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In the News

Special Olympics Offering Free Virtual Inclusive Youth Leadership Training & Digital Summits

This 2020-2021 school year, Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools® will be hosting four Digital Summits on Inclusive Youth Leadership. To earn your ticket, read the below.
On the left text reads: IYL Training: Exploring Leadership | Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools logo. On the right: Three young adults standing in front of lockers.

In the time of a global pandemic and the widespread introduction of virtual and distance learning models, leadership and training opportunities for students may look different. Even with these differences, it is essential that inclusive youth leadership remains a priority among schools, educators, and students.

To provide an easily accessible opportunity to build upon this key component, the Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools® team is offering four Digital Summits for high school and college-aged students during the 2020-2021 school year. As this opportunity is fully inclusive, it is recommended for participants to work in a Unified pair (one individual with an intellectual disability and one without) to get the most out of the experience.

In order to gain access to a Summit, participants must complete the four Foundational Inclusive Youth Leadership Training modules, found at this link. The topics are as follows:

  • Exploring Leadership
  • Me as a Leader
  • Co-Leadership
  • Leading as a Team

After each training, participants must complete a short assignment called an Exit Ticket. Once participants have watched each training and completed each associated Exit Ticket, they will gain access to the upcoming #UnifiedGeneration Summit!

Exit Tickets will be accepted on a rolling basis and access will be granted to one of four Digital Summits once a participant submits all Exit Tickets. There will be four Summits over the year:

  • September 25, 2020
  • January 15, 2021
  • March 26, 2021
  • June 25, 2021

In the final Exit Ticket, participants must include their name and the email to which all Digital Summit information can be sent. In addition, participants will receive a Certificate of Completion in recognition of their hard work towards Inclusive Youth Leadership.

Enjoy the trainings and thank you for being a part of the #UnifiedGeneration!


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