Major League Baseball (MLB) and the New York Yankees hosted an event on Oct. 28 to unveil plans to build a new sensory room at One World Middle School in the Edenwald section. Sensory rooms provide a calm and safe environment for kids with autism.

 

Over 100 students from the school, located at 3750 Baychester Avenue, attended the announcement inside the school’s auditorium. The MLB and the Yankees jointly donated $50,000 to the school, marking the second time this year the parties have collaborated. Officials said One World Middle School helped redesign a separate sensory room at Yankee Stadium, located at the 300 level.

The principal of One World Middle School, Patricia Wynne, said, “One World was founded in 2011 on the belief that all children have the right to be acknowledged as unique individuals and that we all just learn differently. We are proud to say that we are an ASDNS school.”

 

Wynne continued, “So, what does that mean? It means we also serve a population of students who are on the autism spectrum, who are neurodivergent, and quite simply, just may think different or process different. There’s a saying that if you know one child with autism, you only know one child with autism.” Wynne was basically saying that every child with autism is unique and has different needs, and because of this, there’s no one solution that fits all.

Valentina Lucre, a senior at One World Middle School, said of the project, “The benefit of a sensory room shows that all kinds of minds are normalized and that we can continue to support those that are having a hard time and to influence others that autism is not a drawback, but more of a determined path to bring good things to a generation.”

 

Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez also attended the event, making his first appearance after MLB announced he was the winner of the 2024 Roberto Clemente Award, which is given annually to the MLB player who “best represents the game of baseball through extraordinary character, community involvement, philanthropy, and positive contributions, both on and off the field,” per MLB’s website.

The two sons of Puerto Rican legendary MLB player with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Roberto Clemente, who died in December 1972 in a plane crash he had chartered to take emergency relief goods to survivors of a massive earthquake in Nicaragua, Roberto Jr. and Luis, were also in attendance. Meanwhile, the $50K donation is part of the 2024 World Series Legacy Project. The room is expected to be available to use in 2025.

 

Former Yankee pitcher Dellin Betances, who now serves as an ambassador for the MLB, said, “Anytime you’re able to provide kids with different tools to learn, it’s a big deal. It gives these kids a chance to develop their skills in different ways. It makes me happy because you know it’s about giving back and we’re able to use our platform to continue to provide for the community.”

For his part, Brian Smith, New York Yankee senior vice president of corporate and community relations, said “The New York Yankees and One World’s common focus is to drive and generate awareness, access, and enhance that educational experience.”

 

Read some of our past autism-related coverage here, here, here, here and here.