Cape’s unified programs make all students feel welcome
There weren’t many dry eyes at the Cape Henlopen school board meeting Nov. 13, as students in Cape High’s unified programs and Best Buddies Club spoke about how they’ve been impacted by the school’s commitment to inclusivity.
“I’m going to miss you guys,” said Sussex Consortium student Sara Davis, who has played on Cape’s unified basketball team since her freshman year and is now an assistant coach.
A few weeks prior, Cape High was named Special Olympics Delaware’s 2025 Outstanding Unified Champion School. This award is presented annually to a public school that actively engages students with and without intellectual disabilities in inclusive sports, youth leadership and whole-school engagement activities.
In addition to the Best Buddies Club, which does events like the Special Olympics bocce tournament and Polar Bear Plunge, Cape offers three DIAA unified sports (flag football, basketball and track), Special Olympics unified soccer, unified choir and unified physical education class with adaptive equipment.
Through the unified programs, connections are built inside and outside the classroom, said Cape High student and Best Buddies Vice President Ariel King.
Cape Principal Kristin DeGregory and Sussex Consortium Assistant Principal Pam Willmot also spoke briefly.
“Thank you so much for bringing the spirit of Cape alive,” school board member Julie Derrick said.
“As a superintendent, this is the thing I am most proud of in our district – how inclusive we are,” said Superintendent Jenny Nauman. “As a mom, it is everything to me.”
Ellen McIntyre is a reporter covering education and all things Dewey Beach. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Penn State - Schreyer Honors College in May 2024, then completed an internship writing for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. In 2023, she covered the Women’s World Cup in New Zealand as a freelancer for the Associated Press and saw her work published by outlets including The Washington Post and Fox Sports. Her variety of reporting experience covers crime and courts, investigations, politics and the arts. As a Hockessin, Delaware native, Ellen is happy to be back in her home state, though she enjoys traveling and learning about new cultures. She also loves live music, reading, hiking and spending time in nature.
