# About 40 Percent of All D.C. Public Schools Have An Accessibility Issue



## mark handler (Jul 6, 2016)

About 40 Percent of All D.C. Public Schools Have An Accessibility Issue
http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/...dc-public-schools-have-an-accessibility-issue
More than two-fifths of all D.C. public schools have had at least one infrastructure issue for people with disabilities in recent months—though officials are working to fix the problems—a public-records request obtained by City Paper shows.

Chris Miller, an advisory neighborhood commissioner in Ward 6, submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to the D.C. Department of General Services at the end of May. He sought to discover gaps in the District's accommodations for people with disabilities, focusing on schools partially because those buildings often serve as polling locations for elections. DGS, which manages D.C.-owned buildings, responded to his request for records related to "a determination of non-compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act" at DCPS sites last month. Signed into law in 1990, the ADA is designed to protect people with disabilities from discrimination, and to guarantee public entities provide them with "reasonable accommodations.

The list DGS sent Miller shows that 55 of DCPS' more than 110 schools have had some sort of accessibility issue in the past few years, or what the document ("ADA Update February 2016") calls "challenges." Those issues include the lack of an elevator or lift, sinks raised too high, and there not being "access to all floors." Five of the facilities were recorded as having no challenge (these were recently modernized), while three were left blank (these were either closed, updated, or under renovations). Miller, who has a disabled left hand, says the results show accessibility remains an "ongoing concern."

"Even though DCPS [and] DGS can remain in compliance with Title II of the ADA by ensuring that there is still program accessibility... that doesn't mean that there isn't a moral obligation to ensure that problems are remediated as soon as possible," Miller says in a statement, referring to a way around violations. "With J.O. Wilson [at 660 K St. NE], for example, the report only lists the lack of an elevator. However, the front door of the school is not wheelchair accessible due to steps lacking a ramp, as is the case with the gymnasium (which is where voting based at the J.O. Wilson precinct [83] occurs)."

School districts can comply with the ADA by bringing books to students who cannot walk up steps to a second-floor library, say, and DCPS notes it's managed such issues on a "case-by-case basis." Administrators have followed the ADA at schools that haven't gotten renovations yet by relocating classrooms, building ramps, and redesigning spaces, the system explains.

"D.C. Public Schools is working closely with the Department of General Services to make accessibility improvements on all of our school campuses," DCPS says in a statement. "Many of our buildings are in need of modernizations, and we are working to modernize them through the Mayor's Capital Improvements Plan. This is something that all schools in the District struggle with, whether traditional public schools or others." (Public charter schools are also required to comply with the act.)

Earlier this year, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced an additional $220 million for DCPS renovations to be completed by the first half of the next decade. Shortly thereafter, the D.C. Council's Committee on Education reworked the approach through which public schools are scheduled for modernizations such that they're based more on communities' needs than "politics" (neighborhood and special interests). More than 15 percent of DCPS' 49,000 total students live with some kind of disability.

A DCPS spokesperson points to recently modernized Turner Elementary School, in Ward 8, and River Terrace Education Campus, in Ward 7, as "shining examples" of inclusivity. At Turner, teachers reengineered a classroom and "medical suite" to allow students with disabilities to move around easily and access the restroom. River Terrace opened in Fall 2015, serving populations from two previous schools, and has wide hallways, a wheelchair-accessible pool, and a garden/greenhouse—among other features.

DGS' FOIA response includes a column describing action items for schools that had outstanding access problems (though a fair number of them are as vague as "DCPS will work with DGS to plan accessibility improvements across the District"). Maury Elementary School in Ward 6, for instance, was the subject of a feasibility study in January to improve the connection between its east and west wings. Meanwhile, Ward 8's Orr Elementary "will be demolished to make way for a new building."

Michael Gamel-McCormick, associate executive director for research and policy at the Association of University Centers on Disabilities, says the District seems to have a plan in place to fix known accessibility issues, based on the FOIA results.

"It's a little more complex than thinking you have 50-plus schools that have these types of barriers," Gamel-McCormick explains. "No access to a cafeteria or a gym—if a school has only one—is clearly a concern. But the lack of an elevator is not necessarily a concern if all of the programming and all of the services are available on the ground level." A system with as many old buildings as the District is more likely than not to have accessibility problems, he adds, but not always a "plan."

"The fact that they asked whether 'all portions' of a school building were accessible: I see that as a positive thing," he says.

Approximately 12 percent of U.S. public school students have disabilities. You can see the results of the FOIA request here. https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/2939952-2016-FOIA-03769-Final-Response-Letter.html


----------



## ICE (Jul 6, 2016)

Is the number of students and faculty that have accessibility issues greater that 1%


----------



## ADAguy (Jul 6, 2016)

Yes
According to the U.S. Department of Education Web site *Ed Data Express*, 12.1 percent of the nation’s K–12 students had disabilities in 2012-13.

