Contact: Paige Watson
STARKVILLE, Miss.—A special mobility training program to debut later this month at Mississippi State is receiving a $5,500 donation from the Mississippi Council on Developmental Disabilities.
Taking place May 23-27, the first Bulldog Bike Camp is a collaboration between the university’s kinesiology department and Pennsylvania-based iCan Shine organization. Participants must be at least 8 years old, weigh less than 220 pounds and have a diagnosed disability. Additionally, they must have a minimum inseam of 20 inches and be able to walk without assistive devices. Teens and adults are welcomed.
Founded in 2007, iCan Shine Inc. (formerly Lose The Training Wheels) is an international charitable nonprofit that successfully has helped some 20,000 people with disabilities learn to ride a conventional two-wheel bicycle. For more, see www.icanshine.org.
The MSCDD gift will support scholarships for any participant in need, as well as the campus program’s administrative costs, said Charles Hughes, executive director of the Jackson-based organization. “We are pleased to sponsor the Bulldog Bike Camp,” he added.
The council is a federally mandated body of advocates appointed by the governor to promote a better quality of life for individuals with developmental disabilities, as well as their families and communities.
Complete camp details and an online registration form are available at www.bulldogbike.msstate.edu. The registration fee is $100.
Camp director Gregg Twietmeyer, an assistant professor of sports studies and sports philosophy, expressed organizers’ appreciation for the gift.
“Obviously, the MSCDD’s financial donation is of great benefit to the camp, but as important has been their enthusiasm for the project,” he said. “Since our first discussion, they’ve been committed to making the camp a success and finding ways to enrich the experience of the riders and their families. We are grateful for their support.”
The kinesiology department (www.kinesiology.msstate.edu) is part of MSU’s College of Education.
Twietmeyer said other organizations—or individuals—interested in helping defray camp participation costs or becoming a program sponsor may contact college development director Trish Cunetto at 662-325-6762 or tcunetto@foundation.msstate.edu.
Scholarship information is available from Twietmeyer at 662-268-7533 or g.twietmeyer@msstate.edu.
MSU is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.