Daniela, a 17-year-old from Oakville, CT has been involved with Unified Sports since she was in middle school, and is now a captain of her high school team. Daniela became a Youth Leader because she enjoys serving in a leadership role and being in a position to help others. She has good ideas on how to best improve her school’s Unified Sports club. Ultimately, she would like to see Unified Sports gain the same support and recognition from the community as other sports in her school.

Josh is also 17 years old and from Oakville, he has been a participant with Unified Sports since he was in middle school, and he currently is a captain of his high school team. Josh became a Youth Leader because he wants to bring life to his Unified Sports club and make it more far-reaching. He hopes he can inspire people to value the message of inclusion and gain more from the club than just a way to play sports.
Daniela and Josh noticed that in their community, people do not always see past the disability to the individual. They want to raise awareness regarding disabilities within their community, and to encourage people to be more mindful and inclusive. They hope through expanding Unified Sports programming at their school, they will familiarize others with intellectual disabilities and other disabilities to create a more accepting and accommodating community.
Over a 6-month period, Daniela and Josh’s project will host an assembly that will be conducted by a member of Southern CT State University staff. This assembly would provide youth with disabilities to share their experiences, help youth without disabilities gain a better understanding of disabilities, and showcase the Unified Sports team as a way to tie it all together. They also plan to take a field trip to SCSU to visit their adaptive sports program to further educate students on disability and the importance of inclusion. At the end of their project, they plan to host a Unified Sports tournament at their school.
Daniela and Josh hope to increase community awareness about people with disabilities through their project. They hope that through this project people will not only become aware of persons with disabilities but more understanding and willing to break down the barriers to form long lasting friendships.