VOUCHERS, CHARTERS CONFUSE PUBLIC
(November 24, 1999) The organization Public Agenda, reported the results of a poll that said that while on the surface there seems to be considerable support for vouchers and charter schools, there really is very little knowledge among the public about what these proposals really entail. For example, “63% of the general public, 66% of parents, and 60% of parents of school children in voucher communities say they know ‘very little’ or ‘nothing’ about school vouchers and how they work. 81% of the general public, 79% of parents, and 52% of parents of school children in charter communities say they know ‘very little’ or ‘nothing’ about charter schools. After parents were provided with definitions of vouchers and charter schools, 70% said they would definitely use or seriously consider using vouchers; 54% said the same about charter schools…. 62% of the public say the nation’s public schools ‘have some good things about them, but they need major change,’ 19% say they’re ‘doing pretty well and need little change;’ and 16% say they ‘have so much wrong with them that we need to create a whole new system altogether.” The full article can be found on the Education Week web site.

NO LEGAL OBLIGATION TO EDUCATE CHILDREN
(May 10, 2000) A Colorado Appeals Court confirmed the state’s public schools have no legally enforceable obligation to educate children. The decision was that parents and students cannot sue school districts because they “are not private students enrolled in a private vocational school but, instead, consist of the general public. They have not individually bargained with the school district, nor individually paid for specific educational services. As a result, they cannot assert legal claims for the alleged failure to provide those unbargained-for services.” Denver Parents Association et al. v. Denver Board of Education: 98CA1309, Colorado Court of Appeals. February 3, 2000. Posted on the Colorado Bar Association’s web site on May 10, 2000.

NC BOOT CAMP CLOSED
(June 15, 2000) The Charlotte Observer, reported the About Face Youth Boot Camp, 70 miles northwest of Charlotte, North Carolina was closed and 62 children ages 9 to 18 including both boys and girls were removed from the facility by Burke County sheriff’s deputies. Many parents found the boot camp from exposure on the national Jenny Jones TV talk show, where the camp’s founder, former marine Raymond Moses, appeared on more than ten episodes about out-of-control kids since March 1999. The state action was taken after an allegation of abuse was made to the Department of Social Services, and the department determined the camp was providing foster care without a license.

TEEN SEX ACTIVITY LINKED TO PEER NORMS
(June 28, 2000) Sara Kinsman M.D., the lead investigator in a study published in the November 1998 issue of Pediatrics titled “Early Sexual Initiation: The Role of Peer Norms,” concluded in a June 28th news article that “Young teens are more likely to have sexual intercourse if they believe their friends have already done so.” Kinsman stated “Sexual initiation is a planned activity for these young adolescents to participate in sexual activity, not because ‘it’s cool’ but because they don’t want to be left behind.”

DESPERATE MEASURES
(July 2, 2000) Lou Kilzer, a writer for Denver Rocky Mountain News, in an article titled “Desperate Measures: Lost Boy” wrote of a boy in El Paso, Texas that committed suicide in March of this year. Kilzer makes the connection that the boy had been in Teen Help in Montana and Western Somoa for 32 months. The mother has said that without Teen Help, her son might have died years earlier.

MANY TEENS REGRET HAVING HAD SEX
(July 3, 2000) In a poll conducted in June of 2000 by International Communications Research of Media on behalf of the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, it was concluded that “Nearly two-thirds of teens who have had sexual intercourse wish they had waited.”

COURT DENIES PARENT’S ACCESS TO MENTAL HEALTH RECORDS
(July 8, 2000) The Houston Chronicle, contained a story that according to a Texas Supreme Court on a 7-2 decision, “Parents don’t have a right to see their children’s mental health records if a psychologist decides such access might harm the youngsters.” One Judge in dissent said the majority was continuing to erode “the rights of parents to raise and care for their children.” Writing for the majority, another Judge stated “Parents cannot always be deemed to be acting on the child’s behalf.” The attorney for the psychologist who had appealed a lower court’s decision said “It’s an important case for the mental health professional. It protects the integrity of the child’s relationship with a metal health professional.”

IMPROVEMENT, PROBLEMS WITH US KIDS
(July 14, 2000) The Associated Press reported a study done by the Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, who had collected data from “20 federal agencies on the health, education, economic and education trends among America’s 70.2 million children under the age of 18.” They concluded that the recent statistics of the leading indicators show that American kids “are healthier, better fed, less likely to live in poverty and more likely to survive to adulthood than ever before.” The study also shows “that U.S. kids drink too much, smoke too often and more than a quarter of high school seniors are using drugs.”

NATIONAL VIEWERS AND LISTENERS ASSOC. OF AUSTRALIA
(July 22, 2000) Paul Hotchkin, Secretary of the National Viewers and Listeners Association of Australia, recently contacted Woodbury Reports about his organization. This media advocacy group for children is concerned that much of the images and lessons modern media presents can be harmful to children.


(July 26, 2000) Barbara Starfield, MD, wrote an article titled “Is US Health Really the Best in the World?” that appeared in the Journal of the American Medical Society, in which Starfield reviewed the data and literature used to measure the quality of health care in the US. Her review reported an estimated 225,000 deaths in the US per year from medical, physician and medication effects (iatrogenic causes) . She points out that this “constitutes the third leading cause of death in the United States, after deaths from heart disease and cancer.”

MOMS ARE GIRLS ROLE MODEL
(August 1, 2000) A survey conducted last May by the National Fluid Milk Processor Promotion Board found that “92 percent of girls ages 7 to 17 say their mom is their primary role model, particularly when it comes to eating healthy and drinking plenty of milk.”

FDA APPROVES ADHD DRUG
(August 3, 2000) The Associated Press reported the “Federal Food and Drug Administration had approved Concerta for the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.” The advantage of this new drug is that it is time- released, lasting 12 hours, thus eliminating “the stigma of taking a drug in school and the problems of getting to the school nurse or interrupting after-school programs or practice.” “In clinical trials the most common side effects were headaches, reported by 14 percent of patients. Less common were upper respiratory tract infection and stomachache.”