Stu Moran stood at the center of the basketball court as players and fans offered him handshakes and high-fives.

The Barrington Middle School unified basketball team had just won a close game, 34-33, over East Providence's Martin Junior High School, and Mr. Moran, the coach of the BMS team, was very happy. 

But it was not the score that had Mr. Moran smiling and sharing hugs. 

What made Mr. Moran truly happy was seeing the bleachers filled with Barrington Middle School sixth-graders who cheered loudly for both teams; listening to the band play after all made baskets; and watching everyone celebrate an afternoon of inclusion and acceptance.

"It's fantastic," he said. 

Normally, the middle school's unified basketball team plays its games after school dismisses, but for the game against Martin Junior High School, Mr. Moran and Barrington Middle School Principal Dr. Andrew Anderson decided to do something different. 

They scheduled the game during the school day and invited all the BMS sixth-graders to attend. They also recruited the middle school band to play during the mid-afternoon match-up.

"One of the biggest things is we don't have fans (for our games) after school," said Mr. Moran. "They're on the bus going home or they have other games to get to, so we usually only have parents from both sides come in, which is phenomenal, don't get me wrong. But there's nothing like having a huge crowd like that, where everybody gets into it. The athletes loved it. All the students loved it. The other team loved it."

Dr. Anderson agreed. He also explained the decision to invite all the sixth-graders to the game: "They're going to be with us for sixth, seventh and eighth grade, and this is the type of culture we want to continue throughout the school.  

"What we told the kids before is that it's all about a celebration of teamwork, sportsmanship. Really, it's a celebration of all abilities, and just talking to the teachers now, they said this was the best event ever. You could feel the love."

The unified basketball game coincided with other special events at the middle school. Mr. Moran said a group called BMS Buddies was recently formed — it partners students with intellectual disabilities and other students.

"They meet one or two times a month, and we said why not incorporate that. So they (BMS Buddies) made signs (for the game)," Mr. Moran said. "It was phenomenal."

The school also recently kicked off its "Spread the word, to end the word" campaign, which teaches students to refrain from using hurtful and derogatory language. In addition, the day following the unified basketball game, students at Barrington Middle School participated in "A Day Without Hate" — students were encouraged to wear white as a reminder to refrain from doing hateful or hurtful things. 

"So we decided we'd make it one whole week campaign and we decided today would be the day to showcase everything," Mr. Moran said.

For Dr. Anderson, who worked previously as a special education teacher, the atmosphere inside the gymnasium and the displays of sportsmanship and inclusion were very rewarding.

"Being a special education teacher prior and really believing in the inclusion model, yeah, it was totally heartwarming," he said. "It was fantastic."