Pflugerville School Honored For Inclusion Tactics

PFLUGERVILLE, TX — Hendrickson High School has been recognized as one of the top schools in the nation for inclusion, Pflugerville ISD officials said.

The school was honored during a special video presentation by the Special Olympics and ESPN on Friday morning, according to district officials. ESPN anchor Hannah Storm appeared by video announcing Hendrickson as a recipient of a national banner of honor, awarded to only five schools nationwide, school officials noted.

Earlier in the week, Hendrickson was named to the 2019 ESPN Honor Roll as part of its Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools National Recognition Program, joining 33 other high schools and universities as finalists for the national banner awards. \

“All schools who join the inclusion revolution are on the right track to making our world a more inclusive place, but these national banner presentations are given exclusively to the elite Unified Champion Schools who have met the 10 national standards of inclusions and have been nominated by their state’s Special Olympics program,” Storm said in a prepared statement.

Pflugerville ISD Special Olympics coordinator and coach Amy Wiesenhutter categorized the honor as "amazing" in recognizing the welcoming atmosphere students and staff have created through years of effort and inclusion. “I can’t begin to express how proud I am of Hawk nation,” she said in a prepared statement.

“These students have totally created a climate of acceptance for all through many different activities," Wiesenhutter continued. "The environment of Hendrickson High School has been greatly impacted by the students generating a total unified movement and choosing to include. Congratulations to Hendrickson on this well-deserved national recognition.”

Photo via Pflugerville ISD.

Unified Champion Schools are recognized for their work in creating an inclusive environment on campus for all, turning the focus beyond Special Olympics events and to a whole school movement for inclusion, officials added. Through the program teachers, students and staff are encouraged to work together to create supportive classrooms, inclusion school-wide activities and opportunities for growth and success. In the video Storm said ESPN and the Special Olympics would be coming to Hendrickson to present the school with its banner. That event is currently scheduled for March.

For more information about the Special Olympics, Unified Champion Schools and Unified Sports visit www.espn.com/specialolympics. Other schools to receive national banners of recognition from the Special Olympics and ESPN are: Bullitt East High School from Mount Washington, Kentucky; Fife High School in Fife, Washington; Miami Southridge Senior High School in Florida and Colorado State University.