National Youth Summit Off to a Great Start
by Julie Balamaci, Edgemont High School (Scarsdale, New York)
Youth Summit Volunteer
The 2006 Special Olympics National Youth Summit in Ames, Iowa, has gotten off to a great start. Teams of three from six different high schools in the United States — including Kansas, Alaska, Wisconsin, Virginia, Atlantic, Iowa and North Fayette, Iowa — were chosen by their respective states, and all arrived on Saturday, 1 July. The teams consist of one athlete (who is not participating in the Special Olympics USA National Games), one partner who is around the same age as the athlete, but does not have an intellectual disability, and a teacher who is an adult and is a guardian figure for both the athlete and the partner.
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We are here to share our ideas and thoughts with each other and the nation on how we want to change attitudes about people with disabilities. We had some opening activities the first day to help everyone get to know each other, and not only did they break the ice, but they also eliminated the possibility of doubts that we would have fun this beautiful week of July.
Clint Armistead, a partner from Kansas, says, “I want to make changes and make a difference in my community. I think it’s great that I can learn things here and then take them back to my town.” Jonathon LeFlore, a Special Olympics Wisconsin athlete, speaks for himself and his whole team when he says, “The Youth Summit Program is a good thing. It can really help people change their views on special education and people who have disabilities, and I am glad I am part of it.”
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Youth Summit participants, such as Julie Balamaci (left), conducted interviews that were distributed as Podcasts, taking advantage of new technology to spread their message of inclusion and acceptance.
< Click here to listen to the interviews > |
On Sunday 2 July the day began with an overall introduction to the Youth Summit. Also, reporters from the Ames Tribune and professors from Iowa State University helped us learn how to do journalism in order to keep track of our experiences in Iowa. Nicolle Egan, the Director of the National Youth Summit, has put together many activities for us to do. She has brought us together and helped us get settled in. When asked about some of the feelings she has about the 2006 National Youth Summit, she said with confidence, “This is one of five national Youth Summits in the world this year, and the first in the United States. The group of young adults selected to represent the United States is the future of Special Olympics and I think they will do a great job leading the Special Olympics movement this week and after they leave Iowa.” We are all very excited for Sunday night, because it is the Opening Ceremonies for the games.
At the National Youth Forum, held on Monday 3 July in the Fisher Theatre on the Iowa State University campus, our teams were joined by 200 Iowa youth from around the state who have come together to discuss important issues related to changing attitudes people have about those with intellectual disabilities. Tom Arnold was the celebrity emcee and the public was invited to attend.
All teams will write stories about the events going on at the Games, some of the athletes competing in the Games, and the other activities going on in addition to the Games. For example, there's Healthy Athletes, which provides in-depth education on health care, and also will provide medical attention for each athlete. Christopher Kavanaugh, a Special Olympics Alaska athlete, thinks this program will be “way fun.”
The object of the National Youth Summit is to change the attitudes of those who do not understand people with intellectual disabilities, all the abilities they have and how they can apply those abilities to the world. We are making people more aware of the world around them. We have a declaration that we will all sign at the Forum. We have no doubts this will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience and will help us all learn and grow to be more accepting and aware.
Below, participants in the Youth Summit pose with Ron Vederman, Special Olympics Director of Schools & Youth Outreach (far right). Special Olympics believes that young people should be given the opportunity to make an immediate difference in the lives of people with intellectual disabilities. Youth are already making a difference by volunteering with Special Olympics in a variety of ways. Whether participating in Special Olympics sports competitions as Unified Sports® teammates or simply by sitting with a student with intellectual disabilities at lunchtime, youth are changing the minds of people around the globe, and forging a more accepting, respectful, and intelligent community for the future. 
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