Coach Shields pictured with Special Olympics athletes and partners (see names below) |
By Carly Shields
For the first time in history, Chester
High School has had the opportunity to be a part of the Special Olympics
Philadelphia Unified Sports Program. On Friday, May 29th 2015 Chester
High School took 2nd place in the championship in overtime out of 11
Philadelphia High School teams. Special Olympics Unified Sports is an
inclusive sports program that puts athletes with and without intellectual
disabilities on the same team. The coach for Chester High, Ms. Shields,
expressed her feelings about the program, “The students worked so hard
throughout the year to get to where they are today. They had the
opportunity to learn and work with their teammates which in return taught them
tolerance and acceptance. This program taught them more in a few months
than some students get to experience in all their high school years. I am
very proud of each and every one of them. Their hard work and dedication
certainly paid off and they are all excited for the next season to
begin.” The athletes in the program consisted of Christian Anderson,
Matthew Benson, Manayia Floyd, Destiny Gillespie, Mesias Ramos, Biyen Robinson,
and Javaughn Wright. The partners included Stefany Rivera, Ma’Najah
Starkey, Shanae Willis, Dahkeem Williams, and Shamour Young (see picture).
Special Olympics Unified Sports® is an inclusive
sports program that puts athletes with and without intellectual disabilities on
the same team. This Unified Soccer elective course, developed in partnership
between the School District of Philadelphia and Special Olympics Pennsylvania,
includes curriculum with youth leadership components, anti-bullying elements
and soccer training and competition. The
course provides greater access to sports for all students, with and without
disabilities (http://www.sopaphilly.org/).
Special Olympics Pennsylvania provides year-round
training and competition in 21 Olympic-type sports to nearly 20,000 children
and adults with intellectual disabilities. For more information about how you
can help Reveal the Champion Inside thousands of Special Olympics athletes,
visit the web site at www.specialolympicspa.org
(http://www.sopaphilly.org/).
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