Unified sports Report - Special Olympics

country, with a specific emphasis on the states where the evaluation team was unable to visit.
There was approximately a 60% return rate on the mailed surveys from coaches.
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Trained project personnel at various Unified Sports events around the country gathered
observation data while also gathering participant surveys. Following each event, the project
personnel sat down as a group and discussed their impressions and observations. Only
observations with significant agreement across observers were included in the final analysis.
Finally, the project director spent three days in Washington, DC. reviewing previously existing
data (state files and past evaluations) in conjunction with key administrative personnel from
Special Olympics Headquarters.
The majority of the data collected for this evaluation is of a qualitative or nominal/ordinal
nature. The data were analyzed using several techniques. Quantitative data were analyzed using
basic descriptive statistical procedures and simple frequencies. Qualitative data were analyzed
through document review, qualitative data coding, and theme/pattern isolation techniques. The
final results of the evaluation were reviewed and discussed by the entire evaluation team for
accuracy and clarification purposes. A preliminary report was presented to the Special Olympics
Research and Evaluation Committee for their approval and feedback in October 2001.
III. FINDINGS
Findings are organized into the following categories, each of which corresponds to the
evaluation’s data sources: (a) administration of the program at the national level, (b)
administration of the program at the state level, c) athletes’ participation in Unified Sports, (d)
partners’ participation in Unified Sports, (e) family member perspectives of Unified Sports, and
(f) coaches’ participation in Unified Sports. The evaluation team also conducted several cross-
category comparisons in order to compare the goals and priorities across participants.