvement in numerous other issues affecting people with disabilities.