Monday, September 30, 2019

Historical Court Cases and Landmark legislation on Special Education

Historical court cases and landmark legislation on special education schools have had various impacts on parents, children as well as the school and have directly impacted on various activities and rules that govern special education in our schools today. Though there are various historical court rulings on special education, in this paper I will emphasize on four cases to show how their ruling have had an impact on today’s special education.The first case to discuss was presented in 1972 by the Association for retarded citizens (PARC) vs. the Pennsylvania where children were not allowed in public school if they possessed certain characteristics. Some of the children were told that they could not attend schools because of their horrible appearances, which could otherwise be described as ugly to look at. The court ruling held that every child had a right to free and a public education. This ruling has impact on special education even today in that, it has enabled every child to have access of a free public education since it is right of children to receive education no matter of their disabilities or looks. It has also enabled children to freely interact with the others in school even though physical appearance of some of them may be horrible.In the case presented in 1979 by the Armstrong vs. Kline in Pennsylvania where the students who had disabilities were not allowed to go to the summer school even if the program was provided to the enabled students. The parents made a request to the district to provide this program to special students who have disabilities. The court ruling held that students who have severe disabilities are entitled the right of Extended School Year (ESY). Determination of this would be the by the use specific data, which will be part of individual program in education. The impact of this ruling is that children with disabilities up to now receive education in a long duration over the year than the other children especially in the sc hools of special education for students with disabilities.In another case presented in 1988, Honig vs. Doe, two students with diagnosed behavior disorders where each of them suspended because of acting out. The parents were of the view that, both these students were being punished because of their disability. The court held that students who have handicaps should not be expelled out of school due to handicap related behaviors. The impact of this ruling is that in the process of punishing a student with disabilities, one should think on what type of punishment he should give. This has prompted teachers to devise proper means and ways of punishing these students in schools.The fourth case to discuss here was presented on 1989, Daniel R.R vs. The state education board. Parents wanted Daniel to be put in main stream school program even though he was disruptive and yelling in the class. The court held that schools can have use of inquiry of two parts so that they can determine extend to which a child needed to be mainstreamed or to determine that regular classroom had a learning room environment. The impact of this ruling is that a child who is disruptive can not be placed in one classroom with the other children since he can make the classroom not to have a good learning environment, which will affect the learning of the other children. This is what is put in practice even today and that is why there are special schools for students with such disabilities.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Corporate Social Responsibility and Human Rights Essay

This brings me to the system theory. A system has interconnected parts that depend on each other to develop the mutual goal, which is a successful center. The interconnected parts are the environment, the processes, and the outcomes. Each component needs the support of the other to keep the common goal. According to Bloom the system theory is, â€Å"A set of interrelated parts that is characterized by the interdependence of its parts and it differentiation from its environment, a complex network of social relationships, and its own unique culture. † (Bloom, 2005, p. ) The environment is a place where input is implemented. When I think of a childcare center environment I think of children and how they develop. I think of the atmosphere, the setting, and the conditions that can spark the chil d’s analytical thinking abilities. But that is just the internal environment. The external environments consist of the parents, sponsoring agencies, local communities, legislative bo dies, and the professional communities / teachers. â€Å"The external environment places constraints and demands on the center. † (Bloom, 2005) The external environment is the input and processing stage. This is a collaboration of people and agencies that come up with strategies to support the development of the center. The centers that have sponsors have money and agencies that develop supportive programs such as art, literacy, and technology. Columbia College sponsors the center that I work for. The center used the money Columbia gave them to developed a program for the teachers to learn the importance of art and how a person can utilize art throughout the day. Parents, sponsoring agencies, local communities, legislative bodies, and the professional communities / teachers are big factors on the input and processing stage. Parents may demand that the students have more free play and outdoor play. The sponsoring agencies might require more outcome data. The local communities may ask the center to stop the students from writing on the ground with chalk. The Legislative bodies may require the students to take shorter naps for more gross motor activities. The professional communities may ask for better wages for their degrees. (Bloom, 2005, p. 6) After the inputs of complaints or suggestions the director needs to structure and process how to develop a plan of action. Getting feedback from the sources that asked for the changes is essential. After developing a plan of action the director can stand back and observe if the changes are working or not. This system allows the director to process the changes, implement the changes, and revise the changes if needed to prefect the change. The outcome process is very important because it could either sink or sail a center. If the changes in the program are not supported by staff, and parents this may become a problem that causes low enrollment, and staff turnovers. I am experiencing these problematic issues at the center I work for. Four years ago the center hired a new director. During the four years she has made lots of changes. She changed classroom teacher teams. She closed classrooms that were bringing in the students. She put teachers in infant classrooms when they did not want to work with babies. Recently she enforced closed campus lunch. No one can go out for lunch. You have to order your lunch or bring your lunch from home. She stated that it was mandated by the state. She gave all the teachers the head-start licensing standards that stated the teacher child ratio. It said nothing about our lunch hour. We also have low enrollment. Parents are complaining about teachers’ morale and the director’s attitude. How you implement change can affect the outcome and cause staff and parents to be disgruntle. As Bloom stated, â€Å"Problems can arise when directors and boards lack adequate data and bas decisions about outcomes on inference. † (Bloom, 2005, p. 16) My director did not collaborate with her environment. She is an autocratic leader. She is a dictator. She does not give anyone an opportunity to be involved with the decision making process. As it stated in the article Leadership Styles, autocratic leaders are extremely controlling and paternalistic, where leaders have complete power over their staff. Staff and team members have little opportunities to make suggestions, even if these would be in the team’s or the organization’s best interest. (Tools) If my director managed the center in a People oriented/relation oriented approach I believe the center would not be I such a crisis. People oriented/relation oriented approach leaders are totally focused on organizing, supporting, and developing the people on their teams. They treat everyone on the team equally. They’re friendly and approachable. They pay attention to the welfare of everyone in the group, and they make themselves available whenever team members need help or advice. (Tools) Directors need to be mindful of how they lead. A director needs s to know how to coach, mentor and manage the staff. Dictating is not he way to lead. If my director collaborated with the staff, parents, and the community I believe the outcome would be different. Coaching and mentoring is not telling a person what to do.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

