Vermont school turns Unified Sports into championship culture

"It got started probably eight years ago because a group of students went to a leadership conference in Indianapolis," said Julie Crosier, Assistant Athletic Director at Burr and Burton Academy and coach of their Unified Basketball team. "They came back to me and said, 'we need this Unified Basketball thing in our school.'"

Crosier and four of her players are sitting on a circle of soft pleather benches on the second floor of the University of Minnesota Recreation and Wellness Center. They've all traveled here, more than 1,200 miles, from tiny Bennington, Vermont to compete in the 2026 Special Olympics USA Games. The players are still sweaty and red-faced, having just beaten a team from Idaho in their opening game in the Interscholastic Division.

The coach admitted that, at the time those students first approached her, she didn't even know what Unified Sports were. (It's a Special Olympics program that brings together athletes with and without disabilities to compete side by side.) Crosier was willing to give it a try but wanted to go slowly. Her student leaders, on the other hand, wanted to push the pedal to the floor — we're going to join the league, we're doing to have a team, we need to get uniforms, we're going to do this.

"One of the students that went [to the leadership conference], he actually served as the coach," said Crosier. "For his senior class, I think he was the top athlete so everybody looked up to him. He would wear a suit and tie to games, and then he would drive his car to [his own] baseball [practice] because it was so important for him to get this started."

Unified Sports can change a school

This student energy and leadership continues to drive the program forward. Schools across the country run Unified Basketball teams and one of the big challenges among many of the the small rural schools in Vermont is having enough players to field a team — both athletes with disabilities and partners without, willing to support the program among so many other extracurricular offerings and programs. But at Burr and Burton, they have so many partners that they have to split them up with some just attending practice and others just attending games. They could only bring 10 players to the USA Games and the team is so large that they only brought partners who were graduating seniors for this trip.

Grayson Rourke has been on the team for four years. He didn't know what Unified Sports were as a freshman, but was invited to join by Coach Crosier — his academic advisor — and has been hooked ever since. Manny Zuniga just finished his third year on the team and talked about what it has meant to him and his classmates, "It gets everyone together and to know each other. Just compete. And have fun."

For Riley Barton, who just finished her sixth year with the team, it's built a community, with the knowledge that anywhere she goes on campus — the lunch room, the student center — she'll find a friend. "These guys are my family," she said, cracking a huge smile.

Some of the teammates literally are family. Twin sisters Shelly and Marley Clark are both partners who traveled with the team to Minneapolis. Rourke said he plans to encourage his younger sister to join.

The benefits of Unified Sports in a school setting extend well beyond just the athletes, partners and faculty who work with the team. It's a living, breathing, highly visible method for ensuring that inclusion is embedded in the school culture. Every year, the school schedules at least a game or two during the school day so that the entire student body can see the magic on the court, cheer for their team and be part of the fun.

And the students who are touched by this program carry that inclusive mindset forward in the rest of their lives. Crosier pointed out that alumni from the program have gone on to play Unified Sports in college, one was even inspired to pursue a Master's Degree in Occupational Therapy.

Unified Sports are about community AND competition

Traveling to the USA Games was a big adjustment for this Vermont team. The town of Bennington has a population of just over 15,000. When they entered Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis for the Opening Ceremony, they were with roughly 4,500 athletes and coaches from every state in the country.

"The opening ceremony ... like just how big it was, seeing all 3000 athletes, all in one spot, was pretty crazy," said Rourke. The other big adjustment was the level of competition. Not every school the play in Vermont has a program that's as well-established as theirs, and they're often adapting to opponents with different skill levels, keeping it competitive but trying to make sure everyone on both teams is still having fun. But the competition was consistently tough in Minneapolis — and the rules were even different allowing partners on both teams to shoot and score. (In Vermont high school competition, only athletes are allowed to shoot, partners can rebound, dribble, defend and pass and are often focused on facilitating the game action.)

Crosier's team dealt with the changes just fine — they dropped their second game of the group stage, to Delaware, but beat both Missouri and Idaho in the group stage, and then Utah in their first semifinal. They finished off their tournament by beating the same Delaware team to win the gold.

Going home with gold is a tremendous accomplishment but the players all said the community-building was just as important. Meeting other athletes, trading pins, making friends. Good sportsmanship is what they hope their opponents and the fans will remember about the team from Vermont.

Back to Vermont

For the graduating seniors like Barton, Rourke and Crowley, the USA Games might be the last chance for them to play with these teammates. But Zuniga, a junio, will be back for the next school season, rejoining a program that is strong and getting stronger, helping shape the culture and community at Burr and Burton. Crosier, who is now also the Vice Chair of the Special Olympics Vermont Board of Directors, is working on getting Unified Soccer recognized as an official varsity sport in the state. Burr and Burton already has a team that's been competing in scrimmages and invitational tournaments but they're ready to help take things to the next level for athletes all around Vermont.

And whether their future is in Vermont or somewhere else, this team all carries the power of Unified Sports with them.

"One of the first years, I got an email from a parent," said Crosier, "and it was probably the biggest reason why I still do this. His son was an athlete and he said, I never thought that my son would be on a varsity sports team. I never thought my son would earn a letter. I never thought my son would have his peers cheer for him."

"So that's why we do it, and that's why I keep doing it. It's opportunities for that we can create for all."

Why We Play features stories about the power of sports to bring us together, overcome obstacles, make positive change and reach everyone. Read more here.

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