“Reaching Every Student” with a Pyramid of Intervention Approach: One District’s Journey

This paper presents a description ongoing work of an Alberta school district that is working to support and enhance effective inclusive practices that reach and teach every student. The district is implementing a Pyramid of Supports model that is built upon four critical elements: a belief in social justice and the value of every child, a commitment to inclusive education, an understanding of the power of teams, and flexible funding support. Three key areas of support are described: supports for positive behavior, differentiation of learning, and access to technologies and digital media. Emphasis is placed on the base of the pyramid or the universal supports that allow for the inclusion of all learners while recognizing the unique learning needs of each. In addition the district has focused on shared and distributed leadership through teaming. In reflecting on the work to date and critical next steps, the importance of policy direction that support systemic redesign of curriculum is discussed.   Please note: This paper is submitted for considered in the special issue on Inclusive Education.

Native Village of Eyak v. Blank: Fish is Best Rare; Justice, Not So Much

For the purposes of the litigation discussed in this Note, the Chugach peoples comprise five native villages in the State of Alaska: Eyak, Tatitlek, Chenega, Nanwalek, and Port Graham ( the Villages ). The Villages must fight for a right to the natural resource they depend upon most for survival, fish. At the end of the twentieth century, the Villages sued the federal government to assert claims of aboriginal title, and along with it, exclusive rights to the resources of their ancestral fishing grounds on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). A panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held the federal paramountcy doctrine barred any exclusive claim based upon aboriginal title. Thus, the United States exclusively controls access to the Villages\u27 ancestral fishing grounds. This Note discusses the recent decision of the Ninth Circuit in Native Village of Eyak v. Blank, in which the five native Villages sued to assert non-exclusive rights to resources under aboriginal title claims; the Villages lost. Part I explains the legal background, from the underpinnings of American Indian sovereignty and claims of aboriginal title, to the federal paramountcy doctrine. Part II explains the litigious path discussing the holdings of the Chugach cases from the first Ninth Circuit decision of Native Village of Eyak v. Trawler Diane Marie to the current decision of Eyak v. Blank. It describes the findings of the district court in Native Village of Eyak v. Locke following the en banc remand ordering those findings in Native Village of Eyak v. Daley. Then it contrasts the majority holding of the Ninth Circuit with Judge Fletcher\u27s dissent and the language debate amidst the panel. The Ninth Circuit refused to acknowledge the existence of aboriginal title over the fishing grounds used by the Villages since time immemorial. Part III argues that the Ninth Circuit en banc added a new prerequisite that a tribe must establish before the courts will acknowledge rights claimed under aboriginal title. In doing so, the Ninth Circuit created a split between circuits. The majority avoided the greater legal question of whether these non-exclusive rights to the natural resources of the OCS conflict with the federal paramountcy doctrine, a question that the dissent analyzed correctly. By denying commercial rights, this holding guarantees Indian tribes only subsistence fishing, attacking tribal sovereignty

Native Village of Eyak v. Blank: Fish is Best Rare; Justice, Not So Much

For the purposes of the litigation discussed in this Note, the Chugach peoples comprise five native villages in the State of Alaska: Eyak, Tatitlek, Chenega, Nanwalek, and Port Graham ( the Villages ). The Villages must fight for a right to the natural resource they depend upon most for survival, fish. At the end of the twentieth century, the Villages sued the federal government to assert claims of aboriginal title, and along with it, exclusive rights to the resources of their ancestral fishing grounds on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). A panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held the federal paramountcy doctrine barred any exclusive claim based upon aboriginal title. Thus, the United States exclusively controls access to the Villages\u27 ancestral fishing grounds. This Note discusses the recent decision of the Ninth Circuit in Native Village of Eyak v. Blank, in which the five native Villages sued to assert non-exclusive rights to resources under aboriginal title claims; the Villages lost. Part I explains the legal background, from the underpinnings of American Indian sovereignty and claims of aboriginal title, to the federal paramountcy doctrine. Part II explains the litigious path discussing the holdings of the Chugach cases from the first Ninth Circuit decision of Native Village of Eyak v. Trawler Diane Marie to the current decision of Eyak v. Blank. It describes the findings of the district court in Native Village of Eyak v. Locke following the en banc remand ordering those findings in Native Village of Eyak v. Daley. Then it contrasts the majority holding of the Ninth Circuit with Judge Fletcher\u27s dissent and the language debate amidst the panel. The Ninth Circuit refused to acknowledge the existence of aboriginal title over the fishing grounds used by the Villages since time immemorial. Part III argues that the Ninth Circuit en banc added a new prerequisite that a tribe must establish before the courts will acknowledge rights claimed under aboriginal title. In doing so, the Ninth Circuit created a split between circuits. The majority avoided the greater legal question of whether these non-exclusive rights to the natural resources of the OCS conflict with the federal paramountcy doctrine, a question that the dissent analyzed correctly. By denying commercial rights, this holding guarantees Indian tribes only subsistence fishing, attacking tribal sovereignty

Action Plan for the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists (IYRP): The Case for the United States, Canada, and Mexico