1% of Local Police Departments

Reflections from the One-Percent of Local Police Departments with Mandatory Four-Year Degree Requirements For New Hires: Are They Diamonds in the Rough? Diana Bruns Bacone College ***Contact information Diana Bruns, Ph. D. Department Chairperson and Professor, Criminal Justice Studies Bacone College 2299 Old Bacone Road Muskogee, OK 74403 [email  protected] edu cell: 918-781-7295 office: 918-781-7295 **Diana Bruns is the Department Chairperson and Professor of Criminal Justice Studies at Bacone College in Muskogee, OK.Reflections from the One-Percent of Local Police Departments with Mandatory Four-Year Degree Requirements For New Hires: Are They Diamonds in the Rough? Abstract Countless studies have permeated the literature regarding the utility of a bachelor’s degree for police officers. Local law enforcement agencies with mandatory four-year degree requirements serve as the population for this study relative to the current status of college degreed officers, as well as pop ulation demographics and commonalities among such departments.The utility of college degree requirements, choice of academic discipline and why four-year degree requirements nationwide are merely a preference, not a standard mandatory hiring requirement is discussed. Current minimum educational requirements for local and state police agencies and implications for the future of the college-degreed officers are explored. Hiring college-educated candidates in the law enforcement field does not guarantee they will be good officers.Being a police officer is hard and to be successful, you have to want to be a police officer. Individuals who receive the required degree in law enforcement have demonstrated their desire. Desire is something very hard to evaluate, but such an important trait. If all other qualities are equal—the college graduate with a four-year degree in criminal justice or related field should be hired as police officers before one who doesn’t have the degree. Police Chief from department with mandatory degree requirement Introduction and Background The relevance of a college degree for police officers has been debated for decades. Numerous studies have been conducted regarding the importance of the degreed officer, while others have described how a college degree is not an essential or important ingredient for success among police officers. That precise debate—the worth of the bachelor’s degree for police officers is not the focus of this endeavor.The focus here is central to three vital panels’ recommendations from 1967-1974 proclaiming that police officers obtain baccalaureate degree—the President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice, the National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals, and the American Bar Association Project on Standards for Criminal Justice—and why so few local and state police departments have followed suit in requiring tha t police officers hold baccalaureate degrees, as less than 1% of such departments require a four-year degree (Hickman and Reeves, 2006).It is evident that leaders in law enforcement are hesitant to embrace the educational movement. Roberg and Bonn (2004) reiterated the nearly nonexistent numbers of police departments requiring degrees. Although leaders in law enforcement continue to hesitate the implementation of educational requirements (Carlan, 2007; Roberg and Bonn, 2004; Breci, 1997;Remington, 1990), recruitment for college graduates continues to increase. Carlan (2007) examined the worth of the criminal justice degree as valued by police officers and found that In this study, police officers (n=299) with varying levels of experience and riminal justice education revealed positive attitudes concerning the degree’s value with regard to conceptual development for employment purposes. The positive assertions in this study reflect well on the ability of criminal justice progr ams to prepare its clientele for meaningful employment challenges (p. 616). Johnston, Cheurprakobkit, and McKenzie (2002) revealed that law enforcement administrators stressed that the role of education should place importance in aiding police officers with knowledge of the legal aspects of policing as well as report writing, ethics, and procedures.The President’s Commission (1967) reported that without higher educational requirements, quality in police services could not be achieved or attained. However, over forty years later, in 2009, although most police agencies do report that they prefer a college-degreed officer, the majority of police agencies (local, state and special jurisdiction) do not require anything more than a high school diploma or equivalent. Upon reviewing 36 departments that require a four-year degree, this exploratory analysis attempts to reveal and explore the reasoning behind the small number of police departments actually requiring the degree.Results o f this analysis will describe the departments with four-year mandatory degree requirements and characteristics of such departments will include opinions of police chiefs regarding why a college degree is important to police. Qualitative explanations will yield information regarding how explemplary practices of a few departments should serve as role models and guides for departments across the nation in the one-hundred year quest to professionalize the policing field. As the literature suggests, police administrators do prefer police officers to hold a baccalaureate degree, but do not require it.Verrill (2007) called for the need to determine why the select one-percent of local police departments who require the degree actually do so. This study attempts to answer that question. As stated previously, debates pertaining to the usefulness and value of a college degree for police officers have been commonplace in criminal justice literature for decades. However, at the outset, it is unc lear how many police departments actually require a four-year degree and the location of such departments. This lack of clarity is further exemplified by ncertainty as to how many police officers and police agencies there actually are the in U. S. , leads to difficulty in counting police agencies (Maguire, Snipes, Uchida, and Townsend, 1998). Whatever the case, we can be assured that few police agencies (non-federal) actually require a bachelor’s degree. Is the Type of Degree Important? Verrill (2007) described the sparse amount of literature concerning the advantage or worth of a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and whether criminal justice employers give preferentiality to vocational over theoretical degrees or vice versa.Verrill’s study reviewed entry-level educational requirements for criminal justice agencies in Florida, where only two local police departments out of N=261 sampled required a bachelor’s degree. Realistically, Verrill’s sam ple is indicative of local police departments nationwide, as less than one-percent require a bachelor’s degree as a prerequisite for employment. It is unclear at this point, from the literature, whether those one-percent of police departments who require four-year degrees specify which discipline they prefer.This analysis reveals striking information regarding the few police departments that require the degree and their preferences regarding the discipline as well as if they prefer that police candidates have degrees pertaining to either vocational or theoretical orientations. Bostrom (2005) addressed differences in levels of performance and work habits among officers who had obtained Bachelor of Arts degrees and Bachelor of Science degrees, finding that officers with Bachelor of Arts degrees have better work habits (measured by sick time usage, traffic collisions, discipline) than officers with a Bachelor of Science degree.Although results were detailed with caution, as this was an exploratory study at one large police department, Bostrom called for future research in this area. Schafer and Castellano (2005) attempted to extricate the relationships that subsist among work experience, educational background and attitudes toward criminal justice education, once again finding, â€Å"the quality of police service will not significantly improve until higher educational requirements are established for its personnel† (p. 300). Research Questions 1. What is currently known about educational requirements for local and state police departments/agencies? 2.How many police departments (local) have a four-year degree requirement and where are those departments? Who makes up the one-percent of police departments that the literature refers to as requiring four-year degrees? What is the range in size of police departments that have the four-year degree requirement? Are they large departments or small departments? 3. How many departments that have the four-year degree requirement will waive the requirement, and under what conditions can the educational requirement be waived? 4. What are the education levels of chiefs of police in departments that have a four-year degree requirement? . What are the mean starting salaries for the departments that require a four-year degree? Are the starting salaries for police officers in police departments with four-year degree requirements higher than salaries for police officers in departments without four-year degree requirements? 6. Do police chiefs in departments with four-year degree requirements prefer that officers have a degree in criminal justice? 7. Do police chiefs in departments with four-year degree requirements have a preference of vocational (hands-on) orientation rather than an academic (theoretical) orientation? . Have applicant pools increased, decreased or stayed the same since their four-year degree requirement was mandated? 9. Do the police chiefs believe the degree requirement will c hange in time, or will it remain a mandate, with no exceptions? 10. Regarding police departments with the four-year degree requirement, why does their respective department require a four-year degree? 11. Regarding police departments with the four-year degree requirement, why do police chiefs believe so few departments across the nation actually require the degree?Current Knowledge About Educational Requirements for US Police Departments According to the U. S. Department of Justice (2004), there are 12,766 local police departments with 3,067 sheriff’s offices, 49 primary state law enforcement agencies, 1,481 special jurisdiction agencies, and 513 ‘other’ agencies totally 17,876 law enforcement agencies. As of 2003, in a sample of 3000 police departments, 98% of local police departments had an educational requirement for new recruits; 18% had ‘some type’ of college requirement; ine percent required a two-year degree and less than one-percent required a four-year degree (Hickman and Reaves, 2006). Another source, The International Association for Chiefs of Police (2008) announced that 16% of state police agencies require a two-year degree, while four-percent require a four-year degree; 13% of county police agencies require a two-year degree and an unknown percentage of county police agencies require a four-year degree. Nine percent of local police departments require a two-year degree and two-percent require a four-year degree.However, it was unclear the name and location of the departments that required a two or a four-year degree. Furthermore, it is unclear as to where that two-percent was derived. Overall, scarce information is available regarding which departments require a two or a four-year degree. By searching state police agency and state highway patrol websites, it is evident that only three state police departments require officers to hold four-year degrees—Illinois State Police, New Jersey State Police, and Nort h Dakota Highway Patrol. All three agencies, however, will waive educational requirements.Regarding the New Jersey State Police’s minimum qualifications, An applicant must have (1) a bachelor’s degree, signifying completion of the undergraduate curriculum and graduation from an accredited college or university or, (2) alternatively, an associate’s degree or have complete 60 college credits from an accredited college or university, plus at least two years of satisfactory employment, or (3) alternately, have completed 30 college credits from an accredited college or university, plus at least two years of active duty military service with an honorable discharge (http://www. jsp. org/recruit/qual. html). The Illinois State Police has the following minimum educational requirement: Option 1). An Associate of Arts Degree or equivalent coursework and must meet one of the following two job experience requirements: Three consecutive years of continuous, full-time service as a police officer, with the same police agency or three consecutive years of active military duty. Option 2). An Associate Degree of Science or equivalent coursework and meet one of the following two job experience requirements: three onsecutive years of continuous, full-time service, as a police officer, with the same agency or three consecutive years of active military duty. Option 3). An Associate of Applied Science Degree, only if the degree is in Law Enforcement/Criminal Justice and meet one of the following two job experience requirements: Three consecutive years of continuous, full-time service as a police officer, with the same agency, or three consecutive years of active military duty. Option 4). A Bachelor’s Degree (https://www. illinoisstatetrooper. om/requiremnents. html). Lastly, North Dakota Highway Patrol’s minimum educational requirements are: An Associate degree with two years of work-related experience or a Bachelor’s degree (http://nd. gov/n dhp/employment/qualifications. html). Upon review of each state police or state highway patrol website, the following requirements by state were revealed: presently, ten states require an Associate’s Degree or 60 hours of college credit (PA, TX, KY, MN, MO, OK, DE, CN, WI, LA). The remaining states require a high school diploma or equivalent.However, one state– Nevada, stipulates no educational requirement. Out of the 100 largest cities in the United States, only four police departments require a four-year degree (Jacksonville, FL, Arlington, TX. , St. Paul, MN, and Tulsa, OK). Upon looking at the 100 largest police departments in the United States by number of sworn officers (list provided by the Police Executive Research Forum), only 3 of the largest police departments require a four-year degree (New Jersey State Police, Illinois State Police, and Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office).After reviewing each of the 100 largest cities websites, it was determined that 67% of such departments require a police officers to have a high school diploma or equivalent; 6% require a high school diploma plus 12 hours college credit; 4% require between 30-40 hours of college credit, 19% require an Associate’s degree or 60 hours of college credit, with 4% requiring a four-year degree.Again after searching agency websites regarding career opportunities, the percentages were similar upon reviewing the largest 100 departments by number of sworn officers: 68% required a high school diploma or equivalent; 4% required a high school diploma or equivalent