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The Daily Star, Oneonta, N.Y., Whitney Bashaw column

The Daily Star - 10/14/2017

Oct. 14--Springbrook is launching a new athletic program, Springbrook Sprouts.

Building off of the Special Olympic's Young Athlete initiative, Springbrook Sprouts is an inclusive athletics program for children ages 2 to 7. It will be held on the main Springbrook campus for six weeks on Tuesdays and Thursdays beginning Oct. 17.

Nicole Valentine-Sokolowski, athletic coordinator, special education instructor and organizer of the program, said the program is open to children with or without disabilities. The intention of the program is to foster empathy, understanding and confidence.

"We hope that the students without disabilities can learn tolerance for those that do, and everyone can work on building friendships for a lifetime," Valentine-Sokolowski said on Friday.

The program is preparatory, Valentine-Sokolowski explains, teaching balance, coordination and teamwork drills, as well as relationship building.

"We want kids to learn the basics and fundamentals of any sport working as a team," she said.

Valentine-Sokolowski and John Philby are the coordinators for the Special Olympics program at Springbrook. Sprouts program was adapted out of the Special Olympics' inclusive Young Athletes.

According to the Special Olympic's website, after assessing the pilot program in eight countries, "evaluation data from this initial evaluation indicated that Young Athletes has significant impact on motor, communication and social skills."

The group is limited to 25 children who will be broken into groups by age and ability.

It's important to the program that the children are paired and mixed properly, Valentine-Sokolowski said, so that no one feels left out and everyone is learning.

Two internal hires from Springbrook will be assisting in running the program with Philby and Valentine-Sokolowski.

People can register on Springbrook's website as long as there are spots to fill. Valentine-Sokolowski said the only information required is the child's age. She said she hopes next year organizers can double the number of athletes to 50.

Springbrook also has an inclusive pre-school Kids Unlimited for children ages 2 to 6.

Sprouts is a six-week program running through Nov. 30 from 5 to 6 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays on Springbrook's main campus.

Whitney Bashaw, staff writer, can be reached at (607) 441-7218 or wbashaw@thedailystar.com. Follow her on Twitter at @DS_WhitneyB .

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