Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools®
Leigha Bannon is a seasoned communications professional with extensive experience in the nonprofit sector, currently serving as the Director of Communications for Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools® since April 2022. Previously, Leigha held various roles within Special Olympics, including Senior Communications Manager and Resources and Communication Manager for Unified Champion Schools, where responsibilities included developing resources and curricula aimed at enhancing educational programs. Additional experience includes serving as a Board Member for the American Red Cross, a Program Assistant at the American Association for Cancer Research, and multiple roles in educational outreach and marketing during academic tenure. Leigha holds an MBA in Business Administration and Management and a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from Rowan University.
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Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools®
Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools® (UCS) is a strategy for schools Pre-K through university that intentionally promotes meaningful social inclusion by bringing together students with and without intellectual and developmental disabilities to create accepting school environments. With sports as the foundation, UCS utilizes three interconnected components: Special Olympics Unified Sports®, Inclusive Youth Leadership, and Whole School Engagement. UCS programming supports students, athletes, teachers, school administrators, district officials, coaches, parents, and educators across grade-levels with resources that improve outcomes for students of all abilities. Since 2008, UCS has operated in the Special Olympics North America region of Special Olympics International. Our work has been generously supported by the Office of Special Education Programs at the U.S. Department of Education. Globally, UCS engages over 1 million students in 30,000 schools across 148 countries with plans to reach over 2 million students in 150,000 schools in the next three years.