Special Olympics athletes, volunteers, family members and leaders – including two Richmond Public Schools (RPS) staff – engaged virtually on February 9 and 10 for Special Olympics’ “Capitol Hill Day.” Held annually, this year’s day of advocacy included more than 400 delegates representing 47 states and the District of Columbia.
Joining the Special Olympics Virginia team this year were Torrie Lashley, a PE Specialist for grades K-12 and the RPS Unified Champion Schools Coordinator, and Christal Jordan, Assistant Principal at Oak Grove-Bellmeade Elementary in Richmond. During the 2-day event, Torrie and Christal were a part of three meetings with Members of Congress in both the House and Senate. They shared more about Unified Champion Schools (UCS) and the new Unified Champion City Schools (UCCS) initiative at RPS, and advocated for continued support of and funding for the program.
“My favorite quote is ‘people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel,’ said Torrie. “To me, that quote perfectly shows what Unified programming with Special Olympics has done.”
Special Olympics Virginia has been building its UCS network across Virginia and currently, more than 200 schools participate in the initiative; pre-pandemic, 527 schools were involved, making Virginia one of the most engaged states in the country. UCS utilizes three interconnected components: Inclusive Youth Leadership, Whole School Engagement and Inclusive Sports.
“If you teach people to accept everyone at a young age, they will,” said Pam Mines, Capital Region Director for Special Olympics Virginia, the staff lead for Richmond, Hanover, Henrico and Charles City UCS engagement, and the parent of a Special Olympics Virginia athlete.
More specifically, UCCS is a focused approach to amplify the essential elements of Unified Champion Schools (UCS) within city school districts. Large city school districts like RPS typically face more complex challenges, warranting greater and more deliberate actions. In schools that have implemented UCS programming, 92% of educators reported reduced bullying, teasing, and offensive language among students. With recent national attention to the inequities that exist in underserved communities, the time is right for systematic approaches to position city schools as models of what’s possible.
“Oak-Grove Bellmeade Elementary School is on the way to becoming the first RPS banner school,” Christal said. “We believe in the mission of Special Olympics and the message of inclusion.”
To receive national banner recognition, a school has to demonstrate commitment to inclusion by meeting 10 national standards of excellence. A national panel of leaders from Special Olympics and the education community developed these standards, and currently 22 schools in Virginia hold this status. The expectation of this recognition is that the 10 standards are continuously being met, year after year. To ensure this sustainability, schools reapply for banner status every 4 years.
Next week, all 5 RPS preschools will begin the 8-week Young Athletes curriculum. Each preschool received Young Athletes equipment through the program, and the lessons will be implemented by Therapeutic Richmond Parks & Recreation interns Carter Vaughan and Jordyn Fleming, under the leadership of Therapeutic Recreation Services Manager NaTasha Houpe. This furthers both RPS' and Special Olympics Virginia’s partnerships in the City of Richmond.
In May, each school will have the option of hosting a culminating, school-wide “Little Feet Meet” to showcase skills learned during the program
“The RPS team represented the Commonwealth well and made Special Olympics Virginia proud,” said President Rick Jeffrey. “The support and advocacy Torrie and Christal shared with our legislators will help solidify the important funding needed to continue unified engagement in Urban City Schools – in Richmond and beyond. Their passion for this movement also will ensure that an RPS school – perhaps Oak-Grove Bellmeade! – will be the FIRST Banner school in the Capital Region.”