The *Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Disability Statistics and Demographics at The University of New Hampshire*, funded by the U.S. Department of Education, estimates that of the 6,429,431 youth ages 3-21 that received special education services under IDEA in the fall of 2012, 735,890 (or 11.4 percent) were 3-5 years old; 2,631,472 (or 40.9 percent) were 6-11 years old; 2,700,531 (or 42.0 percent) were 12-17 years old, and 361,538 (or 5.6 percent) were 18-21 years old.

The 5,693,441 students ages 6-21 that received special education services under IDEA, Part B, in the fall of 2012 were in the following diagnostic categories: 39.8 percent in specific learning disability, 18.1 percent in speech or language impairment, 7.3 percent in intellectual disabilities, or 6.3 percent in emotional disturbance, or 2.2 percent in multiple disabilities, 1.2 percent in hearing impairments, 0.9 percent in orthopedic impairments, 13.3 percent in other health impairments, 0.4 percent in visual impairments, 7.7 percent in autism, 0.02 percent in deaf-blindness, 0.4 percent in traumatic brain injury, and 2.1 percent in developmental delay.

Of the 5,693,441 youth ages 6-21 that received special education services under IDEA in the fall of 2012, 4,604,585 (or 80.9 percent) spend 40 percent or more of their time in the regular classroom. The District of Columbia had the smallest percentage (68.2 percent), while North Dakota had the largest percentage (92.5 percent).


----------



## mtlogcabin (Jul 6, 2016)

mark handler said:


> "Even though DCPS [and] DGS can remain in compliance with Title II of the ADA by ensuring that there is still program accessibility... that doesn't mean that there isn't a moral obligation to ensure that problems are remediated as soon as possible,"


The ADA defined the "moral obligation" that had to be met. There are no other requirements.


----------



## steveray (Jul 6, 2016)

Only one (an) accessibility issue? That's pretty good! Mine all have several...


----------



## Yikes (Jul 12, 2016)

I was asked last week to check the ADA accessibility of a school building.  Here was the only urinal in their designated "accessible" men's room.  Um, make that urinals, plural.


----------



## steveray (Jul 13, 2016)

If they tear that out can I have it? That would be awesome in my garage!...Don't cross the streams!


----------



## ADAguy (Jul 14, 2016)

What vintage? Can't even begin to imagine what the manufacture (is their a label?) was thinking when designing this, obviously privacy and misdirected streams was not a concern.


----------



## Yikes (Jul 14, 2016)

ADAguy said:


> What vintage? Can't even begin to imagine what the manufacture (is their a label?) was thinking when designing this, obviously privacy and misdirected streams was not a concern.


The original building plans said 1923.
It's probably a little hard to tell form the photo, but the porcelain divider actually extends all the way to the back to the urinal.  There is a gap in the divider at the bottom, right over the drain, so that urine and water flow from both sides into the same drain.


----------



## conarb (Jul 14, 2016)

In 1956 in college I rented a flat in a building built in 1905, it had an *original Thomas Crapper toilet* in it, signed by Thomas Crapper, the two flat building is still there and looks exactly the same, I paid $70 a month for the top flat, *the building is now valued at $3.2 million dollars*, I hope the original toilets are still there instead of these useless low-flow pieces of junk we have today.


----------



## ADAguy (Jul 14, 2016)

Our 1906 Craftsman has a 1900 chain pull that makes the sweetest sound when pulled as it washes golden movements to the sea.
Back then they had discovered the physics of flushing aided by the weight of water (<1.6gal) descending 5 feet  to clear bowels without standing water in them. I often find myself thinking of who has shared its mahogany seat over the past century (smiling).

In many ways the designers and manufacturers of yesterdays fixtures were decades ahead of us in producing long term products.


----------



## Yikes (Jul 14, 2016)

I appreciate both the old and new technology.  Many of the newest toilets have had their hydraulics computer-modeled, and it is amazing what they can accomplish with 1.2 gallons.  I have a 1.6gpf Toto in my house that has never clogged (and let's just say we've put it through the paces).

I read yesterday about the 2016 Camaro doing 0-60 in 5.4 seconds with a 2 liter 4 cylinder turbo engine that also gets 30 mpg!
I can be both nostalgic for the awesome roar of the old V8 guzzler, but impressed by the efficiency of today's technology.


----------



## conarb (Jul 14, 2016)

My experience with 1.6 gal Totos, all on cast iron pipe:

2003: Constant need for Roto Rooter from day one, all they came up with was toilet paper, the man used a lot of toilet paper, he died a few years ago and no more problems, Roto Rooter told me that they have constant problems with cast iron pipes, the 1.6 gallons is not enough to wash paper through the rougher surfaces of cast iron pipe.

