Free Republic

Our Schools: A commitment to including everyone By Paul B. Ash/Lexington school s superintendent Thu Apr 03, 2008, 06:08 AM EDT Lexington - What does it mean for a school system to be inclusive? Educators have used this term for decades to talk about the ways we need to include students who have historically been disenfranchised, such as students with physical, emotional, or cognitive disabilities. This article highlights our ongoing commitment to diversity and to developing a curriculum that includes the many faces and backgrounds of all students in our community. We know that children must feel safe and welcome...

In the latest incident of brazen junkies invading the area around Boston Common, a hostile woman claiming to be HIV-positive spat at and flung blood toward transit cops who busted her and a male companion for smoking crack in a Tremont Street doorway, police said. Shocked citizens who said they saw the pair huddled over a glass crack pipe yesterday morning grabbed a passing MBTA cop. The woman, who cut her palms trying to smash a glass item, raged as responding MBTA cops took her into custody, police said. “She got belligerent, yelling at us and saying she was HIV-positive,”...

Massachusetts Justice and other oxymorons Earlier today, I wrote about this story in the Boston Herald. At that point, I focused on the irony of a gang member and twice-acquitted alleged murdere who fled Boston for North Carolina, only to be shot and crippled in a drive-by shooting.But looking further into the story, we get a few details on Marquis' Nelson's prior history, and boy oh boy is it enlightening about the Massachusetts criminal justice system.In December 2000, Nelson was acquitted of killing a 21-year-old man for the unforgiveable sin of refusing to surrender his cell phone, despite the testimony...