Presented to the Diversity in Secondary Education class at the University of Delaware. http://www.specialolympics.org/project_unify/

1. INCLUSIVE SCHOOL CLIMATE
Connor Moore
Special Olympics Project UNIFY, National Youth Activation
Committee
connor.moore8@me.com
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Meaningful engagement in a diverse school environment

2. Special Olympics Project
UNIFY®
2 / Special Olympics
Special Olympics Project UNIFY®
Special Olympics Project UNIFY is an
education-based project that uses sports and
education programs to activate young people
to develop school communities where all youth
are agents of change, fostering respect, dignity
and advocacy for people with intellectual
disabilities.

3. What Does This Look Like?
Project UNIFY School
Whole School
Engagement
Youth
Leadership
and Advocacy
Inclusive
Sports
3 / Special Olympics

4. DISCUSSION
ü Talk about a situation in which you felt empowered by
an adult.
ü Talk about a situation in which you felt disempowered
by an adult.
ü What’s the difference?
Discussion

5. STUDENT / MODERATOR
RELATIONSHIP
Inclusive Youth Leaders and Adult Allies

6. What do students need from adults?
Someone who:
• understands how youth
communicate and
collaborate
• identifies and supports
strengths of each
individual leader
• believes in the value of
inclusive youth
leadership
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7. What should adults expect from
their students?
• Ownership of the
project
• Decision-making
• Primary
accountability
• Honest opinions
• Willingness to learn
and contribute
7 / Special Olympics

8. Adult Ally
Adult Moderator
What’s the difference?
8 / Special Olympics
Leads students
Students lead
Picks a core group of
students to work with
Meaningfully engages
all members of a group
Dominates the
conversation
Leads with a question

9. Adult Ally
Adult Moderator
What’s the difference?
9 / Special Olympics
Assumes everyone
understands the goal &
what is expected of
them
Co-creates and
articulates expectations
Allows outspoken youth
to dominate the
experience for all
Helps insure a safe
environment for idea
sharing
Plays a 90% role
Plays a 10% role

10. ADULT ALLIES & INCLUSIVE
YOUTH LEADERSHIP
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Supporting the five pillars that make Inclusive Youth Leadership work

11. What is Inclusive Youth Leadership?
11 / Special Olympics
InclusiveYouth
Leadership
Inclusion
Co-leadership
Teamwork
Communication
Environment

12. Adult Allies & Inclusion
• Engage students with
all learning styles
• More than “a nice thing
to do”
• Recognize and rectify
exclusion
• Exclusive language
12 / Special Olympics

13. Adult Allies & Co-Leadership
13 / Special Olympics
• Supporting a
partnership
• Sharing
responsibility
Not a power struggle!

14. Adult Allies & Teamwork
• Establish a
mentor/student
relationship
• Take part in
student-run
activities and
events
14 / Special Olympics

15. Adult Allies & Communication
• Be aware of tone and
vocabulary
• Always use multiple
methods of
communication
• Engage disengaged
students – in an inclusive
manner
• Activity
15 / Special Olympics

16. Adult Allies & Environment
• “I learn and share
best when….”
• Create a safe space
for contribution
• Appropriate praise as
a segway to further
conversation
16 / Special Olympics

17. Communication Activity
1. Draw a line to divide the paper in 2 sections.
2. Draw a circle in the top right corner.
3. Draw a rectangle in the bottom left corner.
4. Draw a star in the middle of the paper.
5. Draw a face in the circle at the top right corner.
17 / Special Olympics

18. Communication Activity (cont.)
• Does you picture look like
the person’s next to you
• How might these
differences relate to our
communication
18 / Special Olympics
** I gave standardized
statements, yet there
are different results**

19. SPREAD THE WORD TO END
THE WORD® CAMPAIGN
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A youth-led and adult-allied campaign to create an inclusive school environment

20. The Problem
20 / Special Olympics
The Special Olympics – Monty Python

21. The Solution
21 / Special Olympics
Champions Together – Special Olympics Project UNIFY®

22. Spread the Word to End the Word®
“Our campaign asks people
to pledge to stop saying
the R-word as a starting
point toward creating more
accepting attitudes and
communities for all people.
Language affects attitudes
and attitudes affect
actions. Pledge to use
respectful, people-first
language.”
- R-word.org
22 / Special Olympics

24. Social Media
Go to: www.r-word.org

25. REFLECTION
1. What is one item,
concept, or insight you
learned?
2. What challenged you?
3. What surprised you?
25 / Special Olympics

26. Take Away Points
1. Exclusion can best be rectified by utilizing youth
leaders.
2. Adult Allies make Inclusive Youth Leadership
successful.
3. Language is powerful
4. Inclusion necessitates diversity
26 / Special Olympics

27. Connect with us!
27 / Special Olympics
Fb.com/ProjectUNIFY
@SOProjectUNIFY
youtube.com/specialolympicshq
projectunifyblog.wordpress.com

28. Resources
28 / Special Olympics
www.socialinclusion.org
http://bit.ly/IYLGuide
Special Olympics
Get Into It
http://bit.ly/SISchools