plus 12 hours of college credit; 4% required between 30-54 hours of college credits; 21% required an Associate’s degree of 60 hours of college credit, and 3% of the 100 largest police departments (by number of sworn officers) currently require a four-year degree.Once again, even the few that require the degree; the majority will waive the requirement, with certain stipulation—which will be discuss ed. To estimate whether or not the one-percent of police departments with degree requirements were actually large or small departments necessitated reviewing the LEMAS report (2003), concluding that Seventy-four percent (74%) of all local police departments served fewer than 10,000 residents, these agencies employed just 14% of all offices. About half of all officers served a jurisdiction with 100,000 or more residents.While departments serving the largest cities had thousands of officers on average, those serving fewer than 2,500 residents have an average of just four full-time employees, including three sworn officers. The Arguments: Pros and Cons of the College-Educated Police Officer The idea surrounding the purpose of college-educated officers has stemmed from two sources: the alleged importance of professionalism for the police force and to change officer attitudes (Shernock, 1992). Friedmann (2006) made an excellent point,When police officers try to do their job today without a degree, their already difficult task is made more difficult. However, chiefs who mandate the degree requirement should be aware that the transition period—where the police department does not already have a clear majority of officers with degrees—could be difficult. Police officers sometimes resist higher education requirements. Despite this resistance, police officers need higher education for the good of the profession† (p. 23). Chief of Police Hawkins (2006) reiterated his department’s four-year requirement in Burnsville, MN. ,Burnsville’s four-year degree requirement helps recruit big-picture thinkers who are creative, culturally aware, and technically sound in constitutional law, and who look for the best solution to the multitudes of challenges they encounter. An officer’s well-rounded background enhances his or her ability and desire to partner with community members, use the vast resources both the residents and business owners pos sess, and make them part of the problem-solving process. The synergy created between the community and the officers is the basis foundation of Burnsville’s community policing efforts. Friedman, 2006, p. 28). As the debate over the need for an educated police officers has demonstrated contradictory evidence concerning college educated police officers—meaning that although many studies are supportive that officers need a college education, there is also conflicting evidence. Baro and Burlingame (1999) disputed recommendations that officers need a baccalaureate degree to increase levels of police professionalism, stating that officers need no more than a high school diploma or equivalency.Sherman and McLeod (1979) speculated that higher education for officers may be irrelevant because the education officers receive in higher educational institutions is quite similar to training officers receive in police academies. Critics of higher educations believe the â€Å"college-e ducated officers are more likely to become frustrated with their work, with restrictions imposed by supervisors, and with limited opportunities for advancement† (Worden, 1990, p. 567). Hudzick (1978) found that officers with an education place less value on obedience to supervisors and are less satisfied with their careers.Other are concerned that â€Å"college-educated officers will quickly tire of the irregular hours, constant pressures, and relative low pay of policing† (Varricchio, 1988, p. 11). Whetstone (2000) acknowledged that, â€Å"hiring candidates with improved credentials also invites eventual problems such as greater job dissatisfaction and personnel turnover† (p. 247). Kakar (1998) further demonstrated that a college education might decrease officer’s quality of service because police work does not offer opportunities to stimulate the college-educated mind.Furthermore, because police performance measures differ in studies, no real consensus e xists on exactly how police performance should be defined and measured. Carter and Sapp (1990) indicated that regardless of degree requirements, 23% of police officers had obtained a four-year degree and 65% of police officers had at least one year of college. Peterson (2001) gave somewhat higher estimates, in that 30% of police officers sampled from ten medium-sized departments in the Midwest had four-year degrees.Mayo (2006) estimates between 25-30% of police officers have a four-year degree, which realistically nearly mirrors the percentage of U. S. population over age 25 who have obtained a bachelor’s degree. According to the US Census Bureau (2005) 28% of the US population over the age of 25 has obtained a bachelor’s degree, which is an all-time high. Common sense dictates that those percentages of police officers with four-year degrees are representative of the education levels of the communities they serve, if we utilize such figures and that line of reasoning.H owever, the small number of departments requiring degrees necessitates attention to raise awareness to the fact that less than 100 police departments, including special jurisdiction police, state police, county and local police departments mandate degrees, and whether this will change in the future. Little information exists regarding the 1% of police departments that require the four-year degree. Mayo (2006) revealed several case studies of departments with four-year degrees regarding the question of the degree and its importance to the sites’ organizational success in the communities they serve.One of the departments that was highlighted, the Dover Police Department in N. J. , which is now the Toms River Police Department, has changed its language to relax its mandatory four-year requirement, the current ordinance: requires candidates to possess a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university or, the candidate must possess a minimum of 64 college credits combined with two (2) full years of military experience or full time work experience (http://www. rpolice. org/Recruitment. html). Other than a list of departments that require four-year degrees recently made available on-line by the Police Association for College Education, no other list is available to reveal the one-percent of police agencies that require the four-year degree. Unfortunately, many of the departments listed on that site that have a four-year degree requirement no longer have the requirement, but have relaxed it or waived it all together.After contacting all of the departments by email or phone, the following departments on PACE’s list no longer require a four-year degree: Vallejo, CA. ; Boulder, CO. ; Peach Tree, GA. ; Holden, MA. ; St. Cloud, MN. ; Eagan City, MN. ; Borough of Gettysburg, PA. ; Edinboro, PA. ; Appleton, WI. ; Flint, MI. ; Milford, MI. ; Montvale, NJ. ; University Park, TX; Whitefish Bay, WI; and Upper Moreland, NJ. The Chief of Police, Tho mas Nestle, III. , of Upper Moreland, NJ, responded via email that Upper Moreland only requires 60 hours of college credit.Nestel (2009) offered his opinion, via email, as to why the degree requirements was relaxed at his department, The applicant pool that is suited for this position frequently does not possess the educational pedigree you describe (a four-year degree). Law enforcement tends to draw military veterans and sons/daughters of existing officers. Neither group has a high rate of college graduates. Recruiting on college campuses has proven to be very unsuccessful. Policing doesn’t seem to be an appealing direction for the college graduate.In recent years, other departments (Memphis, TN, Plano, TX, Portland, OR) once known to have had a four-year degree requirement, further made national headlines regarding the choice to relax their respective educational requirement. Interestingly, many other police departments were found that were not included in the Police Associ ation for College Education’s (PACE) list regarding police departments that require four-year degrees as of 2006. A massive Internet search was undertaken to locate local police departments that currently require a four-year degree for new patrol officers.Additionally, numerous contacts via telephone to police chiefs and recruits were attempted to uncover additional police departments with four-year degree requirements. However, most of those attempts were unsuccessful for little knowledge exists as to whom the police departments requiring four-year degrees actually were in the U. S. Therefore, it was necessary to rely on departmental websites in attempts to discover who indeed mandated the baccalaureate degree requirement. Problematically, many departmental websites lacked clarity regarding educational requirements.Therefore, if relevant information could not be obtained via websites, many telephone contacts to police departments led to the discovery of 60 local police depar tments, including local police departments and county sheriff offices that require a four-year degree for police officers. However, there are several special jurisdiction police agencies that also require officers to hold a baccalaureate degree and will not waive educational requirements, including the Missouri Department of Conservation (law enforcement) and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.However, special jurisdiction police agency degree requirements are not the focus of this analysis. Sixty police agencies (local and county) were unearthed to indeed have the requirement–Illinois has the greatest number of police departments requiring a four-year degree, with eleven; New Jersey has seven; Ohio has eight; Pennsylvania has six; Michigan has 5; Texas has four; Wisconsin has 4; Colorado has 3; South Carolina has 2; Florida has 2; Minnesota has 2; Oregon, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, and Missouri each have one local police department that has a four-year degr ee requirement.Special jurisdiction police agencies aside, caution however, that of those 60 police departments, only 37 will not waive or relax their educational requirements for any exception. Therefore, there are 37 local police departments that will not waive their educational requirements on any grounds. Table 1 contains the 37 local departments that will not waive educational requirements. Population size, gathered from Sperling’s Best Places (www. bestplaces. net) follow to demonstrate the size of each city in which the respective department is located.Regarding county police departments, population size was not included. Table 1 Note: N=37. This may not be the complete list. However, no other such list is available. Simple computations reveal the Mean for the population size of local police departments with mandatory degree requirements is (X=61,911), with the Median (MD=31,891). Due to the reality that there are so few local police departments mandating degrees, it i s relevant to include examples of specific educational requirements for such departments regarding their policy regarding mandatory four-year degree education requirements in Table 2.Local Police Departments Requiring Four-Year Degrees, No Exceptions Police DepartmentLocationPopulation Size Arvada Police DepartmentCO104,838 Arlington Police DepartmentTX367,197 Bethel Park Police Department PA 31,891 Bloomfield Township Police Department MI 65,796 Canfield Police Department OH 7,061 Centerville Police Department OH 23,046 Cleveland Heights Police Department OH 47,097Deer Park Police Department TX 29,748 Burnsville Police Department MN 59,321 Eatontown Police Department NJ 14,022 Elgin Police Department IL 98,846 Gaston County Police Department NC Flint Township Police Department MI 32,753 Green Tree Borough Police Department PA 4,396 Lakewood Police DepartmentCO140,024 Leonia Police DepartmentNJ 8,799 Mahwah Police DepartmentNJ 24,560 Middleburg Heights Police DepartmentOH 15,237 Mt. Lebanon Police DepartmentPA 5,481 Multnomah County Sheriff’s DepartmentORNaperville Police DepartmentIL140,633 Norton Shores Police DepartmentMI 23,429 Novi Police DepartmentMI 52,621 Owasso Police DepartmentMI 15,388 Palatine Police DepartmentIL 66,596 Platteville Police DepartmentWI 9,748 Pueblo Police DepartmentCO103,730 Peters Township Police DepartmentPA 4,683 Richmond Heights Police DepartmentMO 9,228 Schaumburg Police DepartmentIL 73,890 Smithfield Police DepartmentRI 21,863 South Park Township Police DepartmentPA 14,647 Strongsville Police DepartmentOH 43,347 Sugar Land Police DepartmentTX 79,943 Tulsa Police DepartmentOK385,486 Wheaton Police Department IL 54,611Wilmette Police Department IL 26,737 Table 2 Examples of Educational Specification Per Department That Have Mandatory Four-year Degree Requirements PoliceEducational Requirement Specification Department Arvada PDâ€Å"Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university (final semester seniors are eligible). This requirement will not be waived for any reason† (http://arvadapd. org/join-our-team/requirements/. html). Arlington PDâ€Å"Possess a Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university. Education is not waived for prior military service or prior experience† http://www. rlingtonpd. org/index. asp? nextpg=recruiting/require. asp). Centerville PDâ€Å"Bachelor’s Degree Required† (http://ci. centerville. oh. us/index. php? option=com). Deer Park PDâ€Å"Bachelor’s degree by hire date† (http://www. ci. deer-park. tx. us/department/index. php? fDD=15-0 Eatontown PDâ€Å"Effective September 1, 2008, applicant must have a bachelor’s degree, signifying completion of the undergraduate curriculum and graduation from an accredited college or university† (http://www. nj. com/police/careers. html).Lakewood PDâ€Å"Bachelor’s degree in any discipline—no exceptions† (http://www. ci. lakewo od. co. us/index. cfmp). Tulsa PDâ€Å"Applicants must have completed a Bachelor’s degree with a C+ average or better at an accredited college. No military hours or credits are acceptable unless they are received from or converted through an accredited college† (http:/www. tulsapd. ord/recruiting/requirements. htm Note. This is not an exhaustive list. Examples of Specific Educational Requirements Per Departments Regarding Mandatory Four-Year Degree Education Requirement, With Waiver ExceptionsAs stated previously, only 37 local police departments require a four-year degree with no exceptions allowed. However, 23 other local police departments require a four-year degree, but will waive the requirements with certain exceptions, as do the Illinois State Police and the New Jersey State Police. Therefore, those 23 departments with similar wording or language embedded in their respective specific job requirements or career opportunities containing ‘require a four-year degree, but will relax requirements,’ will be included in departments that require four-year degrees.The Toms River Police Department provides a good example of ‘waiver exceptions,’ The current ordinance requires candidates to possess a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university or the candidate must possess a minimum of 64 college credits combined with two (2) full years of military experience or full-time regular police experience† (http://www. trpolice. org/Recruitment. html). Other specific examples of police department requirements with waivers include: Charleston Police Department, Bachelor’s degree and above or Associate degree with four years of prior law enforcement experience or military experience† (http:www. charlestoncity. info/dept/content. aspx? nid=817&cid=9931). Coral Springs Police Department’s requirements are similar, â€Å"Applicant must possess: A Bachelor’s degree from an accredited c ollege or (4) years law enforcement experience and at least 60 credits from an accredited college, or (4) years military experience and at least 60 credits from an accredited college† (http://www. theblueline. com/feature/Flcoralsprings. html). Other examples include: 1.Highland Park Police Department â€Å"Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university—consideration may be given for applicants who possess at least 60 credit hours† (http://www. hptxorg/index. aspx? page=233). 2. Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office â€Å"Must possess a Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or possess an accredited Associate’s degree or equivalent (60 semester hours/90 quarter hours) with four (4) years prior active military or law enforcement experience or possess 90 semester/135 quarter hours with two (2) years prior active military or law enforcement experience† http:www. coj. net/Departments/Sheriffs+Office/About+ the+JSO/default. htm). 3. Livonia Police Department â€Å"Have been awarded an Associate Degree in Law Enforcement or Public Administration or a Bachelor Degree in any non-Criminal Justice discipline† (http://www. ci. livonia. mi. us/default. asp? area2=departments%2Fcivil+service) 4. Osh Kosh Police Department â€Å"Associate degree—In Criminal Justice/Police Science; Bachelor degree—in any field† (https://wilenet. org/html/employment/showopportunities. jsp). 5. Tinley Park Police Department All applicants must have completed 2 years satisfactory experience as a certified sworn law enforcement officer in the state of Illinois or posses an Associates Degree with at least a C average (or its equivalent) with an emphasis in criminal justice, or possess 60 college credit hours with at least a C average (or its equivalent) with an emphasis in criminal justice, or possess a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree from a four year college or university† (http:www. tinleyparkpolice. org/police. html).Haddon Township Police department is another that was included in the list of police departments that require a four-year degree, however, their exception has somewhat different specifications: â€Å"Applicants must make a pre-employment agreement to achieve a Baccalaureate Degree within eight years from the time of employment. † (http://www. haddontwppolice. com/). Table 3 includes Police Departments that require four-year degrees, with exceptions or waiver conditions. Table 3 Police Departments that Have Four-Year Degree Requirements, With ExceptionsPoliceLocation Departments Bath Police Department OH Bainbridge Township Police Department OH Charleston Police Department SC Cherry Hill Police Department NJ Coral Springs Police Department FL Haddon Township Police Department NJ Highland Park Police Department TX Hinsdale Police Department IL Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office FL Langlade County Sheriff’s Department WI Livonia Poli ce Department MI Kettering Police Department OH Montgomery Township Police Department NJ Osh Kosh Police Department WIPlano Police Department TX Richland County Sheriff’s Office SC River Forest Police Department IL Shaler Police Department PA St. Paul Police Department MN Tinley Park Police Department IL Toms River Police Department NJ (Formerly Dover PD) Vernon Hills Police Department IL Willowbrook Police Department IL Note. N=23. Methodology Regarding the 1% of local police departments that require a four-year degree at the time of hire, it was noted previously that little information exists about the location of such departments.Intensive Internet searches, email and telephone contacts with multitudes of police recruiters and chiefs yielded 60 departments with four-year degree requirements, although only 37 of such departments had mandatory educational requirements resulting in no educational waivers. As it was unclear which department had mandatory requirements at the ou tset, 45 questionnaires were mailed to police chiefs at departments, which were believed to have mandatory requirements.Of those 45 questionnaires mailed, 40 were completed and returned–which was an excellent overall response rate of nearly 89%. Four of those surveys revealed that the departments surveyed did not require the four-year degree requirement; therefore, the results were not utilized. Thirty-six (36) returned questionnaires remained, revealing both important and relevant information about departments with mandatory requirements and were the subjects for this study. Thirty-seven (37) departments overall were found with mandatory requirements.Items on the questionnaires pertained to a wide range of subjects including the year in which such departments implemented their degree requirement; number of sworn officers; the chief’s education level; mean starting salaries for police officers; whether or not police chiefs had a preference in degree discipline; whether the chiefs preferred their officers had degrees that were vocational or theoretical in nature; whether chiefs preferred bachelor or arts degrees over bachelor of science degree; if officers who were hired before the degree requirement was established were required to complete respective degrees; whether they believed the degree requirement would be altered in the future; if applicant pool had increased, decreased or remained the same since the establishment of the degree requirement; the requirement’s impact on minority recruiting, and whether police chiefs believed officers with a college degree perform better than officers without a college degree.Additionally, two questions qualitatively regarding why police chiefs believed their respective departments had the mandatory requirement and why police chiefs believe only 1% of other departments have followed suit in mandating the requirement. Although glaring limitations to this analysis stem from the fact the little informati on exists regarding the reality of those one-percent of police departments that mandate a four-year degree, this is an exploratory step enabling further exploration into this important issue. Ultimately, the future professionalism of the policing field does hinge on raising degree requirements across police departments in America. Although only 36 police chiefs were surveyed, their information speaks volumes as to the need for other departments to follow their lead.As one chief eloquently stated: It is evident that society has become more complex. Problem solving skills along with communication skills are even more important today for police officers. A college education gives a foundation and more importantly legitimizes police work as a profession The instrument utilized has not proven reliable. However, this began a process of raising issues regarding the importance and the future of the college-degreed officer. At the outset, many officers are obtaining four-year degrees regardl ess of whether the degree is required or not. Results Information regarding the analysis of data is organized according to the research questions.For each question, the results are followed by an explanation and discussion of the findings. Only descriptive statistics were utilized, as there was no need for making inferences in this analysis. Eleven research questions were addressed in attempts to determine how departments that require four-year degrees are different from departments that have the requirement, and will waive it, or do not have such requirements. Descriptive data from the surveys revealed that the first department implemented their mandatory degree requirement in 1963. One chief responded, Our degree requirement was implemented in 1990. We changed the entry-level minimum educational requirement from a high chool diploma to a bachelor’s degree over the course of seven years. Research indicates police agencies should require a four-year degree. Table 4 describes the year departments implemented their mandatory degree requirement, with a range from 1963-2008. Table 4 Frequencies and Percentages for the Year Degree Requirements were Implemented Year Degree Requirement Implemented f% 1963 12. 8 1969 38. 3 1975 25. 6 1976 12. 8 1981 12. 8 1984 12. 8 1986 38. 3 1987 12. 8 1990 4 11. 1 1991 12. 8 1992 1 2. 8 1993 12. 8 994 12. 8 1995 12. 8 1996 12. 8 1997 25. 6 1998 38. 3 2000 12. 8 2005 12. 8 2006 1 2. 8 2008 12. 8 Note. N=36 It was apparent from the literature that only three of the largest police departments (by sworn officer) required a four-year degree. Tulsa Police Department is the largest department in this study, with 844 sworn officers. However, Tulsa is not the norm regarding departments with degree requirements and number of sworn officers, as results will show that most police departments with degree requirements have less than 100 sworn officers.However, of the 36 respondents in this particular study, the range of number of sworn of ficers was 15 at the smallest department to 844 sworn officers at the largest department included. The mean number of sworn officers was 127. 20 (SD=171. 46, MD=70). Table 5 illustrates the frequencies and percentages of sworn officers in departments with mandatory degree requirements, demonstrating that most of the departments with the requirement have fewer than 100 sworn officers; 16 departments have fewer than 50 sworn officers. Table 5 Frequencies and Percentages of Number of Sworn Officers in Departments with Mandatory Degree Requirements Number of Sworn Officers f % 1512. 8 2025. 6 2112. 8 212. 8 2512. 8 2712. 8 2912. 8 3112. 8 3412. 8 3725. 6 4012. 8 4312. 8 4612. 8 4812. 8 5412. 8 7025. 6 7212. 8 7412. 8 7512. 8 9812. 8 10312. 8 11225. 6 13712. 8 16012. 8 16512. 8 18912. 8 20012. 8 20512. 8 28212. 8 34012. 8 61512. 8 84412. 8 Note. N=36. Regarding the police chief’s level of education, Table 6 contains the frequencies and percentages associated with levels of educati on broken down into five categories: Associate’s Degree, Bachelor’s Degree; One Master’s Degree; Multiple (2) Master’s Degree’s, and Doctorate Degree. One of the departments where the chief had an Associates degree, the mandatory requirement was implemented in 1981.Furthermore, in all 36 departments surveyed, no officer was on the force without a degree before the educational mandate has implemented was required to obtain a four-year degree. In essence, the grandfather clause was utilized. The same was true with the chief’s who did not meet the degree requirement, as they were not required to meet new degree requirements. Table 6 Police Chief’s Level of Education in Departments with Mandatory Four-Year Degree Requirements Degree Type Earnedf% Associate’s Degree25. 6 Bachelor’s Degree 10 27. 8 One Master’s Degree 22 61. 1 Two Master’s Degrees12. 8 Doctorate Degree12. 8 Note.N=36 Regarding the mean starting s alaries for the departments that require a four-year degree, the mean starting salaries for police officers in police departments with four-year degree requirements are higher than salaries for police officers in departments without four-year degree requirements. City data was additionally gathered (www. bestplaces. net) regarding median household income for the 37 original locations of departments with mandatory degree requirements. The median household income for city residents pertaining to this sample was $61,330. According to the U. S. Census Bureau (2008) the median household income reached $50,233 in 2007.Therefore, it was likely that mean starting salaries for police officers in these locations would also be higher. According to one police chief surveyed: It’s all about tradition, size of city and location. The Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics On-line (2006) states that the mean starting salary for police officers ranging from populations from 10,000 to over 1,000,000 was $38,569. As shown in Table 7, the mean starting salaries for police officers in police departments with mandatory four-year degree requirements was quite higher. A striking example of this is illustrated in one chief’s words, Thirty-nine percent of our residents over the age of 25 have an advanced collegiate degree.Our population is 27,000. Our residents are university professors, attorneys, medical doctors, CEO’s. Our village is considered upper class economically and home values are quite high. Many well-known people live here. Our police officers are comfortable inter-acting in our residents’ homes, even on the most sensitive matters. We don’t feel inferior. We belong here. Our residents value us. The four-year degree requirement helps us significantly in recruiting. We provide an average of more than 100 hours of training annually to our officers. Our ‘brand’ is that we are the ‘education and training’ departmen t. This has been very effective for us. Table 7Means and Other Statistics Concerning Salaries for Police Officers in Departments With Mandatory Four-Year Degree Requirements Starting Salary Mean $47,222 Median $46,786 Mode $40,000 SD $6,024 Minimum $34,901 Maximum $58,931 Note. N=36. Only two of the departments surveyed required that officer possess a four-year degree in Criminal Justice or Law Enforcement. It is common that police departments requiring Associate’s degrees are specifically looking for their police candidates to have an Associate’s degree in Criminal Justice or a closely related field. However, upon surveying police chiefs in departments with mandatory four-year degree requirements, only seven or 19. 4% preferred criminal justice or closely related degrees. Seventy-five ercent (75%) of police chiefs in this study believed that a four-year degree in any discipline was acceptable. Two police chiefs in this sample were uncertain as to whether they preferre d a criminal justice degree to a degree in any other discipline. When asked whether the police chiefs preferred a practical/vocational degree or a degree that was theoretical/academic in nature, or if they had no preference, the majority (63. 9%) of chiefs had no preference–either orientation was acceptable, stating that was precisely the four-year degree in itself that mattered. Table 8 illustrates the frequencies and percentages of practical versus theoretical orientations. Table 8Frequencies and Percentages of Degree Orientation Preference: Practical v. Theoretical Degree Orientation Preferencef% Prefer practical/vocational orientation822. 2 Prefer theoretical/academic orientation411. 1 No preference, either acceptable 2363. 9 Uncertain 1 2. 