RESEND: Newsletter- Unified Champion Schools

February Newsletter

We are thrilled to announce that we've reached 523 Unified Champion Schools for the 2024-25 school year! This incredible milestone reflects the dedication and hard work of educators, students, and schools committed to creating more inclusive environments. As we head into our final semester, we have exciting events on the horizon, including FHSAA Unified Sports, culminating events across the state, the Youth Summit at UCF this May, the Spread the Word Campaign, and many more action-packed Unified events happening throughout Florida.

Unified Champion Schools Dashboard

Thank you for sharing your wonderful events so far this school year. As a reminder, we want to hear from you! Please share an inspiring story, achievement, or photo from your program, and you could be featured in our next newsletter. Fill out this Photo and Story Highlight Form or visit our new Unified Champion Schools dashboard.

Rockway Middle School

This is Rockway Middle School's 4th year with the Peers as Partners in Learning elective class. The goal of this class is to create and spread awareness within the school and community, providing reciprocal academic, social, and interpersonal benefits to students with and without disabilities. Best Buddies has also been an active club at Rockway for many years, fostering meaningful connections and engagement with their athlete population. The school continues to promote acceptance, love, and kindness among students, staff, and the community.

Success Story: Starkey K-8

While gymnastics is not a Unified sport, Starkey K-8 has a remarkable group of girls who work one-on-one with athletes to help them perfect their skills. Each week, about eight girls ranging from second to eighth grade dedicate their time to support athletes with their routines. One standout student even attended the area competition just to cheer on the athletes she had been mentoring. Her patience, kindness, and encouragement helped calm their nerves before performing. She’s a shining role model with a heart of gold, inspiring athletes to believe in themselves and reach their potential.

Success Story: Deerlake Middle

On November 15, the students enjoyed an exciting, hands-on field trip to Orchard Pond Farms. They explored the sights and sounds of a working farm, picking vegetables, smelling fresh produce, and observing plant textures and colors. Students also learned about farm equipment and how it’s used to harvest crops. This engaging experience helped them connect with nature, understand agriculture, and appreciate where their food comes from, all while having fun and learning new skills.

Component 1:

Whole School Engagement

Spread the Word Day – March 5!

We’re excited to announce the launch of our very own Spread the Word Dashboard, filled with ideas to help you create the best campaign yet on your campus! You’ll find weekly theme examples and a variety of activities to use in your classrooms.

All schools will receive bracelets, and schools that completed the Activity Tracker Survey will also get stickers and posters in addition to the bracelets. You can expect these materials to arrive at your school during the last week of February. Please share photos and details of the activities you’re launching on your campus; we’d love to feature them!

Spread the Word Dashboard

Component 2:

Inclusive Youth Leadership

Our Youth Summit was recently planned with the Youth Activation Committee voting on the theme Superheroes: Inclusion in Action! Turning Ideas and Words into Impact. This will be a two-day event held at the University of Central Florida, featuring breakout activities and guest speakers. It will be a fantastic celebration of our students and a great way to make our programs more unified!

We wrapped up our Youth Summit in Miami on January 24, 2025. Partnering with Bank of America, we provided our schools with the Better Money Habits course. This year’s summit included middle schools to engage a larger audience in Miami, with over 215 attendees participating. The event featured a Global Messenger as a speaker and a breakout session led by our ESPN Nation Banner School, Southwest Senior High. We were thrilled to announce that Marcel Louis-Jacques, an ESPN reporter covering the Miami Dolphins, joined us as a guest speaker. After attending the ESPN Banner Presentation at Southwest Senior High, Marcel was so inspired by the experience that he is eager to continue supporting Special Olympics Florida.

National Banner School: Southwest Senior High School

On January 8, we partnered with ESPN and the Orange Bowl to host the largest banner reveal to date. Marcel Louis-Jacques, a Miami Dolphins reporter, presented the award, with support from Special Olympics North America and Miami-Dade leaders, including Superintendent Dr. Jose L. Dotres and School Board Chair Mari Tere Rojas.

The event featured a lively pep rally, a balloon drop of over 1,000 balloons, and a dance party with Miami Dolphins cheerleaders. Additionally, a press conference with Marcel, Sherry, a Unified pair, and Kaitlyn Casanas shared the program’s impact. A small group of students also had the chance to meet with Marcel, who offered inspiration and support for their future dreams in media. Watch here: Southwest Senior Video ESPN Banner

Component 3: Unified Sports

The Future is Inclusion!

NFL Play 60 Video

NFL Pro-Bowl:

Tyler Boyd, one of our outstanding athletes from West Orange High, applied for the PLAY 60 Super Kid/NFL Pro Bowl opportunity and he won! To share the exciting news, the NFL coordinated a surprise call from Colts player Kenny Moore. Tyler was celebrated for his exceptional participation in Unified Flag Football and had the chance to speak with the media and attend several high-profile events. His joyful reaction during the pep rally reveal was even featured on Good Morning America, showcasing his excitement to a national audience. As part of this incredible experience, Tyler attended the Pro Bowl Skills Show, Pro Bowl Practice, where NFL Films created a Play 60 feature, and the Pro Bowl Games on Sunday, making unforgettable memories along the way. Watch the video.

National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association- NIRSA:

UF Unified Club team competed in the NIRSA Unified Nationals in Jacksonville, winning all four games, including the championship against the University of Nebraska (50-31) at Everbank Stadium to claim the National Championship. Athlete Randy Godbolt was named MVP, and Kiondre Brown and Unified partner Noah Sastoque earned spots on the all-tournament team. Two former Unified partners from Cypress Creek High School (Pasco County) Roman and Jack, played key roles in leading their UF Unified flag football team to first place.

FHSAA:

FHSAA Unified Basketball State Championships

Congratulations to our 6 teams heading to the FHSAA Basketball State Championships! We are proud of all our teams' efforts and excited to see which teams bring home the state title. Good luck to all!

Division 1: Homestead Senior HS vs. Immokalee HS
Division 2: Tavares HS vs. Cypress Lake HS
Division 3: North Fort Myers HS vs. Lehigh Senior HS

FHSAA Unified Tennis

We’re excited to announce that 10 different schools will compete in the 2024-25 FHSAA Unified Tennis season, with matches scheduled for February 25 and April 8. This marks the second year that tennis has been offered as an FHSAA Unified Sport, and we’re thrilled to see a 60% growth after the inaugural season. Looking forward to an amazing season of competition and sportsmanship!