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During its annual State of the District event on Jan. 28, the Cheatham County School District (CCSD) celebrated Harpeth Middle School (HMS) for its recent achievement of being dubbed a National Unified Champion School by the Special Olympics program.
Ashlee Gagliano – parent of HMS 6th grade student Greer – sang the praises of the school’s dedicated Unified program, noting that her and her husband, John, knew within minutes of touring Harpeth that it was the right fit for their son.
“We knew that our Nashville zoned school that we were prepared to go to just wasn’t the right fit for Greer. As a special needs parent, you become very good at trusting your gut in situations to know this isn’t the right path you need to take for your child. Through word of mouth we were told to check out Harpeth,” Gagliano said. “In our tour we knew within five minutes that this was the place.”
Gagliano said there were several reasons they decided to send Greer to Harpeth. The first, was that a special needs student immediately greeted them with a hello when they came to tour. The second was that the classroom for the Unified students was equipped with a full kitchen, a washer and dryer, a bed and a living room area.
“As parents we love that they teach life skills, which is so important to us,” Gagliano said.
She said that the “icing on the cake” was HMS’s Unified club.
“It does not go unnoticed at all that we have multiple students getting up at the crack of dawn. Our school bell rings at 7:45, and they are there at 7:15,” Gagliano said. “These students are intentionally committed to being involved and making friends with other students that might not have the ability to make friends very easily or as often as others.”
“We have seen first hand how much this has impacted Greer,” Gagliano said through tears. “Not even a month into school, John and Greer went to a school football game. John called me as they were leaving to tell me, ‘You’re not going to believe it. Five people came up to him and said hello’ … Out of the five, three were students.”
She continued, “A few months later, us special needs parents were invited to the school for Harpeth becoming a nationally ranked Unified club school. To celebrate, we had a Unified club basketball game and they went all out. There was a jazz pep band, a very supportive and excited faculty, a game announcer on the PA system and the loudest cheering student section you’ve ever heard."
“I could take this whole morning by going on and on about the wonderful experience in the short five months that we have had at Harpeth,” Gagliano said. “The importance of the Unified club is it gives both typical and non-typical students an opportunity to build confidence to interact with each other on a daily basis.”
She concluded, “In this small corner of Cheatham County, I cannot tell you how much our family has been blessed with your welcoming commitment to our Greer – and especially his classmates – the inclusion you have spread in the school that will then spread all over and the ongoing support that you give all of our kids.”
HMS became a National Unified Champion School on Nov. 25. A Unified Champion School receiving national recognition is one that has demonstrated commitment to inclusion by meeting 10 national standards of excellence. These standards were developed by a national panel of leaders from the Special Olympics and the education community.
HMS is the second Cheatham County school to receive this national recognition. Harpeth High School earned the same recognition in March 2023. The CCSD became Tennessee’s first Unified district in September 2023.
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