Unified Champion Schools® in New Mexico Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools® is a strategy for schools Pre-K through university that intentionally promotes meaningful social inclusion by bringing together students with and without intellectual disabilities to create accepting school environments, utilizing three interconnected components: Special Olympics Unified Sports®, inclusive youth leadership, and whole school engagement.
New Mexico Unified Champion Schools, 2023-2024 School Year
50 total schools
23 Elementary Schools
9 Middle Schools
16 High Schools
2 Other Schools
465 Athletes participated
680 Partners participated
105 Trained Coaches
9 sports offered: basketball, kickball, soccer, cornhole, esports, volleyball, field day, disc golf, Unified PE
25 total events
Unified Champion Schools® Banner Schools
Albuquerque Sign Language Academy (Albuquerque) 2024-2025
Dennis Chavez Elementary School (Albuquerque) 2024-2025
Desert Ridge Middle School (Albuquerque) 2024-2025
La Cueva High School (Albuquerque) 2017-2025
Las Cruces High School 2024-2025
Lincoln Middle School (Rio Rancho) 2019-2025
Mayfield High School (Las Cruces) 2019-2025 and 2020 ESPN Top 5 National Banner School
Monte Vista Elementary School (Las Cruces) 2024-2025
Organ Mountain High School (Las Cruces) 2024-2025
Rio Rancho High School 2022-2025
University Hills Elementary School (Las Cruces) 2022-2025
“Unified Sports has become a transformative force at Rio Rancho High School, not only enhancing athletic opportunities but also deeply enriching the lives of students and strengthening the entire community. By bringing together students with and without intellectual disabilities on the same team, Unified Sports fosters inclusion, breaks down barriers, and builds meaningful connections that go far beyond the playing field.
The positive changes we’ve seen are undeniable. Planning and implementing Unified Sports events has given me a front-row seat to the incredible growth of our students—not just in terms of athletic skills, but also in empathy, compassion, and leadership. Athletes and partners alike learn to support one another, celebrate differences, and work as a team in ways that translate into everyday life. The sense of camaraderie and pride they feel is evident in every high five, cheer, and shared victory.
At its core, Unified Sports at Rio Rancho High School is about more than just games—it’s about creating a culture where every student is seen, valued, and empowered. And in that, we’ve all won.”
– Coach Valerie Ortiz, Rio Rancho High School
The Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools program is aimed at promoting social inclusion through intentionally planned and implemented activities affecting systems-wide change. With Sports as the foundation, the three component model offers a unique combination of effective activities that equip young people with tools and training to create sports, classroom and social climates of acceptance. These are school climates where students with disabilities feel welcome and are routinely included in, and feel part of, all activities, opportunities and functions.
This is accomplished by implementing inclusive sports, inclusive youth leadership opportunities, and whole school engagement. The program is designed to be woven into the fabric of the school, enhancing current efforts and providing rich opportunities that lead to meaningful change in creating a socially inclusive school that supports and engages all learners. What a Unified Champion School “looks like” can vary greatly from school to school based on the needs, goals, schedules and other factors unique to each school. Though each school’s program looks different, the basic building blocks remain the same.
