It’s a brisk Friday morning at Centennial High School. The sound of laughter bounces above the early-morning mist that lightly covers the hill down to the stadium. On the turf field, students are kicking soccer balls, playing tag and walking around together. It’s a seemingly simple sight reminiscent of any typical Physical Education class, but for the students participating, those small activities hold a value far beyond exercise.

The class in question is the Unified Physical Education and Leadership class, introduced to Centennial during the 2022-2023 school year. The class allows “students with and without disabilities to gain knowledge, experience, and skills in recreation sports, leisure activities, team/individual sports, fitness, and dance in a collaborative and cooperative environment,” according to the Howard County Catalog of Approved High School Courses for 2023-2024. In Unified P.E., students without intellectual or developmental disabilities (IDDs) are peer helpers for the students with IDDs, known in the class as “buddies.” 

The peers are active participants in every game and activity to foster an inclusive environment. Junior Grace Bleiler has been a peer helper in the class for two years. “[Unified P.E. is] like a Sports for Life class but just modified,” she states. “So you’re helping the kids also be able to do what you can do. Sometimes you have to just throw them the ball instead of hitting the ball in tennis, or in soccer, you lightly pass it instead of kicking it across the whole field.” Bleiler signed up for the class because she liked the idea of being able to blend physical activity with helping others. Her favorite aspect of the class has been the positive environment. “Everybody is so nice and friendly, so I know this is always gonna be a good class,” she says. 

Senior Sean Burns, who has an IDD, is in agreement. He loves sports, especially soccer, football, and softball. The class allows him to enjoy these activities alongside his friends, making them even more fun. “The football game where it was me, [Coach] Corey, Jada and somebody and we were playing… and I ended up winning with my team, that was my favorite memory,” Burns reminisces. He encourages people to take the class because “you can help as a peer buddy or you can be a classmate and really get to know how to play sports better.” 

Senior Jessica Choi, who also has an IDD, has found joy in the class in similar ways. Choi enjoys getting to know new people, and her favorite part of the class involves just that. Each Wednesday, the Unified P.E. class can be found walking around the turf field, pond or hallways of Centennial—the day known as “Walking Wednesday” allows students to interact with each other in an informal setting. “My favorite part of this class is having Walking Wednesday,” states Choi. While she doesn’t love gym activities, she enjoys being able to walk around and talk to her classmates about what they did over the weekend.

Senior and first-year peer helper Nicole Bumbray also likes meeting new people through the class. “It’s really fun to hang out with each individual person and get to know their weaknesses and strengths,” she says. Her sister, sophomore Tiffany, is one of the students in the class that has an IDD. Bumbray says that she signed up for the class because she’s “used to helping with Tiffany at the house, so it’s kind of similar… I’m really friendly to everyone. I try to help everyone if they need help kicking a ball or swinging [a bat],” she relates. 

Not only do the students who take Unified P.E. learn the best way to kick a soccer ball or hit a softball, but they learn that they are all more alike than different. Bleiler has gained a new understanding of the abilities of her classmates. “It showed me that the kids are really capable of a lot of stuff that I might not have thought they were able to do.” 

Teacher Jennifer Lapointe has been able to see how the one-on-one interaction has benefitted each student compared to typical P.E. classes. “When [students with IDDs are] in a Lifetime Fitness class, they’re just on a lone island… the kids that don’t have a lot of confidence, that don’t necessarily know how to do a skill, they just get ignored sometimes, which is not ideal at all. It’s hard… especially if [non-IDD students] don’t have any interest in working and bringing those kids in and kind of watching after them.” While this is only the second year that Unified P.E. has been available at Centennial, Lapointe had taught it for ten years in Carroll County, giving her plenty of experience to make the class successful. Last year, the class was held during sixth period with seven peer helpers for 11 buddies, three of whom came into the class halfway through the period. This year, there have been a couple changes: Unified P.E. is now scheduled for second period, and there are eight peers for 11 buddies who are in the class full-time, which allows the class to run more smoothly. “Really the difference is all the peers, so everything is modified even more,” Lapointe remarks. “Every kid’s getting one-on-one attention.” 

That one-on-one attention quickly morphis into friendships within the class. “It’s… just fun, you get to meet new people, you get to learn stuff, you get more friends to say “hi” to in the hallways, so it’s a good experience,” Bleiler says.

As she looks out at the turf field scattered with students laughing, playing duck-duck-goose, and kicking soccer balls, Lapointe smiles, thinking about her favorite part of teaching the class. “Just seeing them all do something, and they’re all successful. Just seeing all of them have a friend to talk to.”

At the end of class, the light fog has lifted and the sun has fully risen in the background. The students walk back up the sloping hill, chatting. Nearly every student openly exchanges fist bumps and high fives—a symbol of the confidence and friendship that follows the simple idea of gym and unity.

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