8 Note. N=36. The results of this study lend little support either way to Bostrom’s (2005) finding. Although several police chiefs could break down the percentage of their officers who had a Bachelor of Arts degree or Bachelor o f Science degree, only one respondent believed that officers with a Bachelor of Science perform better than officers with a Bachelor of Arts degree.Seventy-five (75%) or 27 police chiefs believed there is no difference in work habits or performance regarding whether an officer has a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree. The remaining respondents (25%) were uncertain as to whether there was a true difference among the types of degree. Whatever the case, a common theme emerged, We believe the quality of our officers and the services provided are enhanced by a better-educated workforce. Policing is an extremely complex profession, requiring individuals who can apply abstract concepts within difficult situations. We can also assign more complex duties to our officers. Table 9 reviews the police chief’s opinions regarding the future of the degree requirement, and whether they believed it would be altered in the future.It was clearly apparent that in these departments, th e degree requirement is a fixed quality. Table 9 Chiefs’ Opinions Regarding the Future of Their Degree Requirement Future Expectations f% Expect to retain requirement Indefinitely3391. 7 Expect requirement to be altered In future 2 5. 6 Uncertain 1 2. 8 Note. N=36. We hope to keep our degree requirement forever. With the high percentage of college graduates in today’s society, I don’t believe this requirement is unreasonable. It’s our goal to continue to pursue the ‘most qualified’ applicants for our police department. Many police departments are hesitant to adopt a mandatory educational requirement due to fears that applicant pools will dwindle if requirement is enforced.According to this sample, nearly 64% of police chiefs reported that their respective applicant pools have indeed decreased due to their educational mandate. However, others felt different. The four-year degree requirement has served us well. We typically receive about 70 app licants for every 1-3 openings we try to fill. All of which have the four-year degree and either enrollment or completion of the police academy. Another responded in a way to overcome the issue of lower applicant pools, cautioning a reason why this will not happen at large, Yes, the requirement decreases this applicant pool. In my opinion, for a department to have an educational requirement such as ours, a strong recruitment effort is necessary.We recruit over 15 northern Ohio colleges that have law enforcement majors programs to get an adequate number of participants to take our civil service tests. That is an expensive endeavor, one that most cities won’t make. † Table 10 reviews police chief’s opinions regarding application pools and their particular educational requirement. Table 10 Stability of Application Pools in Police Departments with Mandatory Four-Year Degree Requirement Level of Police Applicants f% Application pool has increased With degree requireme nt25. 6 Application pool has decreased With degree requirement 23 63. 9 Application pool has stayed the same 10 27. 8 Uncertain 12. 8 Note. N=36.One of the predominant reasons offered as to why more police departments do not have a mandatory degree requirement is that enforcing such a mandate would have a negative impact on recruiting. One chief replied, it’s ‘politically correct’ to lower education standards to avoid the wrath of the special interest-minority groups who wish to lower educational standards to increase the minority population in the applicant pool. Table 11 describes frequencies and percentages of police chiefs’ opinions regarding their requirement’s impact on minority recruiting. Interestingly, only 11% of respondents believed the requirement had a positive impact on recruiting minorities.Two interesting responses emerged regarding the process of calming the regarded negative impact on recruiting: If I can keep the requirement a few more years, we will have a majority of officers with degrees and there will be less internal pressure to lower standards. As long as we hire a significant percentage of minorities, there will be less claims of adverse impact—nine are female, five are Hispanic. We will evolve to the point that candidates for promotion with degrees are more likely to get the appointment. Lack of applicant pool and minorities. While this is true, it can be overcome. We have fewer applicants, but they are higher quality. Our recruitment methods continually change to reach our target audience. We work with many minority groups to reach out to minority populations. One respondent was adamant regarding this issue,The minority community that believes there would be an ‘adverse impact. ’ There isn’t. Table 11 Requirements Impact on Recruiting Minorities Level of Impact f % Requirement has had a positive Impact on recruitment of Minorities411. 1 Requirement has had a negative impac t on recruitment of minorities1027. 8 Requirement has had no impact on recruitment of minorities1130. 6 Uncertain 1130. 6 Note. N=36. Another important issue addressed concerns that highly relevant debate: Does a college degree make for a better police officer? The answer to that question among the 36 police chiefs was not unanimous, but the majority (80. 6%) indeed believed that officers with a degree perform better.In efforts to once again address this century-old debate, Table 12 describes the realities of police chiefs’ opinions on this theme. Table 12 Do Officers with a College Degree Perform Better? Police Chief’s Opinions f% Yes, officers with a degree perform better2980. 6 No, officers with a degree do not perform better 411. 1 Uncertain 3 8. 3 Note. N=36. In an attempt to dig deeper into the above issues and subjects, a qualitative approach was utilized to uncover themes predominant to this analysis. Although important descriptive information has been revealed , few attempts have been taken to qualitatively explore the two important issues relevant here—opinions of police chiefs from that one-percent of police departments with mandatory degree requirements.Herein, two final questions needed exploration: Why do their departments actually have their mandatory degree requirement and why they believe so few departments actually require the degree? After careful thought and consideration, they shared their opinions and beliefs—those of which should be held in high regard, as they are the select few who have shown to be pioneers in their concrete efforts to bring about professionalism to the policing field. Police Chief’s Explanations as to Why Their Respective Departments Have the Four-Year Degree Requirement Aside from stern recommendations encouraging police administrators and community leaders to adopt educational standards,Our department adopted the requirement based Carter, Sapp and Stephens findings and the recommend ations of the 1967 Presidential Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals that said that a four-year degree should be required by all law enforcement by 1981 six themes emerged from analyzing the data regarding why these departments actually have the degree requirement. 1. It is our tradition and part of our institutional, organizational and community culture and we are valued. It’s our tradition. We are the only agency in the state that still requires a four-year degree. We have always required this and I believe we hire exemplary people with more maturity and a strong sense of direction than those without the degree. It’s really a huge part of our culture. We hope to keep our four-year educational degree requirement forever.With the high percentage of college graduates in today’s society, I don’t believe this requirement is unreasonable. It’s our goal to continue to pursue the ‘most qualified’ applicants for our dep artment One of the best things I did 17 years ago was to convince the governing body to pass the four-year degree requirement. Since then the department has hired 140 of our 160 officers (bright, educated and professional). After becoming Chief in 1992, I felt strongly that this would have a very positive impact on the department and it has. Very well-respected, very few discipline problems or concerns. 2. The degree carries with it a level of expertise, knowledge and perseverance that represent us in our communities well.The requirement for a bachelor’s degree generally assures that an applicant can read and write; has been exposed to complex written materials requiring some level of analysis; has developed some level of critical thinking and communication skills, and has achieved at least some measurable relatively long-term goal in their lifetime. A bachelor’s degree limits the number of applicants who, most probably, would not be selected anyway. It also increases the quality of the applicant pool (education-level wise), which makes for a better police officer and increases the minimum age of the applicants, making them more experienced in life. It also shows that you have people at the very least, had the ‘stick-to-it-ivness’ to persevere through four years of college. It also eliminates the need for education reimbursement for officers pursuing bachelor’s degrees. We believe that it provides us with a more mature, well-rounded and worldly candidate who has more experience interacting with many different people from all walks of life† 3. Education levels of the police force should mirror the education level of the communities they serve. To reflect the demographics of the community we serve. According to the Census, Wilmette has one of the highest education levels in America. We want to be representative of those we serve in race, gender, education level and foreign language. This is also a successful strategy for m aintaining high salaries and benefits. We wanted to ensure our police officers’ education level closely mirrored the education level and demographics of our community. Over 70% of adult residents in our community have a bachelor’s degree. 4.A belief in excellence and quality—the degree makes a difference in performance. The department instituted this educational requirement in 1993 due to the belief that educated officers will be better decision makers and have better communication skills, both in oral and written form Department belief of excellence—higher quality of service to community, being leaders in profession Quality candidate, self-thinking and less supervision. Enhanced knowledge, skills and abilities as well as communications skills (oral and written); critical thinking and analytical skills; broader viewpoints; more tolerant; foundation of criminal justice concepts; self-discipline; and time management.We believe that a better educated work-fo rce is necessary in dealing with the public and are higher educated. We also believe that education enhances communication skills which are necessary in police work. A higher educated person is a more rounded individual, which leads to a better police officer To have a better qualified work force 5. A belief that the mandatory degree promotes professionalism both in their communities and for the entire police field. We believe that this should be the standard if we are to continue to develop and promote a professional police organization Academics have pushed our department to a new level of professionalism and innovationTo significantly improve the quality of police services via intelligent, articulate and professional personnel To establish professional standards at entry-level We are located in a city with a university with a strong criminal justice program. We have several members of our police and fire commission who are affiliated with the university. The four-year degree requ irement enhances our professionalism. 6. Officers with a college degree are more mature and have stronger goal- reaching abilities. I feel that a person demonstrates his/her desire to be a police officer by completing four year of study in criminal justice. They prove not only a strong desire to become a police officer, but possess the ability to set a goal and achieve it.It also demonstrates that ability to learn. That is why a four-year bachelors degree in criminal justice, criminology or law enforcement exists. It is specific to those who set a goal for law enforcement and achieve it. Increases odds of mature/smart candidate. Maturity, dedication, experience and age of applicants are more suitable for employment. Police Chief’s Explanations as to Why They Believe So Few Departments in the U. S. Actually Require a Four-Year Degree Only three out of the 36 police chiefs surveyed stated that they were not satisfied with their department’s educational policy. However, o ver 90% were satisfied with their departmental policies requiring college degrees.Aside from the following two realities many police leaders encounter–one being that the college degree is not mandated as a requirement by most licensing boards, and it may be prevented because of civil service regulations–five themes emerged regarding police chiefs explanations as to why they believe so few departments actually require degrees: 1. It’s all about money and over-all job satisfaction that one perceives a college-degree should bring. We have issues retaining officers and we frequently lose them to higher paying positions outside the field of policing. University instructors, technical school instructors, social work have all been attractive to our officers.Governments are reluctant to pay the higher wages for an applicant with a degree. Most agencies cannot pay adequate salaries for advanced degrees. Higher degreed people are not satisfied being a police officer. Mone y. Most departments cannot afford to start our a patrol officer at what a college graduate could make It certainly can hurt the applicant pool, depending on the salary Possibly they believe their pay-rates are not high enough to attract college graduates. Lack of pay for many smaller agencies 2. The degree requirement decreases applicant pools. Although some did not agree, the majority of police chiefs surveyed stated their department’s mandatory degree equirement has reduced applicant pools. It reduces the pool of potential applicants at a time when suitable applicants are hard to find. There remains a high percentage of law enforcement executives and government officials who believe a four-year degree is not a necessity in preparing an individual for a law enforcement career. Because of the difficulty in finding a sufficient number of qualified candidates Reduction in applicant pool is significant 3. The chiefs in this studied strongly valued education, however education ov erall is under-valued in policing. Most chiefs say they value education, but stop short of making it a requirement. Education is under-valued in policing.The four-year degree requirement make recruiting tougher and it creates challenges for retaining personnel. † I still believe that the majority of police leaders are, as a law-enforcement culture, anti-education for police officers 4. Police leaders who have not attained a college degree may not find one necessary. Therefore, this presents itself as a great challenge, one of increasing overall education standards. Administrators may not believe a college degree is necessary, especially if they have not earned one