The GAP analysis (A Case of Benign Neglect: Knowledge gaps about sustainability in rangelands and pastoralism) points to several gaps that are relevant to the US, Canada and Mexico. North American rangelands span the ecological continuum of polar to hot deserts and arid to humid climates that exhibit highly variable ecological and forage production potential across time and space. Although there is a great deal of rangeland research, extension, and inventory capacity in all three countries, a weak link is the dissemination of information to North American pastoralists (conventionally referred to as ranchers or producers). Although the extension system in the US and Canada are similar, there are distinct differences. Public lands in the US are managed at the national level by federal agencies (e.g., Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service) while private land management assistance is provided by the Natural Resource Conservation Service. In Canada, Crown land is managed by departments within each province and there is no national extension service. In Mexico, the majority of the lands are managed by local communities or ejidos, 15% are privately owned and managed and the remaining 5% is government owned. The three countries support national research organizations and have a well-developed system of colleges and universities that have range management or related disciplines containing staff that specialize in teaching and/or research (and cooperative extension at land grant universities within the US). All three countries must attempt to bridge gaps between an urban industrial society that is increasingly disconnected from extensive agricultural production on rangelands. Promoting ecological goods and services provided by rangelands is a relatively new paradigm for US, Canadian and Mexican research and extension. During the IYRP, the focus in the US, Canada and Mexico is likely to be in 2 directions; providing North American pastoralists/ranchers with the social license to continue to ranch or farm while educating the massive urban population about the sustainability, multiple uses, and benefits of ecological services produced on rangelands and native grasslands

Effects of precipitation on annual growth rate in Populus tremuloides: an analysis of genetic variation in growth response to water availability within a population of trembling aspen.

We studied a population of trembling aspen, P. tremuloides, in the Pellston outwash plains of northern lower Michigan in order to address three questions: 1) Do precipitation levels affect growth rates of P. tremuloides; 2) Does this population of P. tremuloides contain clonal variation for growth response to precipitation; and 3) If so, do certain clones respond better than others to dry conditions predicted under global warming models?http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/54792/1/3233.pd

Validity of A Portable EKG Device to Monitor Heart Rate and Rhythm in College-aged Male Athletes

Abstract Introduction: Sudden cardiac death (SCD) is the leading medical cause of death for male athletes, especially in anaerobic-based sports. Standard 12-lead electrocardiograms (STD-ECG) have received recent attention for their diagnostic utility, but lack the practicality for mass screenings. The purpose of this investigation was to assess the validity of a compact HD-EKG unit during various testing environments: rest, aerobic activity, and immediate recovery of anaerobic activity in college-age, male athletes. Methods: Twelve college-aged (19.9 ± 1.1 years old), male athletes volunteered. Test procedures included two ECG devices, a STD-ECG and a high-definition (HD-) EKG, simultaneously recording heart rate (HR) and rhythms during rest, a single-stage walking test, and during recovery of the Wingate Anaerobic Power test. Results: Paired t-tests did not detect differences between measures of HR and rhythm (t(47) = -0.71, p \u3e 0.05 and t(4) = 0.82, p \u3e 0.05, respectively). The two measures of HR were very strongly related (r = 0.98, p \u3c 0.001). However, the absolute difference between the STD-ECG and HD-EKG averaged 3.47 ± 4.44 bpm, which is significantly different than the acceptable variance of ± 2 bpm. Conclusions: Wearable technology, such as a portable HD-EKG device worn during vigorous anaerobic activity, such as the Wingate Anaerobic Power test, may identify athletes most at risk for SCD

Predator and Heterospecific Stimuli Alter Behavior in Cattle

Wild and domestic ungulates modify their behavior in the presence of olfactory and visual cues of predators but investigations have not exposed a domestic species to a series of cues representing various predators and other ungulate herbivores.We used wolf (Canis lupus), mountain lion (Puma concolor), and mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) stimuli (olfactory and visual), and a control (no stimuli) to experimentally test for differences in behavior of cattle (Bos taurus) raised in Arizona. We measured (1) vigilance, (2) foraging rates, (3) giving up density (GUD) of high quality foods and (4) time spent in high quality forage locations in response to location of stimuli treatments. In general, we found a consistent pattern in that wolf and deer treatments caused disparate results in all 4 response variables. Wolf stimuli significantly increased cattle vigilance and decreased cattle foraging rates; conversely, deer stimuli significantly increased cattle foraging rate and increased cattle use of high quality forage areas containing stimuli. Mountain lion stimuli did not significantly impact any of the 4 response variables. Our findings suggest that domestic herbivores react to predatory stimuli, can differentiate between stimuli representing two predatory species, and suggest that cattle may reduce antipredatory behaviour when near heterospecifics

A Perspective on Livestock–Wolf Interactions on Western Rangelands

The reintroduction of wolves into their historical ranges in the North American Rocky Mountains and areas of the southwestern United States is possibly one of the most ambitious ecosystem restoration efforts of the recent past. This initiative has been controversial and has stimulated considerable debate among concerned stakeholders about the feasibility of harmonizing multiple land-use demands when preservation of a large predator becomes a central management goal. In many areas, ranching has taken center stage of this debate as ranchers and land managers seek to develop sustainable ways to manage livestock on landscapes with wolves. The challenges associated with wolf restoration programs vary regionally and depend on a myriad of interacting factors. Wolf population size and consequent regulatory and legal frameworks; site-specific, biophysical features; and local traditions, perceptions, and attitudes of urban vs. ranching communities are only a few of the issues driving the diversity of situations. Because of this complexity, “silver-bullet” approaches are unlikely to provide answers that will satisfy all stakeholders in all locations. In this context, our article seeks to 1) provide a science-based perspective to inform the wolf–livestock ongoing debate; and 2) suggest research approaches that could lead to locally relevant solutions. Of paramount importance is better understanding of direct and indirect effects of wolves on livestock, and development of effective methods for minimizing impacts while maintaining ecologically relevant wolf populations on the landscape. We argue that progress (i.e., optimizing coexistence or minimizing conflict) is most likely if multiple tools and techniques are used in a context-dependent fashion and integrated into a science based operation supported by producers