Shaheen Pasha’s 7-year-old son, Dani Din, was excited to learn some beginner basketball skills during a program for special needs children in September. The class was organized by Dan McKenna, a former Penn State men’s basketball player, through Hoop Stars, the organization he created to expose the fundamentals of the sport to young children.
When the class was over, on the way to their car, Dani asked his mom if he could do it again. Pasha, who was excited that her son, who is on the autism spectrum, enjoyed it so much, told him that of course he could do it again.
“He loved it,” Pasha says. “That’s inspiring to me. You want to have your kid be excited to go to a sports class.”
The September class for special needs children, Hoop Stars Super Stars, was the first of its kind for McKenna, who played for Penn State from 1990-1994 and has run Hoop Stars since 2019.
McKenna, whose 9-year-old son is on the autism spectrum, created the Super Stars program because he knows how difficult it is for parents like him to find sports activities designed for their children.
“Every kid deserves the chance to participate in something like this,” he says.
McKenna second session of classes for special-needs children began earlier this month at gyms in the State College area, and he is looking forward to teaching basketball in a way that works best for them.
McKenna’s oldest son, Kevin, plays basketball for State College Area High School, but his 9-year-old son, Kyle, who is non-verbal, won’t have the same opportunity. The structure of a basketball class for all ages and abilities may not be the best environment for children with special needs, such as autism.
“That’s the one reason I wanted to start this,” McKenna says. “They shouldn’t just be written off because they’re not typical.”
Before McKenna began Hoop Stars, he left his full-time job to be available for Kyle. He was also looking for a way to harness his passion for basketball, and his wife suggested teaching his favorite sport to youngsters.
The idea was a slam dunk to him, and he ran with it, getting some startup money from a business incubator in Bellefonte to help with marketing and a website. His first program was for preschoolers in 2019, and he later added a K-2 program.
McKenna, who is 6-foot-11, teaches dribbling, passing, shooting, and other skills and uses 4-foot hoops or 7-foot hoops, depending on the age group.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, he had a Hoop Stars night at the Bryce Jordan Center during a Penn State men’s game.
McKenna originally planned to offer the special needs class in March 2020, but the pandemic delayed it a year and a half. When he was able to offer it in September, 14 families participated.
Dori Dunn signed up her son Grady, who is 6 and on the autism spectrum.
Dunn says the class was perfect: The kids played with basketballs for 15 minutes, and then McKenna introduced the skills. McKenna was even running around wearing a tail, getting a laugh out of the kids.
The parents were on the court with their children, cheering for all of the youngsters, too.
“They were getting a lot of encouragement and praise, which was really neat to see,” Dunn says of the children. “Grady really enjoyed it, and he thinks Coach Dan is the funniest thing ever.”
Pasha says her son, Dani, may not always understand the rules or the structure of an activity for neurotypical children, or children not on the autism spectrum. But, in this class, there were times he stopped participating to look at something and it wasn’t a big deal. The other parents could relate to their children having those moments.
“If it’s not meant for kids that are neurodivergent, it’s hard for them to follow the rules and you’re not explaining things for them,” she says. “I saw the way he taught these kids, and it’s very much targeted for the child, and I loved that.”
She says her son also felt motivated by watching other kids. “That encouragement really, really made him want to try.”
Faith Ryan’s 4-year-old son was another participant in the September class who was also signed up for the January offering. She says the activity is a way to meet other parents of special needs children.
“Being around other parents or guardians is really helpful just to feel that you’re not alone and having other parents say, ‘I’ve been there,’ and ‘Here’s my kid, and they still have challenges, but your kid will mature and will find themselves,’” Ryan says. “The more we can find ways in our community to open up programs like that for kids like that, the better.”
More information about Hoop Stars Super Stars is available at hoopstarspa.com.
Mike Dawson is a freelance writer in State College. This story appears in the January 2022 issue of Town&Gown.