Friday, September 27, 2019

Essay One Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

One - Essay Example One can connect the relationship between faith and reason to a couple’s relationship. There would be sides of stories but for a relationship to work, one party should make an effort to recompense if both parties would want the relationship to succeed. This is very relatable to faith and reason, throughout the centuries; the worlds of religion and science have collided without any signs of slowing down. Yet both John Locke and St. Thomas Aquinas believe that faith is a kind of reason. Reading through the works of both Lock and St. Aquinas, both have seemed to suggest that faith can be considered as reason. Even for some from the religious sect, they are using faith in giving reasons as far as miracles or unexplainable occurrences (Tavani, 2-4; Nash, 58). Religion often uses the faith of their most loyal devotees in reasoning about the existence of things which are intangible and cannot be justified by any scientific methods. With such statement being said there is an aspect of religion that is also a part of a feature of science. One point that can be considered by the belief of both Locke and Aquinas is that it can also be reversible. Reason can also be a species of faith. It is not just a one-way relationship. Just what has been stated earlier, faith and reason can be compared to a relationship where one party can complement the other. One party may not always be correct but the other would complement its shortcomings to make the relationship work. Reason may not always have concrete values and scientific explanations yet people who have heard the reason could believe in it and therefore result in having faith in the reason whether or not it has intangible supporting facts which may or may not be resolved any further (Tavani, 3-5) . Locke believes that the scriptures have no role in divine right but rather deep thoughts on the absence of

Thursday, September 26, 2019

An Earthquake Report Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

An Earthquake Report - Assignment Example Because the coast was just above the lower edge of the rupture area along the interplate boundary, it moved towards the east up to 4 meters while the coastline went lower by about 0.5 meters. (USGS) Media coverage of the catastrophe showed the damage which included cars being washed away, fires, infrastructure being destroyed and a leak from an atomic power plant in the area. I can only imagine how it is like to feel an earthquake. In my opinion, the media coverage on this particular earthquake was quite accurate. Although the only technical data most media companies had shared was the magnitude of the earthquake, how great the extent of the damage was and where the tremor originated, the numbers together with the footage were enough for me to understand the significance of this disaster for Japan. The words used in the reports appropriately described the effects of the earthquake and tsunami. The photos and videos shown were actual circumstances which told the truth to audiences who would not have time to read the

