ProfNet Experts Available on Innovative Communities, FMLA, PARCC/Common Core, More

NEW YORK, March 25, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Below are experts from the ProfNet network that are available to discuss timely issues in your coverage area. You can also submit a query to the hundreds of thousands of experts in our network – it's easy and free! Just fill out the query form to get started: http://bit.ly/findexperts?tc=expertalerts.

EXPERT ALERTS

• Service Members Left Defenseless Every Day
• Accreditation a More Complete Measure of Performance Than Common Core, PARCC
• Court Clears Hurdles for Arbitration Agreements
• What to Do When a Customer Files for Bankruptcy
• Businesses Nationwide Should Beware of New California Regulations
• Same-Sex Couples Soon Eligible for FMLA
• April is Child Abuse Prevention Month
• Innovative Development Key to Thriving Communities

MEDIA JOBS

• News Writer – BBC News (NY)
• Editor – The Brownsville Herald (TX)
• Writer/Head of Content  - CloudTags (GA)

OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES

• Seven Tips to Spring Clean Your News Writing
• Blogging Isn't Dead – and Here's Why
• PR Newswire's Media Moves, March 23 Edition

EXPERT ALERTS:

Service Members Left Defenseless Every Day
Michael Barbera
Veteran Advocate, Iraq/Afghan War Veteran
Barbera Solutions
"U.S. service men and women volunteer to serve their country, but must sacrifice many of their civil liberties to do so. One of the civil liberties they must partially sacrifice is their right to bear arms. Because service members work on federal installations, where personally owned weapons are prohibited, service members must drive to and from work unprotected, regardless of whether they possess a conceal carry permit. Each morning, every military installation in the country sustains long lines of vehicles to enter. These lines are caused by security checks, which increase during times of increased threats, such as now. However, these long lines create a threat to service members by leaving them defenseless while they await their turn to enter the installation."
A strategy consultant with Barbera Solutions, Barbera is a veteran of the Iraq and Afghan wars and advocates for veteran affairs.
ProfNet Profile: http://www.profnetconnect.com/michael_barbara
Website: http://www.michaelbarbera.co
Expert Contact: [email protected]

Accreditation a More Complete Measure of Performance Than Common Core, PARCC
Hank Cram, Ed.D
President
Middle States Association Commissions on Elementary and Secondary Schools
"Common Core sustains a factory-model approach to education that no longer serves our schools nor our students well and feeds into the ill-conceived notion that education is a one-size-fits-all, easily measured process."
A former superintendent with more than 30 years in education, Cram is president of the Middle States Association Commissions on Elementary and Secondary Schools, the worldwide leader in accreditation and school improvement. He has visited and worked with schools across the United States and in more than 30 countries in Asia, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Central and South America, and the Caribbean. He is also featured in the documentary "Standardized: Lies, Money, & Civil Rights: How Testing is Ruining Public Education" (http://www.standardizedthefilm.com). He is available to discuss Common Core and PARCC, and how accreditation is a more complete measure of school performance and a path to school improvement.
ProfNet Profile: http://www.profnetconnect.com/hankcram
Website: http://www.msa-cess.org
Media Contact: Kim Maialetti, [email protected]

Court Clears Hurdles for Arbitration Agreements
David M. Walsh IV
Appellate Health Care Attorney
Chamblee, Ryan, Kershaw & Anderson, P.C. in Dallas
The recent ruling by the Supreme Court of Texas that patients can be more easily compelled to sign arbitration agreements before they get medical care likely will have a significant effect on Lone Star State health care providers seeking to control litigation costs. Says Walsh: "This ruling may especially be relevant to nursing home operators and long-term care providers because most cases against these facilities do not typically include a claim for economic damages. And, under Texas law, noneconomic damages against a facility are capped at $250,000. As a result, many plaintiffs may now view taking a claim against a nursing home into arbitration as being cost-prohibitive, as they will have to share not only in the cost of the proceeding, but also pay all legal fees out of the limited recovery."
Media Contact: Dave Moore, [email protected]

What to Do When a Customer Files for Bankruptcy
Demetra Liggins
Bankruptcy and Restructuring Attorney
Thompson & Knight LLP, Houston
As oil prices have spiraled down, oil company bankruptcies are rising. That means businesses providing products and services to energy companies should be on alert for bad news. Says Liggins: "Don't be caught by surprise when you receive notification from an attorney representing one of your customers informing you that the customer is in bankruptcy and seeking relief. If that happens, stop all communications with the customer right away. Next, immediately evaluate your situation, the health of the company, and the importance of the customer to your business to determine if it makes sense for your company to participate as a creditor in the bankruptcy process."
Media Contact: Kit Frieden, [email protected]

