Minnesota School Students Raise Over $300,000 To Help Fund Inclusive Playground For Kids With Disabilities

It’s a mixed blessing to have recess at Glen Lake Elementary School. One the one hand, the to-do list is endless. On the other hand, not everybody is capable of doing it.

Many students need wheelchairs due to physical impairments. This implies that they would have to watch their friends play while being unable to participate owing to inaccessible equipment.

The absence of a wheelchair merry-go-round, swings, or any other adaptive playground equipment in Glen Lake, which has a large population of students with physical disabilities, severely concerned the students in Betsy Julien’s fifth-grade class.

Some Glen Lake students found this to be inappropriate and consequently asked their teacher how they might ensure that everyone was included.

They learned that the price of such equipment was about $300,000. However, they weren’t discouraged because they were determined to raise the amount in any way they could.

They began gathering spare change, organised a bake sale, made flyers, and knocked on doors. Then they started making cold calls to companies, even convincing eateries to donate a portion of their earnings.

This continued for months, but last week, with help from the Glen Lake Parent Teacher Organization, they finally achieved their objective, CBS News reported.

The class set a new objective after raising $300,000. They are now hoping to purchase inclusive playground equipment for more district schools.