Fighting Violent Religious through Self-Governance and Economic Research Paper

Fighting Violent Religious through Self-Governance and Economic - Research Paper Example Both air and ground bombardments of the extremist groups and toppling of the extremist regimes like the previous Saddam Hussein government have failed in ending religious extremist violence. This paper will discuss the origins of the extremist groups and offer solutions to ending religious extremist violence (James and Mason 10). II. Background and history of religious extremism Unlike the popular beliefs, religious extremism and violence is not an element of any religion. Although Islam religion has Jihad, the religion prohibits the use of violence and terrorism. The root cause of religious extremism is false radical doctrines that cause frustration and anger among the extremists. Religious extremist groups are willing to use violence to maintain the status quo. Unfortunately, America has numerous hate groups and religious extremists that are always willing to use violence to achieve their terrorism objectives. Religious extremist groups make powerful denunciation of people with dif ferent lifestyles and dehumanize the non-believers in their religion. These groups make idealizations of past eras and devalue the events of the world since they intensely focus on life after death. These groups try to maintain the traditional roles of women and use violence to those who disagree with their beliefs. One common belief of all religions is the purpose of preservation of human life and living according to the will of God. Islam is committed to attaining peace through commitment to God’s will. Muslim Brotherhood, the most influential political organization in the Muslim world, has embraced radical ideologies by asserting that the Arab world is currently corrupted by Western influences. Modern Islamic extremist groups include Hamas, Hezbollah and Al-Qaeda. Islamic extremist has been triggered by the US occupation of Iraq, the globalization of the Western culture and the ongoing Palestinian-Israel conflicts where countries dominated by Christianity beliefs are suppo rting Israel in the occupation of the contested regions (James and Mason 40). Christian extremist groups also exist with the objective of using violence against members of other religions in order to transform the US to a biblical law government. Christian extremists groups have in the past used violence against citizens who live against the biblical teachings like gay people, pro-abortion groups and stem cell researchers. The goal of the Christian extremist groups is to impose their moral values in the US constitution and eventually create a â€Å"Christian America† that is ruled by Christianity beliefs and teachings. The aftermath of the Holocaust that claimed the lives of more than 6 million Jews led to the formation of Jewish religion extremist groups. The clash of cultures and faith between the extremist Muslims and extremist Christians has threatened the global peace since numerous terrorism attacks have been facilitated by the extremist groups. Islamic extremist groups have the objective of dismantling democratic governance and capitalist ideas and replace them with communist values. The return of the Palestinian State to Muslims and the total destruction of Israel is one of the objectives of religious extremism in the Israel-Palestinian crisis. Religious extremism is a part of the greater social problems experienced in the society. Historically, Islam religion was peaceful due to excellent living conditions and flourishing economies. Christians

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Environmental Engineering Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Environmental Engineering - Essay Example Pesticides are used widely for domestic purposes such as rat killers, mosquito and ant repellents etc. In agricultural sector, pesticide became a main aspect for improving yields. They are used to control insects, weeds, fungal diseases in plants. Pesticides are also used to kill rats, flies which destroy crops and to prevent food from being contaminated. The pesticide era started before 2000 B.C. Around 4500 years ago, ancient Sumerians used elemental sulphur, Compounds of Arsenic, Lead, and Mercury was applied in 15th century. The tobacco product, nicotine sulphate was used in 17th century. Natural products such as pyrethrum and rotenone are obtained from chrysanthemums and vegetables respectively. In 1890s, Lead Arsenate and compounds of di-nitro phenol were used. The 20th century saw introduction of many pesticides such as Arsenic compounds, sulphur products, cyanides and nicotine compounds. In 1932, ethylene was first used as plant growth regulator to promote flowering in pineap ples. In 1939, DDT was discovered. DDT was a powerful insecticide. During 1960, herbicides based on lead and nitrogen, carboxylic acids such as di-chloro phenoxy acetic acid etc. were used. The 20th century saw the use of large amount of pesticides. The developing countries are still using increased amount of pesticides for pest control and crop yield. Every advantage has a disadvantage associated with it. Use of pesticides for crop yield and killing of pests in turn affected the environment, wild life and humans. The use of pesticide increased enormously in 20th century. It was discovered traces of DDT was found in many fish-eating birds and it hindered their reproduction. This was the finding which shocked the world because it hindered bio-diversity. Even though DDT was banned in some nations, it is still used in developing countries as an insecticide. The uses of pesticides cause problems

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Can managers develop the 'culture' of their organisations Critically Essay

Can managers develop the 'culture' of their organisations Critically discuss - Essay Example It is only logical that organizations and companies have good managers that management can be termed efficient.4 In light with this, organizations or companies could develop their own culture where they have unique management system that is different from other. Such kind of management ensures that the top management does not necessary have to follow the usual protocol of management.5 In fact, some of the best rated companies in terms of management are that have developed their own culture in working and dealing with their employees. Simply, they have better working conditions and the employees are motivated in numerous ways as compared to other organizations or companies. Of importance to note is that, organization culture entails behaviours that are prevailing beliefs, practises and thought. Some of these fundamentals might deter the improvement of an organization if leaders and managers do not embark on a program to support this improvement.6 It is worthwhile that for this to be a chievable, certain strategies must put in place. These strategies entail employment relationship, theory and practise, finding alternative ways to high performance in work places, transformation of personnel roles to fit the current management programme, over and above, the impact of human resource management in an organization.7 Employment Relationship Employment relationship is a legal term that is used globally to denote the relationship between the employee and the employer under certain conditions that incorporate remuneration. Through this employment relationship, rights and obligations are created between employee and employers.8 Apparently, this relationship continues to facilitate a route in which employees are could be able to access their rights and benefits associated with employment in respect to labour laws and social security. In general, employment relationship is the periphery of determining the origin and extent in which employers are mandated to treat their employ ees.9 Of importance to note is that, this relationship has drastically changed with reference to the labour market. Some of the new forms of relationships that are being created have loopholes especially on the increasing number of employees whose employment status is unclear. With numerous labour institutions working on the need for standardization, it is evident that an employment relationship is crucial to both the employees and employers. 10Consequently, an organization or company must be able to handle this kind of relationship with ultimate care to ensure that it carries the best of interest from either side.11 For instance, any organization should ensure that all its employees have clear employment details in respect of the International Labour law and any other law that is applicable.12 Their rights as human beings and workers should be respected at all cost. Through this, organization is certain of embracing it own culture that could be different from firms, organizations a nd companies that do not embrace the employment relationship.13 Empowerment, Theory and Practise Employment theories and practises are crucial plan

Monday, September 23, 2019

Phenomenology approach Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Phenomenology approach - Research Paper Example Its effects in academics and hands’ dependent activities hinder the victims’ performance levels and therefore put them at a disadvantage as compared to normal people (Nicholls and Jones, 2012). This research explores effects of technology in empowering people with fine motor skill disabilities in graphic design and is significant because an identified association will add value to the victims’ lives as well as to the scope of graphic design. The research explores the following question, The research’s sample consists of college students who have been diagnosed with the disability, their parents, and their lecturers. Students will be identified from their respective college health record and their parents and lecturers identified. This will form a sample space that will then be selected, randomly, to generate 27 participants with at least 11 students. Data will be collected through personal observations and interviews. Both data collection tools will be used to collect data from the students while interviews will be used to collect data from the sampled parents and lecturers. Observation will involve witnessing the students’ attitude towards technological aids for graphic designs and their achieved success in design under the technological aids while interviews will involve experiences with the students’ interactions with the aids (Johnson and Chrisensen,

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Problems of Unemployment in India Essay Example for Free

Problems of Unemployment in India Essay India as a nation is faced with massive problem of unemployment. Unemployment can be defined as a state of worklessness for a man fit and willing to work. It is a condition of involuntary and not voluntary idleness. Some features of unemployment have been identified as follows: 1.The incidence of unemployment is much higher in urban areas than in rural areas. 2.Unemployment rates for women are higher than those for men. 3.The incidence of unemployment among the educated is much higher than the overall unemployment. 4.There is greater unemployment in agricultural sector than in industrial and other major sectors. Economists and social thinkers have classified unemployment into various types. Generally unemployment can be classified in two types: (1) Voluntary unemployment In this type of unemployment a person is out of job of his own desire doesnt work on the prevalent or prescribed wages. Either he wants higher wages or doesnt want to work at all. It is in fact social problem leading to social disorganization. Social problems and forces such as a revolution, a social upheaval, a class struggle, a financial or economic crisis a war between nations, mental illness, political corruption mounting unemployment and crime etc. threaten the smooth working of society. Social values are often regarded as the sustaining forces of society. They contribute to the strength and stability of social order. But due to rapid social change new values come up and some of the old values decline. At the same time, people are not is a position to reject the old completely and accept the new altogether. Here, conflict between the old and the new is the inevitable result which leads to the social disorganization in imposed situation. In economic terminology this situation is voluntary unemployment. (2) In voluntary unemployment In this type of situation the person who is unemployed has no say in the matter. It means that a person is separated from remunerative work and devoid of wages although he is capable of earning his wages and is also anxious to earn them. Forms and types of unemployment according to Hock are. a.Cyclical unemployment This is the result of the trade cycle which is a part of the capitalist system. In such a system, there is greater unemployment and when there is depression a large number of people are rendered unemployed. Since such an economic crisis is the result of trade cycle, the unemployment is a part of it. b.Sudden unemployment When at the place where workers have been employed there is some change, a large number of persons are unemployed. It all happens in the industries, trades and business where people are employed for a job and suddenly when the job has ended they are asked to go. c.Unemployment caused by failure of Industries In many cases, a business a factory or an industry has to close down. There may be various factors responsible for it there may be dispute amongst the partners, the business may give huge loss or the business may not turn out to be useful and so on. d.Unemployment caused by deterioration in Industry and business In various industries, trades or business, sometimes, there is deterioration. This deterioration may be due to various factors. In efficiency of the employers, keen competitions less profit etc. are some of the factors responsible for deterioration in the industry and the business. e.Seasonal unemployment Certain industries and traders engage workers for a particular season. When the season has ended the workers are rendered unemployed. Sugar industry is an example of this type of seasonal unemployment. The problem of unemployment has becoming a colossal. Various problems have caused this problem. There are individual factors like age, vocational unfitness and physical disabilities which restrict the people. External factors include technological and economic factors. There is enormous increase in the population. Every year India adds to her population afresh. More than this every year about 5 million people become eligible for securing jobs. Business field is subject to ups and downs of trade cycle and globalization. Economic depression or sick industries are often close down compelling their employees to become unemployed. Technological advancement contributes to economic development .But unplanned and uncontrolled growth of technology is causing havoc on job opportunities. The computerization and automation has led to technological unemployment. Strikes and lockouts have become inseparable aspect of the industrial world today. Due to these industries often face economic loses and production comes down. Since workers do not get any salary or wages during the strike period they suffer from economic hardships. They become permanently or temporarily unemployed. Today young people are not ready to take jobs which are considered to be socially degrading or lowly. Our educational system has its own irreparable defects and its contribution to the unemployment is an open truth.Our education does not prepare the minds of young generation to become self-employed on the contrary it makes them dependent on government vacancies which are hard to come. Our State right from the beginning of Five year plans has introduced several employment generating schemes and programmes over the years but in the absence of proper implementation and monitoring have failed to achieve the required targets. Recently UPA Government has come up with Rural Employment Guarantee program which aims to provide minimum days of employment to people living in the villages. This is a laudable programme if implemented sincerely because it will provide employment to people during natural calamities like drought, floods etc. The remedial measures for reducing unemployment may lay greater emphasis on creation of opportunities for self -employment, augmentation of productivity and income levels of the working poor, shift in emphasis from creation of relief type of employment to the building up of durable productive assets in the rural areas and instead of attempting to revert somewhat to protectionist policies the pace of privatization may be accelerated.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Developing Equality And Safety In The Workplace

