Katie Hut and Natalie Green (Kat n’ Nat) joined Special Olympics North America (SONA) as staff-in-training during the Special Olympics World Games Abu Dhabi 2019. Hailing from Special Olympics Utah, the team reported stories and contributed to social media from athletic competitions and the Global Youth Leadership Summit.
Check out their Adobe Spark Page summarizing their trip for the U.S. Department of Education Office of Special Education Programs.
Kat n’ Nat were selected from a group of youth leaders participating in SONA’s #EKSchallenge, which urged students with and without intellectual disabilities to share their passion for inclusion and to become agents of change by following the example of Special Olympics founder Eunice Kennedy Shriver. As part of the Unified Generation, youth are leading the charge for inclusion of children and adults with intellectual disabilities in schools and communities all over the country. SONA challenged these leaders to write and record a speech sharing what inclusion means to them. Katie and Natalie’s video was selected from the applicants, which earned them the opportunity to attend Special Olympics World Games Abu Dhabi 2019 in March.
Special Olympics summarized their trip in a separate article Unified Pair Kat N’ Nat Report On Their Experiences in Seattle and Abu Dhabi! that focused on the social outreach and inclusive youth leadership.