TCNJ’s CCS Program well represented at SONJ Summer Games

Among the 2,300 athletes who took part in the Special Olympics New Jersey Summer Games, held on campus in June, were two individuals with ties to the College’s Career and Community Studies Program.

Words by Amy Macintyre '12

First-year CCS student Emily Smith competed in softball at the 2012 SONJ Summer Games.

Like any teenager, Emily Smith was ecstatic when she received her acceptance letter to college. The excitement of new friends, new experiences, and independence had her packing her bags in anticipation of the fall semester. But Emily is not like most college-bound teenagers.

Just shy of 20-years-old, Emily is very accomplished. She has participated in the New Jersey Special Olympics for 11 years, and at this year’s games, was invited to throw the opening pitch for the Trenton Thunder game during the annual Special Olympics Night at Waterfront Park. Not only has Emily graduated from Watchung Hills Regional High School, she recently graduated from Athlete University, a Special Olympics program where she learned sportsmanship, leadership, fitness, and public speaking.

This year’s New Jersey Special Olympics, which took place on campus in June, was especially memorable for Emily. Having been accepted into TCNJ’s Career and Community Studies program, a college based, liberal studies program for young adults with intellectual disabilities, she had the opportunity to get comfortable with the campus where she will be attending classes for the next four years.

Special Olympics athletes took over the dorms at TCNJ for the weekend of June 8 to 10, and Stephen, Emily’s father, was comforted to see Emily make herself right at home. “Her bed was made, she put her clothes in the closet, and she had everything put away,” he said.

Stephen always knew that one day he would be sending his daughter off to college. “We would tell people when she was young that she would go to college, and they would just roll their eyes, even her pediatricians.” Emily, who was born with Down syndrome, knew it too, having three older brothers who have all attended college to inspire her.

“Just like a typical teenage girl, she loves us, loves her family, but she wants to be on her own,” Stephen said. Emily is living off campus in a house shared with four other CCS students along with a mentor.

This year’s Special Olympics also brought home a CCS alumna, Marissa Faralli, who attended the program from 2007 to 2009. Although Marissa did not finish the certification program, her mother Maria saw the positive change in her daughter in the two academic years.

“You can see that she went to further education. She has a finesse about her. She became a total woman and an advocate for herself,” Maria said.

“Marissa had voiced her opinion that she wanted to go to college, and we had no idea how we were going to do that,” she said. Marissa was born with a heart defect, and at birth, college wasn’t even in Maria’s mind. She was just hoping Marissa would pull through.

“We were just hoping that she was going to make it, not knowing this little baby was going to have all these accomplishments that she has,” she said.

Aside from her accomplishments participating in the Special Olympics, Marissa is an advocate for the organization, and this February she went to Washington, D.C., to meet with her congressional representatives to advocate the passage of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Act of 2011.

Prior to the start of this year’s Summer Games, Marissa carried the torch in Cape May County. The torch eventually made its way to Ewing and into Lions’ Stadium for the Opening Ceremony, where both Emily and Marissa prepared to compete with over 2,300 athletes from across the state. The ceremony ended with fireworks: the perfect homecoming for Marissa and a warm welcome to the College for Emily.