RESOURCES/PROGRAMS IN THE COMMUNITY
Many community-based and nonprofit organizations offer programs at no or low cost. Every state has a parks and recreation association with a focus on adaptive outdoor recreation activities like fishing, hunting, water skiing, or canoeing/kayaking. Federally, state, and/or local government-funded programs have an obligation to provide disability access including making needed accommodations under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Public schools are mandated to provide physical education and school-based sports to every student and are a great resource for information or to start adaptive sports programs to provide equal opportunity to all students. There have been great advocacy efforts to get the National Collegiate Athletic Association (or NCAA) to sanction adaptive sports. As a result, many colleges and universities have adaptive sports programs, including wheelchair basketball or track and field and also offer Scholarships to top athletes.
LET'S PLAY : ORGANIZATIONS' COMMITMENT TO "EMPOWERING LIVES THROUGH SPORTS"
There are many organizations making a difference for individuals with disabilities but only a few organizations which are making phenomenal strides in the world of adapted sports.
THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF ADAPTED SPORTS PROGRAMS (AAASP)
Includes wheelchair basketball, wheelchair football, track and field and wheelchair handball. The AAASP implements programs at schools designed for students in grades one through 12. The program begins by teaching students the fundamentals of the sport and is designed to fit into a school's existing sports curriculum. They also recruit sponsors and partnerships to assist schools in raising funds for equipment and to run the program. adaptedsports.org
DISABLED SPORTS USA (DSUSA)
A chapter-based network which operates 100 community-based programs focused on 30 different sports in 37 states and has served more than 60,000 athletes with a disability. Among the most popular sports are alpine "sit" skiing, snowboarding, biathlons, kayaking, water skiing, sailing, rafting, hiking, fishing, canoeing, golf, cycling and rock climbing, among others. Sports are offered in the winter and in the summer, which gives children a chance to be involved in an activity in which they feel confident, year-round. DSUSA leads a variety of adaptive sports programs for people with different types of disabilities moveunitedsport.org
U.S. PARALYMPICS SPORTS CLUBS
Paralympics is a multi-national athletic event held every four years in tandem with the Olympic Games and likewise has summer and winter games. Paralympians compete in six main categories — amputee, Cerebral Palsy, intellectual disabilities, wheelchair, visually impaired and others who do not fit into those categories. Within those categories, athletes are again divided by a condition, which maintains the integrity of the competition. The goal of the Paralympics is to bring the spirit of athletic competition to all people — no matter what their physical condition is. You can visit the website and search for the local clubs near you by zip code at:
teamusa.org/Team-USA-Athlete-Services/Paralympic-Sport-Development/Getting-Started/Find-A-Club
SPECIAL OLYMPICS
Provides year-round sports training competition in several sports. The organization is dedicated to providing athletic opportunity to children and adults with intellectual disabilities, giving them the opportunity to develop physically, demonstrate courage and sports acumen, and have fun. Participants can take part in 35 sports, everything from traditional Olympic sports like Alpine skiing and figure skating to non-traditional games like badminton and handball.
UNIFIED SPORTS
An integral part of Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools, which was founded in 2008 and funded through the Office of Special Education Programs at the U.S. Department of Education to use Special Olympics as a way to build inclusion and acceptance in schools. Unified Sports are now in more than 4500 elementary, middle and high schools in the United States. Seventy percent of Unified Champion Schools (Pre-K through Grade 12) are engaging in Unified Sports! Also 215 US colleges and universities have Special Olympics College Clubs on campus, providing ongoing Unified and inclusionary activities for students and Special Olympics athletes. 73 of the 215 US colleges and universities activating Special Olympics College conduct ongoing Unified Sports on their campus.2