Example Schools

An example of a middle school that wanted to be a Unified Champion School with Special Olympics funding and support, so the principal pushed a teacher to become a liaison. While overwhelmed at first, the first year teacher was able to have students drive the strategy until being a Unified Champion School was "natural."  They used their advisory period for inclusive and unified classroom content. It started small and expanded to Unified electives like art, and Unified PE. Their goal is to have district-wide Unified Champion Schools. They have seen increased independence of people with intellectual disabilities, more meaningful social interactions between people with and without intellectual disabilities, a sense of belonging, and "the reason my kid comes to school."

This is an example of a Title 1 middle school that has grown from a school, to a Unified Champion School, to a National Banner School since this video was released. They created Unified PE, overcame the setbacks that COVID has had on their school, and changed the social makeup on their school community involving students in the entire school and getting support from the football team and beyond.

This is an example of a high school that created a leadership to build the Unified Champion School model a little at a time to build a good and long lasting foundation. It started with a peer tutoring program. This example is a great representation of the importance of meaningful friendships, and using inclusive youth leadership (unified co-presidents of a youth leadership club) to create whole school engagement events. It exemplifies how student leaders can be the driving force of your Unified Champion School - a school that accepts everyone.

This is an example of a high school with competitive Unified Sports teams that draw fans to the stands including the band, cheerleaders, and the whole school community. Sports are the driving force for friendships that last outside of the court or field. Sports help to make a big school feel small, and stress life skills such as teamwork, collaboration, advocating, and character. This was a student-driven movement at this school that was supported by staff, teachers, and admin. The club has helped to end bullying and create a new type of compassion.