Developing Equality And Safety In The Workplace Agenda Item A:Â  Occupational Safety And Health; Advancing Physical And Psychological Conditions Of The Work Environments Working in a safe and healthy environment is among the fundamental human rights of all working people in the World. In this regard, occupational safety and health issues, protection strategies as well as national and international events are of vital importance for employees, enterprises, societies and economies. Occupational Safety and Health is directly related to human life. Thus, it is highly important to prevent work-related hazards and creating safe workplace for the international community. In a working place where comprehensive protective and preventive strategies have been developed, number of work related accident and occupational diseases will decreases. Therefore, aim should be minimize unintended hazards. These workplace hazards can be named as followings; Physical and mechanical hazards, Biological and chemical hazards, Psychosocial hazards. Especially workers who work on the fields of construction, agriculture, service and Mining and oil gas extraction sector, have much tendencies to encounter with these hazards International Organizations such as InternatÄÂ ±onal Labour Organization, World Health Organizations and United Nations etc. have been working to advance the conditions of work environments by forcing conventions and acts. Since it’s establishment ILO has attached specific importance to the issue of OHS and regarded it as one of the building stones in achieving social justice. The ILO has so far adopted a series of conventions and recommendations in order to eliminate risks and hazards in working life and in this context, to protect both workers and enterprises. The most relevant ILO Conventions regarding OHS are No.155 on OSH, No.161 on Occupational Health Services, No 81 on Labour Inspection and No.187 on the Promotional Framework for Occupational Safety and Health. The ILO Constitution sets principles that workers should be protected from sickness, disease and injury arising from their employment. Yet for millions of workers, the reality is very different. Some two mil lion people die every year from work-related accidents and diseases. An estimated 160 million people suffer from work-related diseases, and there are an estimated 270 million fatal and non-fatal work-related accidents per year. According to latest ILO data every year 337 million people fall victim to work accidents. El Salvador’s economy was predominantly agricultural until industry rapidly expanded in the 1960s and ’70s. Despite its traditional concentration on agriculture, after that era state industrialized quickly and although it’s the smallest country in Central America geographically, El Salvador had the third largest economy in the region. This sudden change caught state unbalanced about workers’ protection so that Occupational Health and Safety measurements hadn’t been taken so far properly. Because of the fact that a large part of the population was engaged in hazardous activities such as agriculture, deaths and injuries took a particularly heavy toll. With Mauricio Funesgovernment, El Salvador made some legislative arrangements in order to meet the needs of labour market. Existence and persistence of the balance in working life and well beings of workers at work depend on supporting decent work and increasing registered employment. The Ministry of Labour and Social Prevision in cooperation with related ministries and representatives of workforce played the key role in improving occupational health and safety in the country. To determine the prevalence and nature of occupational injuries among workers in Latin America, as well as to identify factors that predict these work-related injuries, El Salvador participated in a joint program with other Latin America states. With this concept, II Hemispheric Workshop on Occupational Health and Safety was initiated by the Ministry of Labor and Social Prevision of El Salvador. It was co-organized by the Department of Social Development and Employment of the Organization of American States (OAS), the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO), the International Labor Organization (ILO) and FUNDACERSSO, and it was funded by the Labor Program of Human Resources and Skills Development Canada. Yet, children workers are still the main problem on the field of OHS. Between 5,000 and 30,000 Salvadoran children, some as young as 8 years old, are working in El Salvadors sugarcane plantations where injuries, particularly severe cuts and gashes, are common, according to theHuman R ights Watch (HRW) report even tough Salvadoran law indicated that 18 is the minimum age for dangerous work. For a long time ensuring widespread awareness on OSH has been the main objective for El Salvador. El Salvadoran government puts a great efforts to decrease work-related injuries and causalities. Programs, to achieve this idea, have been developed very recently and some of them are still ongoing. According to us, advancing multidimensional conditions of workplaces would be accelerated by way of supporting efforts on these issues at national and international platforms by sharing practices via international programs and events. Agenda Item B:Â  Elimination of Discrimination in Workplaces Discrimination is a negative judgment toward a persons gender, age, religion, race, nationality, sexual preference or height and is a huge problem that can be found worldwide inside and outside of the workplace. On account of the fact that a large number of governments passes laws that make discrimination illegal, employers must follow these laws when hiring employees and employees must act in these law’s framework. But even with rules in place, many people still fall victim to discrimination at workplaces. There have been numerous legislative movements to ban discrimination’s every shape. One of the most important act was Civil Rights of Act 1964 which outlawed and prohibited discrimination by covered employers on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national. International organizations such as International Labour Organization and United Nations have been setting their agendas by considering discrimination, especially discrimination in workplaces. While everyone is a potential victim; women, LGBT’s, ethnic minorities, migrants, persons with disabilities constitute majority of discrimination victims in workplaces. As a supporter of this argument, Human Development Report in 2011 revealed that 52 percent of non-Hispanic whites expressed anti Hispanic attitudes towards their co-workers in U.S. Gaining independence from Spain in 1821, El Salvador’s more recent history has been marked by a bitter civil war in the 1980s which left more than 75,000 people dead and 500,000 displaced. The country was then hit by a series of natural disasters in the 1990s and 2000s, which left more than a million people homeless. These occurrences made the state impotent and unstabilized. Thus, Salvadoran authorities have not adopted the findings and recommendations made by UN and ILO bodies in the field of discrimination in workplaces between those years properly. But after 2000 to present, El Salvador has shown an incredible improvement to ban all forms of discrimination, especially during presidency of Carlos Mauricio Funes Cartagena. As a first step on this area on August 19, 1981, El Salvador ratified the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), which defines discrimination and establishes an agenda for national action to end such discrimination. In 1996, prior to the Committees review of El Salvadors compliance with CEDAW, the government of El Salvador established the Institute for Development of Women. The Institute seeks to ensure that action plans created by the government to protect women are implemented effectively. Yet these amendments were not enough. Althoughwomen inEl Salvadorenjoy equal protection under the law, they were often at a disadvantage relative to their male counterpart according to Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in 2001.Also as indicated in Human Development Report the femalelabor force participation ratein El Salvador was 45.9 percent, compared to the male rate of 76.7 percent. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT)persons inEl Salvadorhad been facing legal challenges in workplaces. No national law does exist to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, although the law prohibited discrimination on the basis of HIV/AIDS status, in practice, discrimination was widespread. All in all, there was discrimination against women, persons with disabilities, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender persons, and indigenous people at workplace and there weren’t adequate provisions or codes to eliminate discrimination. When calendars showed 2001, El Salvadoran President and his government started to take steps to foresee any legal or constitutional challenges to resolve the problems highlighted in a UN general assemblyreporton discrimination at workplaces. Also ensured those rights would strengthen the constitution of El Salvador. The Secretariat for Social Inclusion, created in June 2009 by President Funes, who named the first lady Vanda Pignato as secretary, made efforts to overcome traditional bias in all these areas. The constitution provided for the right of workers. In 2009 the government amended the constitution to grant legal status to public worker unions. The law established sentences of one to three years in prison to person who discriminate in the workplace. There were no government programs dedicated to combating discrimination but now The Vida Digna (Life with Dignity) program has been adopted to El Salvador to fight against discrimination based on HIV. Also on the basis of sexual ori entation, in practice discrimination was widespread, especially against transgender persons. In January the new administration approved the legal registration application filed in August 2009 by the gay rights NGO Entre Amigos. This is the first NGO focused on sexual minorities registered by the government whose primary declared work was other than the prevention of HIV/AIDS. Although it’s considerable headway, El Salvador will not be satisfied with this arrangements and for sure, sanctions and regulations will improve gradually to reach international criteria. As clearly seen discrimination in workplaces is widespread in many countries. In our opinion, such systematic human rights violations can only be deterred by the humanly will of governments, employers and employees in taking resolute action against people who discriminate at all levels.