BARRHEAD/WESTLOCK- Barrhead Composite High School and R.F. Staples Secondary School students participated in a Unified Sports zone meet in Morinville on April 16 with nearly 30 athletes and partners in attendance.
Students participated in a beanbag toss round robin tournament at the event.
“It's a great way to promote inclusion!” said Kyle Beatty, R.F. Staples Secondary School Associate Principal, on the Pembina Hills School Division website.
“Students said they had a great time; it was a really cool experience and are excited to do it again.”
Special Olympics includes the Unified Sports Program as a way for high school students, with and without intellectual disabilities, to work together as a team with similar ages and abilities.
Each team is comprised of an athlete and a partner.
The partnerships formed within the teams has a huge positive impact on the culture within the school, building friendships and expanding acceptance between students.
The teams work together in practices using verbal and visual cues supporting the athlete in developing their skills with the support of coaches to ensure there is balance and collaboration.
“It was truly a great day, showcasing wonderful representation from our school,” said Amber McGinn, BCHS Student Services Coordinator on the PHSD website.
“The event was incredibly inspirational, and the sense of school community was heartwarming.”
The Unified Sports Program was inspired by a simple principle; training together and playing together is a quick path to friendship an understanding according to the Special Olympics website.
It started in 2015 when Special Olympics partnered with the Alberta Schools’ Athletic Association to introduce the international Unified Sports Program to Alberta.
In the first year there were only nine schools that participated and by 2018 58 schools were involved.
Participants have grown from 86 students in 2015 to 890 students in the 2018/19 school year according to the Special Olympics website.
On May 27 the 2025 Metro Athletics Unified Jamboree is happening at the École Secondaire Beaumont Composite High School.
Student participants are divided into two divisions: competitive and recreational.
They play against other schools’ teams in 3-on-3 basketball, bocce ball, and the beanbag toss.
Both Barrhead Composite High School and R.F. Staples Secondary School students plan to participate in the event.
