Eighth-grader Joshua Montgomery is all smiles after his team defeated the teachers’ team in a Unified Champions basketball contest Wednesday at Greenfield Central Junior High School.
GREENFIELD – The music was pumping inside the Greenfield Central Junior High School’s gym Wednesday afternoon as the school’s first ever “Unified Champions vs. Teachers” game took to the court.
A team of students in the school’s special education program competed against teachers, much to the delight of fans.
Students and parents packed the bleachers to watch the game, which ended with the students soundly defeating the teachers 42-4 within two 10-minute halves of play.
The school’s athletic director, Mark Evans, led the crowd in playfully booing the teachers as their team was introduced, followed by thunderous cheers for the Unified team.
“It warms my heart to see everyone come together to support our kids,” said special resource teacher Leah Anderson, who helped coach the Unified team along with fellow teacher Nicole Glasen.
“When the kids started chanting some of my students’ names, I don’t think they realize just how important that is to them. It makes them feel valued. They feel recognized, they feel accepted, and they feel included,” she said.
Glasen was nearly moved to tears following the game in light of the student body’s support.
“I’m speechless. I’m so proud of the number of students who showed up,” she said.
Seventh-grade language arts teacher Lindsey Cary, who played on the teachers’ team, said it was a pleasure to take part in the heart-warming game.
“I had so much fun, and it was heartwarming to see so many students from throughout the building in so many roles working together,” said Cary, who is also the school’s student council advisor.
To build up the crowd, the council promoted a superhero theme by passing out free superhero masks to students who attended the game.
The Unified Champions no doubt felt like superheroes as the cheerleaders and fans erupted in thunderous applause each time a basket was made.
Eighth-grader Joshua Montgomery grinned through the entire game, especially when a second-half shot he tossed up swished through the net.
Teammate Jaden Fishburn had the same reaction when he made the first student basket of the game as the crowd went wild.
Seventh-grader Colton Short took fewer shots but had plenty of passes in a game he had been anxiously awaiting for weeks.
“He’s been so excited about this. He came up and gave me a big hug after the game,” said his mom, Cheryl Short, one of many parents in attendance.
The game was part of the Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools program, aimed at promoting social inclusion through intentionally planned and implemented activities in K–12 schools and college campuses nationwide.
The junior high matchup was specifically part of Unified Champions in the Middle, which focuses on middle school and intermediate school programming.
Glasen said Wednesday’s basketball game was just the beginning.
She and Anderson plan to hold a Unified Champions track and field event in the spring and hope to eventually expand its basketball competition by having students play against fellow students as well as teams from other schools.
Anderson said the school hosted a convocation about the Unified Champions program on Monday to teach students and staff what the program is all about.
“Two of my students and their peer buddies spoke in front of the whole school about what inclusion means to them and what they’ve loved about this program,” said Anderson, who said the Unified Champions worked on basketball skills and fundamentals of the game over the past two weeks.
“Their peer buddies were incredible. All of them were so patient and have such loving and kind hearts,” she said.
The “Cougar Champions” basketball players included Addy Bright, Jayden Fishburn, Joseph McFarland, Aydan Miller, Joshua Montgomery, Gracie Pritchett, Tillman Schwenzer and Colton Short.
