TOWSON, Md. - With the 2024-25 season officially behind us, the Landmark Conference proudly looks back on a year full of solid performances and meaningful achievements across all 10 member schools. Over the next two weeks, we’ll be featuring a different institution each week with their top moments and stories. Check back often and click the link below to explore the full recap.
Landmark Conference Yearbook
The Drew University Athletic Department is excited to be partnering with Special Olympics once again after participating in a collaborative new initiative this past winter.
Drew Athletics, the Drew Center for Civic Engagement (CCE), and Special Olympics of New Jersey (SONJ) joined forces to create a Unified Sports basketball team.
A program of the Special Olympics, Unified Sports joins people with and without intellectual disabilities on the same team and is dedicated to promoting social inclusion through shared sports training and competition experiences. The partnership is inspired by a simple principle: training together and playing together is a quick path to friendship and understanding.
Approximately 20 Drew student-athletes and Action Scholars teamed up with a group of Special Olympians for a series of practices in Drew’s Simon Forum in preparation for the statewide Unified Cup Basketball tournament, which was held on April 12 at Princeton University.
“We are extremely excited to continue our partnership with Unified Sports,” said Drew Director of Athletics Christa Racine. “This is an incredible opportunity for our student-athletes to experience first-hand the power of inclusion while strengthening ties with our local community.”
“Coaching the Unified Basketball team at Drew University this spring was one of the most meaningful experiences I’ve had,” said Amy Rachilla C’27, a member of the Drew women’s basketball team. “I’ve always understood the power of teamwork, but teaming up with our local Special Olympics athletes brought that to a whole new level. Watching them grow as players, support one another, and truly enjoy every moment on the court was a beautiful reminder of why we play sports in the first place. They came to every practice full of excitement, and their passion and genuine love for the game was impossible to miss. Each athlete brought something so special to the team, and they left a lasting impact on me not just as a coach, but as a teammate, a student-athlete, and a person. I’m so grateful I got to be a part of it.”
“I’m proud that we partnered with the Drew Athletic Department to support the Unified Sports program,” said Sean Hewitt, Director of the Drew University Center for Civic Engagement. “This collaboration creates meaningful opportunities for inclusive programming centered on reciprocal relationship building, bringing together Drew students and Special Olympics athletes to foster community, mutual respect, and a sense of belonging on our campus. I would like to thank Jennifer Caldwell, CCE Program Coordinator, and the Action Scholars for their assistance in this effort, and to all the Drew student-athletes for their enthusiastic engagement in the program.”