Edwardsville Students Celebrate Respect Week and Inclusivity with Polar Plunges
The message behind the plunge: visibility, safety, and real friendships for all.
EDWARDSVILLE - Edwardsville Community Unit School District #7 students participated in a polar plunge to raise money for Special Olympics.
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Throughout the week of March 2–6, 2026, known as Respect Week, students enjoyed activities and conversations centered around inclusion. The week culminated in the polar plunges, where students who raised money for Special Olympics then had water dumped over their heads. Special education teacher and Special Olympics advisor Kayla Magruder noted the importance of hosting events like this.
“The huge thing is, it’s changed our whole culture and climate in our district,” she said. “Students with disabilities are more included. They’re more visible. They’re safer at school, and then they’re making those genuine friendships, too. So it really has done so many positive things for our district.”
Respect Week is a statewide campaign that aims to bring together general and special education students. Dalton Wells and Eleanora Bennett, two Edwardsville High School students, are on the statewide committee and helped organize Respect Week for Illinois schools. This year’s theme — Wild Wild Respect — had a cowboy theme and included dress-up days and activities for D7 schools.
Magruder shared that the students worked hard to encourage inclusivity throughout the week. People played games, signed a Respect Week banner, and greeted one another at the beginning of the school day.
The week ended with the polar plunges. In the weeks leading up to the event, students could fundraise and encourage their loved ones to donate to their campaign. Some schools had fundraising incentives, including a few teachers who agreed to have the top-fundraising students dump ice water on their heads.
Proceeds from the fundraiser go towards Special Olympics so the schools can continue their Special Olympics teams. Magruder noted that they always want more districts to get involved, and administrators can contact her directly for information about how to start a Special Olympics program at their school.
Last year, D7 raised approximately $40,000 to support Special Olympics Illinois. You can click here to donate through March 31, 2026. If you’d like to support the high school specifically, click here. Edwardsville High School is nearing its goal of $5,000 raised, while the Region J community — which includes the Edwardsville elementary schools and surrounding districts — have raised over $54,000 so far.
Magruder thanked the participating students, staff members, and administrators for their support. She added that the “really supportive administration” in D7 has helped make this possible. Respect Week and the polar plunges are fun ways to remind people about the value of inclusivity and respect, but the underlying message is what stands out.
“It takes the whole community to really step up and make sure that everybody’s included,” Magruder said. “A lot of people out in the world, if you meet somebody with a disability, you might not know how to react or respond or what questions to ask. So the more we can expose people earlier and also include all of the students who have those disabilities, the more genuine friendships and inclusion there are within the school and then hopefully out in the community as well.”
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