Businesses Nationwide Should Beware of New California Regulations
Maryann Zaki
Attorney
Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP, Houston
California is prepared to step up its already aggressive warnings on products that the state's regulators view as potentially hazardous to health. The new warnings are proposed amendments to California's Proposition 65. As a result, companies in Texas and elsewhere that sell products in the Golden State must be mindful of the latest proposed changes. Says Zaki: "If you are in the oilfield business, you should be informed about the proposed change requiring warnings for potential health hazards from chemicals in petroleum products. If the new warnings are approved, companies must be sure they heed California's rules or they may face the threat of lawsuits from lawyers often referred to as 'bounty hunters' (based on their high recovery of attorneys' fees) and costly penalties."
Media Contact: Kit Frieden, [email protected]

Same-Sex Couples Soon Eligible for FMLA
Amber Liddell Alwais
Family Law Attorney
Orsinger, Nelson, Downing & Anderson, L.L.P. in San Antonio
Although there will be states, including Texas, to challenge the change, beginning March 27, all U.S. couples in legally recognized same-sex marriages will be entitled to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for childbirth, serious illness or to care for seriously ill immediate family under the U.S. Department of Labor's Family and Medical Leave Act. Previously, FMLA benefits only applied to same-sex couples if the state they lived in recognized their marriage. Says Liddell Alwais: "This is a quickly evolving area of the law that impacts several areas, from employee benefits to family law. But in challenging the right for same-sex couples to marry, Texas is setting itself up for a scenario similar to what was seen in Loving v. Virginia. In that case, the U.S. Supreme Court was clear that this country would not support discrimination by individual states or the federal government against the fundamental right to marry. Contesting that premise that interracial couples should be allowed to marry was a permanent stain in Virginia's history. It seems Texas is headed down the same path."
Media Contact: Amy Hunt, [email protected]

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month
Sara O'Meara
Co-Founder and CEO
Childhelp
"Even now, in the U.S., child abuse is still being swept under the rug, despite the fact that five children die every day from abuse and neglect -- and that is five too many. A report of child abuse is made every 10 seconds, and nearly 3.3 million reports of child abuse are made annually. We must do something to lower this statistic."
O'Meara is the co-founder of Childhelp, the nation's oldest and largest nonprofit advocating for abused and neglected children. Childhelp has brought the light of hope and healing into the lives of countless children and continues to do so every day, especially during April, which is Childhelp National Child Abuse Prevention Month. O'Meara is based in Phoenix.
Media Contact: Teri Morris, [email protected]

Innovative Development Key to Thriving Communities
Patrick Phillips
Global CEO
Urban Land Institute
"Innovative development that conserves land and energy is the key to sustainable, thriving communities. What, where, and how we build plays a critical role in the livability, economic prosperity and environmental stability of urban areas."
Based in Washington, D.C., Phillips is available to discuss all issues related to land use, real estate, urban design and development.
Website: http://www.uli.org
Media Contact: Trisha Riggs, [email protected]

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MEDIA JOBS:

Following are links to job listings for staff and freelance writers, editors and producers. You can view these and more job listings on our Job Board: https://prnmedia.prnewswire.com/community/

• News Writer – BBC News (NY)
• Editor – The Brownsville Herald (TX)
• Writer/Head of Content  - CloudTags (GA)

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OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES:

Following are links to other news and resources we think you might find useful. If you have an item you think other reporters would be interested in and would like us to include in a future alert, please drop us a line.

• SEVEN TIPS TO SPRING CLEAN YOUR NEWS WRITING. After a long winter, the season we have been waiting for has finally arrived: spring. While the snow melts and baseball teams across the country gear up for another season, writers can refresh for spring by fine-tuning their writing with these seven tips: http://prn.to/1xv0v9u
• BLOGGING ISN'T DEAD – AND HERE'S WHY: "Blogging is dead!" Not so fast -- while there are certain aspects of blogging that are "dead," blogging still has a long life ahead of it. Amanda Hicken, media relations manager for PR Newswire and editor of the Beyond Bylines blog, explains: http://prn.to/1DAzNxR
• PR NEWSWIRE'S MEDIA MOVES, MARCH 23 EDITION. PR Newswire's weekly audience research newsletter, PR Newswire's Media Moves, is chock-full of media news and job changes. In this week's issue, you'll read updates on Thomson Reuters, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, Boston Globe, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, FOX Business Network, CNN - New York Bureau, NBC News, New York Magazine, Huffington Post, Quartz and more: http://prn.to/1N6mSDL

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