Industry News

 What's New At CallSource

CallSource recently announced the pending release of a new product, Maintenance SuiteSM for the Multifamily Housing Industry. Maintenance Suite serves as a direct communications link between residents and property maintenance staff by providing a call escalation and followup process for maintenance requests. Maintenance Suite:

  • Ensures that maintenance requests are followed-up in a timely manner and that true emergencies are addressed as quickly as possible.
  • Provides accuracy and accountability for both residents and maintenance staff
  • Gives management accurate information about requests and follow-up actions
  • Facilitates staffing and training decisions
  • Tracks and records all maintenance calls - whether emergency or non-emergency

 Kettering Landlord Ordered To Pay $244,000 For Sexual Harassment

A Montgomery County (Dayton, Ohio) jury found the owner of a Kettering apartment complex guilty of sexual harassment of a woman who was both a tenant and an employee. The jury awarded the woman $150,000 in compensatory damages and $50,000 in punitive damages. The jury also awarded nearly $44,000 in damages to the Fair Housing Advocates Association, which helped bring the case to court. Read more

 Dayton Jury Awards $246,640 In Sexual Harassment Case

AKRON, OHIO - On July 30, 2009, a state court jury in Dayton, Ohio returned a $246,640 verdict against a landlord, Arthur Burton, for sexually harassing a Beaver Creek, Ohio woman, Nicole McDonald, in violation of state and federal fair housing laws and state employment law. 
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 Legislation Introduced for Nationwide Discrimination Testing Program

Representative Al Green (D-TX) has introduced legislation (The Housing Fairness Act of 2009, H.R. 476) authorizing funds to conduct a nationwide discrimination testing program. Results could be used for enforcement purposes. Read more

 Study Finds That Online Education Beats the Classroom

A recent 93-page report on online education, conducted by SRI International for the Department of Education, has concluded, "On average, students in online learning conditions performed better than those receiving face-to-face instruction." The report examined the comparative research on online versus traditional classroom teaching from 1996 to 2008. Some of it was in K-12 settings, but most of the comparative studies were done in colleges and adult continuing-education programs of various kinds, from medical training to the military.

"The study's major significance lies in demonstrating that online learning today is not just better than nothing - it actually tends to be better than conventional instruction," said Barbara Means, the study's lead author and an educational psychologist at SRI International. Read more