PARSIPPANY — The Parsippany PAL runs a special education program on Mondays called Games with friends. This program has been in effect for the last five years.
Race to the Finish” was developed for students in Kindergarten through eighth grade who have special needs enrolled in a self-contained classroom in the Parsippany-Troy Hills School District.
Students from the two high schools, Parsippany High School and Parsippany Hills High School were selected to help guide the students through the games and obstacle courses.
The goal is not for the students to “win,” but rather for them to finish what they started. The day is split up into two groups, K-3 and 4-8, with different activities based on age appropriateness. Students are encouraged to try their best, to socialize with peers, and to simply, have fun. The games were played inside the PAL Building and the outside field with two blow up obstacle course.
This program is run in conjunction with the Parsippany-Troy Hills Board of Education.
The entire day is funded by a grant through the PAL. Jennifer Fedo is in charge of “Peer Buddies” at Parsippany High School and organizes student volunteers to staff the challenger games every year. They work closely with Tony Bonavitacola, Parsippany PAL to ensure the day runs as smooth as possible!
At the end of the school year, the PAL hosts a field day called Race to the Finish, which will was held on Friday, May 25 from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
This year there were over 500 participants in grades K-8 attending “Race to the Finish.”
Volunteers including Mayor Michael Soriano, Business Administrator Ellen Sandman and CFO Ann Cucci served pizza and cookies to the students.
