Cloquet High recognized for Unified Program
CLOQUET, Minn. — Cloquet High School received some national recognition from Special Olympics North America.
Cloquet High is now recognized as a Unified Champion School, one of only five in Minnesota.
The unified school program brings students with and without disabilities together for classes, sports, and events.
In celebration of the honor the school hosted a variety of events, including a unified school dance.
The unified programs from Cloquet Washington Elementary and Rock Ridge High were also invited to join in on the fun.
“We’ve wanted this event for four years, so it is just so exciting to be able to see it really come to fruition. Yeah, everybody’s having fun. They’re dancing, having so much soda, they’re gonna be hyped up on sugar, but that’s exactly what a dance should be.” said Zylea Larsen, Co-President, Cloquet Unified.
There are about 40 unified school events each year, including sport invitationals with other regional schools.
The core of the program is providing a safe and fun space for everyone and meeting the needs of students that often get overlooked.
“I think it’s really awesome that we get to have this kind of environment for everybody. We can make changes, we can make tweaks, so everybody feels safe and comfortable. We have our fidget table so students who need to take a break can it’s really great that we have students dressing up and able to have that kind of fun.” said Cadence Niemi, Co-President, Cloquet Unified.
The banner recognition from the Special Olympics is renewed every four years.
Schools need to meet set standards and demonstrate program sustainability to keep their recognition.
