MEDIA RELEASES

Dominican University will present Special Olympics Illinois with the Bradford O’Neill Medallion for Social Justice during academic convocation on Wednesday, September 9. The convocation will be held at 4:00 p.m. in the university’s Lund Auditorium, 7900 W. Division Street, River Forest.

Special Olympics is an international organization dedicated to empowering individuals with intellectual disabilities to become physically fit, productive and respected members of society through sports training and competition. The first Special Olympics games were held at Soldier Field in Chicago in July 1968. Special Olympics Illinois offers year-round training and competition in 19 Olympic-type summer and winter sports. In addition, the organization offers athletes a full range of artistic, social and cultural experiences.

Barbara Kozdron, a Special Olympics athlete and global messenger, will accept the Bradford O’N eill Medallion on behalf of the athletes, families and volunteers of Special Olympics Illinois. Kozdron, 22, has participated in Special Olympics since she was eight years old. She now trains and competes through the Chicago Park District’s Shabbona Park. The sports in which Kozdron competes include figure skating, basketball, softball, floor hockey, track & field, golf and tennis. A 2000 graduate of Taft High School in Chicago, Kozdron has been a global messenger for Special Olympics since 2002.

Dominican University’s Bradford O’Neill Medallion for Social Justice was named in honor of Sister Vincent Ferrer Bradford and Sister Thomas Aquinas O’Neill, two pioneering Sinsinawa Dominican Sisters. The award is presented annually to an individual or organization whose work reflects and embraces the university’s core mission to create a just and humane society.

Following the convocation ceremony, Special Olympics athletes will compete with Dominican University students in a bocce demonstration. This event is designed to introduce Dominican University students to Special Olympics and kick off a long-term partnership between the university and the social service organization.

For more information about convocation, call (708) 524-6294.