- Joined
- Jul 9, 2008
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I have been a big fan of Tim Tebow and the work he does for communities across the country. The Night to Shine event was a great use of his public figure and in 4 days it starts again.
Students with disabilities are educated in their neighborhood schools and most students with disabilities have a significant amount of their time in a regular classroom with their peers. Many students with disabilities are embedded within their school's culture and are merely part of the student body. Thus they can be seen at high school prom's across the country. But that's not the entire story. There is still a significant amount of separation from the student body, whether by social segregation or spacial separation (there's often a "special education wing" or "section" of a public school, which often highlights how separate the realms can be). Many students are not included in these school dance events and a large chunk of time these events are not comfortable for these students.
The Tim Tebow foundation has sought to contribute a bit of a change to the narrative. By melding Tebow's religious background with his sincere desire to empower youth with disabilities, Tebow is bringing a prom specifically aimed at these students and giving them what he calls "the royal treatment," complete with a red carpet launch. Tim Tebow's foundation has dramatically increased its presence across the country from last year. Last year they had 26 participating states. Now they have 48 states participating in at least one event in their state. Further, they are increasing their international reach from the previous year. In 2015 they had 3 host countries, but now they have 8. They expect over 30,000 prom attendees and 70,000 volunteers.
Here's some highlights from last year's proms.
Night to Shine
Students with disabilities are educated in their neighborhood schools and most students with disabilities have a significant amount of their time in a regular classroom with their peers. Many students with disabilities are embedded within their school's culture and are merely part of the student body. Thus they can be seen at high school prom's across the country. But that's not the entire story. There is still a significant amount of separation from the student body, whether by social segregation or spacial separation (there's often a "special education wing" or "section" of a public school, which often highlights how separate the realms can be). Many students are not included in these school dance events and a large chunk of time these events are not comfortable for these students.
The Tim Tebow foundation has sought to contribute a bit of a change to the narrative. By melding Tebow's religious background with his sincere desire to empower youth with disabilities, Tebow is bringing a prom specifically aimed at these students and giving them what he calls "the royal treatment," complete with a red carpet launch. Tim Tebow's foundation has dramatically increased its presence across the country from last year. Last year they had 26 participating states. Now they have 48 states participating in at least one event in their state. Further, they are increasing their international reach from the previous year. In 2015 they had 3 host countries, but now they have 8. They expect over 30,000 prom attendees and 70,000 volunteers.
Here's some highlights from last year's proms.
Night to Shine
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