Nursing Students Champion Health and Inclusion at Special Olympics New York Winter Games

Recently, St. John Fisher University’s Wegmans School of Nursing partnered with Special Olympics New York (SONY) for their Healthy Athlete events, supporting health promotion and wellness initiatives for athletes with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).

More than 100 undergraduate nursing students dedicated their time and expertise at the Special Olympics New York Winter Games and the Festival of Inclusion, providing vital health screenings, education, and advocacy.

On Saturday, Feb. 22, students manned Fitness Performance Stations at Nazareth University’s Golisano Training Center, engaging athletes in physical activity, nutrition, hydration, and goal-setting to enhance sport performance and overall well-being. Later that day, at the Healthy Athletes: Health Promotion, and Healthy Athletes: Strong Minds event at the Rochester Riverside Convention Center, nursing students conducted comprehensive health screenings and facilitated mental wellness activities, helping 203 athletes understand and improve their health. The following week, on Saturday, March 1, nursing students continued their impact at the Festival of Inclusion at another Healthy Athlete Health Promotion event, offering assessments and education to community members beyond Special Olympics athletes.

First-semester juniors in the Population Health Nursing Part 1 course and first-semester seniors in the Psychiatric Nursing course, as well as some second semester seniors in Community Nursing, participated as part of their experiential learning. Under the supervision of Dr. Liz Dollinger, visiting instructor and community clinical coordinator at the School of Nursing, and clinical director for Healthy Athletes: Health Promotion, students performed screenings, educated athletes on key health topics, and promoted emotional wellness. Dollinger was assisted over the two weekends by her School of Nursing colleagues Dr. Marcie McMahon, visiting assistant professor; Dr. Beth Kiss, associate professor; Dr. Desiree Branson, visiting assistant professor. Dr. Holly Brown, executive director of the Golisano Institute of Developmental Disability Nursing, and Darcie Mersereau, chief operations officer for the Institute, also hosted a booth at the event.

To prepare for the event, students completed Special Olympics Inclusive Health Fundamentals, a three-hour online training developed by the Golisano Institute and Special Olympics Health.

The events provided students with real world hands-on experience in inclusive health care, highlighting the importance of population health, social determinants of health, and advocacy.

“The opportunity to engage directly with individuals with IDD helped students develop practical communication strategies, adaptability, and a deeper understanding of the unique health disparities this population faces,” Dollinger said.

Dollinger added that for many students, these experiences were eye-opening and deeply impactful. The first semester juniors were asked to reflect on the experience as well as the impact that the learning modules had on their nursing practice.

“This experience will have a positive influence in my nursing practice because it has helped me understand the importance of utilizing a person-centered technique when working with IDD patients,” wrote one student. “I plan on getting to know all of my patients and we can figure out what their strengths and weaknesses are. This will help me create a better plan of care for them so that they can be the strongest and healthiest version of themselves.”

The participation of nursing students in Special Olympics’ health promotion and screening events has steadily grown, and this year marked the largest student volunteer effort yet.

Looking ahead, Dollinger said the School aims to strengthen its partnership with Special Olympics New York and the Genesee Region, which serves over 2,100 athletes annually.

“By expanding inclusive health initiatives and providing real-world experiential learning opportunities, Fisher continues to prepare future nurses to deliver equitable, patient-centered care to all populations,” she said.