Kayte Barton

Kayte has been involved with Special Olympics Minnesota for almost 30 years. She has seen changes in her life and health since participating in Special Olympics health programming. She credits Special Olympics to helping her break out of her shell through the skills and confidence she has gained from Athlete Leadership and being a Health Messenger. She has learned just how powerful her voice is and how to use it to advocate for change. Though she no longer competes in sport, she has remained involved with Special Olympics. One of her recent roles at Special Olympics is collaborating as an Athlete Advisory Board member for an inclusive evaluation study, Project ALL STAR. In her own words, Kayte shares her perspective as an athlete, participant, and Athlete Advisory Board Member for Project ALL STAR, while highlighting Special Olympics’ unique role in advancing inclusive research and evaluation.