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DISABILITY
IN SPORT FESTIVAL & SYMPOSIUM TO BE HELD FEB. 23-26 AT SUNY
CORTLAND
CORTLAND, New York (Feb. 10, 2005) — The State University of New York College at Cortland will host its first ever Disability in Sport Festival and Symposium from Feb. 23-26 at various locations on the college’s Central New York campus (see itinerary and campus map links above). The event, which features a keynote address by two-time Paralympian and world-renowned adventure athlete, author and motivational speaker Mark Wellman, a Disability in Sport Symposium on inclusion of persons with disabilities in sport activities and a pair of athletic events, is themed “A Dialogue on Diversity, Disability and Sport: Building a New Equity Paradigm Toward Full Participation and Equal Opportunity.” The week’s activities will also include a series of interactive clinics, lectures and seminars led by SUNY Cortland faculty members involved with integrating persons with a disability into sport, recreation and physical activity. The program is a collaborative effort of Northeastern University’s Center for the Study of Sport in Society, the SUNY Cortland Institute for Disability Studies and the SUNY Cortland Sport Management Program.
Wellman’s presentation, titled “No Limits,” will start at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 24 in the Corey Union Function Room. It is free and open to the public. Despite being paralyzed from the waist down due to a climbing accident in 1982, Wellman has ascended more than 50 Sierra Nevada peaks and is a former member of the United States Disabled Ski Team, competing in two Paralympic Games. His autobiography, “Climbing Back,” chronicles his struggle to survive a disabling accident and become an accomplished athlete. Wellman demonstrated to the world an example of overcoming adversity when he was honored by the International Paralympic Committee to ascend a 120-foot rope to light the torch at the Opening Ceremonies for the 1996 Paralympic Games in Atlanta. He is currently a national spokesperson for Washington, D.C.-based Disabled Sports USA and runs a consulting business called No Limits in Northern California. The symposium on Friday, Feb. 25 will be held from 8:30 a.m. – 4 p.m. at the same location. Registration will begin at 8 a.m. The cost is $30 per person and includes lunch and registration materials. SUNY Cortland faculty, staff and students can register for the non-lunch portion of the program and attend for free. The symposium includes seminars on integration and inclusion, accessibility to sport performance technology and facilities, integration of sport participation and best practices.
The week’s activities will conclude on Saturday, Feb. 26 with a pair of athletics events on campus. A USA Swimming-sanctioned regional meet that includes swimmers with disabilities will take place at the Park Center’s Holsten Pool, and a sled hockey exhibition game and clinic will be held at the Park Center’s Alumni Arena. Both events are free and open to the public and are scheduled for 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The registration deadline is Monday, Feb. 21. The online registration form is located at the link at the top of the page. Registrations can also be sent to Professor Lisa Scherer 1) by mail c/o the SUNY Cortland Sport Management Program, A-8 Studio West, P.O. Box 2000, Cortland, NY 13045-0900, 2) by telephone at (607)753-5426 or 3) via e-mail at SchererL@cortland.edu. “We hope to attract a significant audience of stakeholders to this event, including policy makers, educators, program directors, community advocates, undergraduate and graduate students in related fields and athletes with a disability,” said SUNY Cortland Sport Management professor and event co-chair Dr. Ted Fay. “We anticipate the program will attract more than 200 key participants from throughout New York State and the Northeast who are either directly involved or have a profound interest in improving opportunities for persons with a disability relative to their inclusion into mainstream sport-related structures ranging from introductory through elite participation and performance levels.” The Disability in Sport Festival and Symposium is supported by SUNY Cortland’s Sport Management Program and Club, Adaptive Physical Education Program, Institute for Disability Studies, Campus Artists and Lecture Series, Department of Exercise Science and Sport Studies and and Project Leadership and Education in Adaptive Physical Education (LEAPE). It is also supported by Northeastern University’s Disability in Sport Initiative and Center for the Study of Sport and Society as well as USA Partners. |