2003:  A church with 3 flush valves in the men's room and 6 flush valves in the ladies' room, no problems in the men's room but constant problems in the ladies room to the point that the church put a big sign on the wall saying: "FLUSH 3 TIMES".  Apparently women use a lot more toilet paper than men.

2009:  I broke down and installed 2 dual flush Totos in my house with cast iron pipe, but use a Washlet toilet seat, never use toilet paper, and have no clogged sewers. We hate them because we have to keep a toilet brush next to the toilets and constantly clean them, any time you have diarrhea the 1.6 gals is not near enough to wash them.

2011:  Over my objections another customer selects 3 Totos, all single flush with Washlets on all toilets and cast iron pipe, so far no problems, flushing them myself it appears that the single flush does a much better job of cleaning than the dual flush, I don't know if the lack of clogging is due to the Washlets and no toilet paper, the superior action of the single flush, or advanced technology.


----------



## ICE (Jul 14, 2016)

So conarb, what do you do with the Washlets if they don't go down the drain?  Walmart has them infused with aloe.  Now there's a smart idea.


----------



## conarb (Jul 14, 2016)

ICE said:


> So conarb, what do you do with the Washlets if they don't go down the drain?  Walmart has them infused with aloe.  Now there's a smart idea.


Tiger:  The *washlet* replaces the toilet seat and there is a blow dryer in it, so you wash yourself off with water and then dry yourself with hot air, I've had three fo them over the last 25 years when I had problems after cancer radiation, Greenies like them too since trees aren't killed to make toilet paper, you get green points to help you qualify under the Green Code.


----------



## ICE (Jul 14, 2016)

Toilet paper trees are grown in Indonesia on farms.  I'd bet that more wood goes towards toilet paper than houses.

I've never tried a Washlets seat but I have wondered if the hose stream is warm water...I suppose that it must be or people wouldn't have them.


----------



## conarb (Jul 14, 2016)

Yeah, you can set the temperatures of the seat, air, and water, they have enema positions if people are constipated or have diarrhea,  You wash yourself in the inside, much cleaner than toilet paper, women love the warm seat, they have two sprays, one vaginal and the other anal.   The last house I built the owner ordered remote controls, I don't quite get the extra $700 when you can just push a series of buttons on the right side.


----------



## Yikes (Jul 15, 2016)

In all seriousness, those washlet toilets are becoming very popular here in nursing homes and assisted living facilities.  Much easier and more sanitary for both residents and staff.  The washlet has two separate functions: it washed both the person (like a built-in bidet) and it also pre-mists and washes down the sides of the bowl.
I hear what you are saying about the roughness of cast iron pipe being a problem with low-flow toilets, especially in single-family residences.  In multifamily, we seem to get enough collective water flow that it's not a problem.  In any case, installing 1.6 gpf in a house reminds me about the analogy/verse about putting new wine in old wineskins.

In Japan (where the Totos were invented), almost every home has the heated seats, and they traditionally keep their houses unheated at nighttime, so the warm toilet seat is much cheaper than heating the whole house.  What seems like a luxury here in America would actually be a smart tradeoff if you embraced that cold-house lifestyle.


----------



## ADAguy (Jul 20, 2016)

Warm seats and an extra blankee at night will really reduce your energy bills and save resources.


----------



## conarb (Jul 20, 2016)

Yikes said:
			
		

> In Japan (where the Totos were invented), almost every home has the heated seats, and they traditionally keep their houses unheated at nighttime, so the warm toilet seat is much cheaper than heating the whole house. What seems like a luxury here in America would actually be a smart tradeoff if you embraced that cold-house lifestyle.



The real reason Japan uses washlets is most of the world doesn't use toilet paper, the Japanese think that's filthy and wash themselves after defecating, the washlet was invented as a way to automate washing oneself without using some kind or rag.  When I bought my first washlet in 1992 the cheaper ones didn't have the heated seat feature.  I'm not sure which company actually invented it but the premier brand was Nais, at the time I bought mine Nais was owned by Panasonic so I assume Panasonic bought the company.  Before I bought mine I wanted to try one of them out, the distributor sent me to a business in Sacramento (I didn't want to go to someone's private home) , the women told me that they loved it for it's heated seat feature, although most of them used neither the vaginal nor the anal wash arms.  I think the heated seat feature was more a sales tool than anything else, I recall in the late 1950s American Standard made an effort to sell Americans bidets, the construction company I worked for had us all attend a meeting given by a sales representative from American Standard to try to get us to push bidets in our buildings as they started a nationwide advertising campaign.


----------

