DISABILITY DISCLOSURE
I have a fledgling photography business, mostly shooting
aspiring models. I am a full-time wheelchair user. When I mention
that in e-mail messages when booking a shoot, I get a lot of
cancellations -- a model suddenly remembers a prior engagement --
or just out-and-out no-shows. Is it ethical not to say up front
that I have a disability? -- Jack Heniford, York, S.C.
You have the same ethical duty to alert people that you are a
wheelchair user that you have to warn them that you are
African-American or gay or a fan of lite jazz: none. (Well, maybe
this last, if you intend to play that carbonated treacle during
photo sessions.) If people find these things off-putting, that's
their problem, not a prejudice you must cater to. Being a
wheelchair user is not germane to the task at hand.
Strictly for your own convenience, without regard to the
delicate sensibilities of any aspiring model, you might choose to
say something to avoid last-minute walkouts, but that is a
practical consideration, not an ethical obligation.
At the high school where I teach, we're getting new math books
this year. What do you do with the kids who lost their old books?
When students receive a book, they sign a form agreeing to pay
for it if they do not return it, but should they be fined for
losing a book that will never be used again? Can that money go
toward other math materials from which the students would still
benefit? -- B.J., Seattle
This penalty has several legitimate functions beyond replacing
a lost book. It helps teach students to be responsible for public
property lent to them, and it provides money for other school
materials. The original intent of this policy may have been only
to replace a textbook, but the rule still serves a benign, albeit
different, purpose and can reasonably be enforced.
There is also this consideration: Although your school will no
longer use the old math books, they are not worthless but could
perhaps be sold or even donated to another school more
hard-pressed than your own, here or abroad.
UPDATE: Students who did not return their math books were
required to pay the fine, $35.