Unified sports brings inclusion to the court

When Ashlee Wood heard about the new unified basketball team coming to Niwot High, she was excited about the chance to test her burgeoning skills on the court.

"My brothers actually started playing basketball, and then after a little bit I started wanting to try too," the sophomore said. "I've played for fun with my brothers, but I've never really played before on a team."

The sophomore finally got her chance last month when the Cougars' unified team made its debut, featuring eight athletes from the school's severe needs special education class and 12 unified student "partners" without intellectual disabilities. Coached by special education teachers Amy Holle and Dawn Zwisler, the new Niwot team is one of eight in St. Vrain Valley Schools, which has sponsored unified sports and activities since 2013.

In Niwot's Jan. 20 game against Erie, Wood's enthusiasm for basketball was evident, and she was a force for the Cougars on both sides of the ball, defense in particular., which is not to discount her long-range shooting abilities, honed from hours of practicing at home.

"First, it's super-duper hard," she said. "I try to go for the three corners, the two corners, because those are more points. One thing I need to practice on is getting up to the basket and then shooting it. But it's just really, really hard for me because everybody's blocking you."

Despite the efforts of Wood and the boisterous home crowd, Niwot ultimately fell 52-30 to the Tigers, but her momentary disappointment at the outcome couldn't overshadow the fun she is having this season "just trying to shoot and score, and hanging out with other people and meeting new people."

Which, after all, is the point of unified sports, said the school's athletic and activities director Joe Brown, who first became involved with the Special Olympics-based program during his tenure at Roosevelt High School, and was eager to grow it at Niwot.

"What we found out through that was just how powerful and positive it is for the kids who are involved in it-the athletes, the partners, and the school community," Brown said. "It just really opens up a lot of doors for kids at lunchtime and things like that. They feel more comfortable going up and talking to their athlete friends and their partner friends. It really builds an incredible school community."

Which in turn is also having a positive impact in the special needs classroom, according to Holle and Zwisler, who called coaching the team "our new passion."

"I think the athletes really love getting to be known by the partners and getting to be a part of the school in a way that they have never been a part of the school," Holle said.

Unified sports first came to St. Vrain eight years ago with a basketball team at Silver Creek, but has been steadily growing to include all high schools as well as the alternative Main Street School. The district also continues to add sports and activities to its unified slate, including bowling, track, band, and percussion.

"Each school has its own bit of uniqueness, but the opportunities to get students involved are great," said Chase McBride, district athletics and activities director. "We're trying to figure out how to implement more things system-wide, and find things all the students can do together, like the Unified Day of Champions in May. We are also bringing unified sports to the middle schools."

For special needs students continuing their education at the Main Street School, unified sports provides not just opportunities for building friendships, but also for developing leadership and other life skills, coach Jeff Martinez said. Like Brown, he helped build a successful unified program at Frederick, then spearheaded a program at his new school, after seeing its impact on students.

"These kids are really having a great time," Martinez said of his team, one of the largest in the district. "This really helps them with some of the skills that they're going to need as they get older."

One of those team members is 2021 Niwot graduate Misha Barrett, a longtime hoops fanatic and veteran of both the SVVSD unified program and Niwot basketball program, where he played on the D-team for two years. At Main Street, he is a team "helper," a role analogous to the partners at traditional schools.

"He's a leader and a role model, and he wants to see this program grow," Martinez said. "He's really helping the other students."

The unified basketball season continues with weekly games through the end of the month, and concludes with a season-ending tournament at Niwot on Feb. 26.

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