When UW Athletics reached out to the Haring Center’s Experimental Education Unit (EEU), they weren’t just offering volunteers, they were planting the seeds of a powerful partnership. What began with student-athletes showing up to play has grown into a deeply meaningful collaboration built on shared joy, belonging and the belief that all children deserve to thrive.
Through this partnership, UW student-athletes are helping to reimagine what community, connection, and inclusion can look like, one playful moment at a time.
This isn’t a new initiative. As Lana Sumner, assistant principal at the Haring Center, shared, “Since I’ve been here, it’s been happening all quarters.” Student-athletes from a range of sports — football, men’s and women’s soccer, softball, and gymnastics — regularly visit EEU students during recess and playtime, bringing joy and curiosity to a learning environment that centers children with and without disabilities. “They just have somebody to play with,” Sumner explained. “It’s wonderful. Teachers can step back and observe how the kids interact with others and how that play is extended.”
These simple playground moments are building bridges. “It just helps to build a greater community,” Sumner said. “We’re in our little bubble here in our school, but it gets us to know other people on campus.” Coaches and athletes often express how “cute” and “fun” the visits are, and for the kids, the excitement is palpable. “The little kids get excited when there’s that recognition that, oh, the athletes are here.”
At the heart of this partnership is an inclusive philosophy: all children, regardless of ability, deserve opportunities to learn, play and grow. “I hope that [the student-athletes] understand inclusive education settings better,” Sumner said, “and see that all people of all abilities can learn and play and grow and have fun together.”
That spirit of inclusive joy took center stage during Husky Heroes, a new community event launched by Philip Carpio, assistant director for diversity, equity, and inclusion in UW Athletics. Husky Heroes invites children and adults with disabilities to experience Husky athletics in a way designed just for them.
Caprio was inspired by his own family. “I have a nephew who is autistic, he requires a lot of assistance. He’s nonverbal,” Carpio shared. “I wanted to create an event that allowed kids and adults to be able to experience like Husky athletics in a way that worked for them.”
The result was a vibrant, accessible celebration. “It’s a carnival-style field day,” Caprio described. “We had the noise canceling headphones, sensory bags, giveaways, all the stations were adaptable.” The event was hosted free of charge, thanks to support from Symetra, and included snacks, games, and more than 60 student-athlete volunteers. “We wanted to make sure that we literally just had something for everybody.”
But the event’s impact rippled far beyond the day itself.
“Our student-athletes absolutely loved the event,” Carpio said. “It allowed them to create a little bit of a community amongst themselves, but the sole focus was the kids.” For Carpio it’s about reminding everyone — athletes, children, families — that “sport is truly for everybody.” And that “they still want to be them, and they can be them. It just may look a little bit different.”
Parents were moved. “We definitely had several parents that were literally like in tears,” Carpio recalled. “They’ve never been provided the event at no cost, we were doing it for the community, for no other reason than we wanted to do it.”
This commitment has deep roots. For Carpio, who is Hispanic and queer, the work of inclusion is personal. “If I want people to stand up and fight for my identities, I have to be willing to do the same. We can’t let hate win,” he said. “We have to show love and empathy for each other.”
And thanks to this work, that love is showing up, in small hands reaching for hula hoops, in giant athletes crouching at eye level, in spontaneous games of tag, and in the shared laughter echoing off a playground surrounded by glass.
As Carpio ssput it: “We have 570 student-athletes that are trying to navigate this world as young adults, and we have to be the example.”
Thanks to this partnership, they already are.
