Adapted Physical Education Program Hosts Inaugural Camp Abilities
Long Beach State Adapted Physical Education (APE) students hosted its first ever Camp Abilities, a youth sports camp for the visually impaired. Earlier this semester, numerous volunteer CSULB students from the APE program and Department of Kinesiology, came together to teach visually impaired youth physical activity games. Activities included a tethered run, shot put, hurdles and sprints, tandem biking, goalball and more.
“Camp Abilities has been around for decades and is a worldwide organization, but this is our first time hosting one on our campus,” said APE Co-Director Melissa Bittner, and Associate Professor in the Department of Kinesiology. “We invited 22 visually impaired youth from the Los Angeles Unified School District to work with our students.”
Thanks to grant funds given to the Adapted Physical Education program at Long Beach State, the APE team was also able to fly out the founder of Camp Abilities, Dr. Lauren Lieberman. In addition to being the founder of Camp Abilities, Dr. Lieberman is a Distinguished Service Professor at SUNY Brockport University in New York.
“Long Beach State has such great programs, so I was thrilled when they invited me to participate in the school’s inaugural Camp Abilities,” Dr. Leiberman said. “Melissa [Bittner] realized that once her [APE] students graduated, they wouldn’t have had the opportunity to teach a child with a visual impairment. So even just having this one day of Camp Abilities makes a huge difference for them.”
While Camp Abilities served as a learning experience for CSULB students poised to enter the field of being adapted physical education teachers, it also gave the visually impaired participants an opportunity to have fun and learn as well. Camp Abilities holds many locations throughout the country and worldwide; however, there are not many programs on the west coast, according to Dr. Lieberman.
“There are thousands of kids in the LA area that are visually impaired and who can benefit from Camp Abilities and programs like it,” she said.
Seeing the students running, jumping and playing, and coming together to teach each other, one could only hope that this may be the start of something special. Through this small group, Dr. Lieberman says it could serve as an example for others living with a visual impairment.
“We are just scratching the surface here with inviting these 22 students, but when you see how these kids start developing confidence, and they show people what they can do -- that impact can spread to others.”
Watch: CSULB student helps young camper with hurdle jump
