The temperature hovered above freezing Wednesday afternoon outside Victor J. Andrew High School in Tinley Park as students and staff lined up next to a makeshift swimming pool. But it felt much colder, with weather reports recording wind chill factors in the 20s.
They wore swimsuits, short-sleeve t-shirts, shorts, onesies, t-shirts that read “YOLO” and even a Harry Potter costume, surrounded by spectators bundled in coats amid puddles left over from the freezing rain, hail and snow that had fallen the night before.
More than 60 students and a dozen staff members took turns jumping in the cold pool as part of Andrew High School’s fifth annual Polar Plunge. The event raised $34,000 for Special Olympics Illinois from over 100 student donations, according to Tim Dalton, assistant principal of activities.
That event also raised more than $47,000 last year, part of the reason Andrew was recently named a National Unified Champion Banner School by Special Olympics North America.
Nowal Shalash, a special education teacher and the school’s Special Olympics head coach, said the Plunge’s growth over the years speaks to the inclusivity of the school clubs, which come together to fundraise for and participate in the event.
Shalash plunged twice, once with one of her special education students and another time with her coworkers.
“Just the energy of everybody out there makes it less cold,” she said. “To be doing this among students, you can just feel their dedication, their compassion for it — it, like, really makes it even sweeter.”
She said Illinois Special Olympics funds important programs at the school.
Dalton, the assistant principal of activities, took a few plunges and said it was by far the coldest plunge in years. It was also his last year doing the plunge as a staff member, as he plans to retire after this year.
He said the event is his favorite student activity event because it is so “student focused.”
“It’s just the idea of building it all on inclusivity,” he said. “Andrew is about family, it’s about supporting each other, and this is just a great way.”
Timmy O’Connell, a freshman in the Andrew Special Olympics program, said it was his first time attending the event and that it was amazing. While he did not jump in the pool this year, he said that “maybe” he would next time.
“I think it’s pretty fun,” he said. “It’s also pretty cold.”
Jan Adams, a special services aide at Andrew and one of the plungers wearing a “YOLO” shirt, said the event means a lot to the students.
She’s worked at the school for 17 years and also is planning to retire, so she decided to take the plunge for the first time. She said she made the YOLO shirts with her coworkers, and they all plunged together.
Avery Boberg, a sophomore who was preparing to plunge, said the school does a lot for special education and that athletic teams and clubs helped “bring awareness” to the event.
Andrew principal Abir Othman said the school is very invested in special education
“It’s very important to all of us, to make sure that our students have all the support that they need,” she said. “We try to offer as many opportunities as possible that we can at school.”
That includes participation in District 230’s PEOPEL program, where general education students work one-on-one with students with significant special needs in physical education classes.
Othman also said the school has a program called “The Hangout,” which creates a space for students with and without disabilities to spend time together after school.
She said the school has several unified special olympics teams, where students with and without disabilities play on a team together.
awright@chicagotribune.com
