Berg Elementary Expands Inclusive Supports Through “Bulldog Balance” Initiative
NDAD is proud to support Berg Elementary in Dickinson with a $2,300 Gibbens Memorial Grant to enhance student success through its Bulldog Balance: Heavy Work and Sensory Regulation Initiative.

Meeting Students Where They Are
This initiative is designed to support students who experience challenges with self-regulation, attention, and emotional control—key factors that impact learning and classroom success. By introducing targeted sensory supports and movement-based tools, Berg Elementary is creating an environment where more students can thrive.

Grant funding will be used to purchase adaptive equipment that provides “heavy work,” including weighted vests, backpacks, and blankets. These tools offer deep pressure input that can help promote calmness, improve focus, and support emotional regulation.

Building Structure Through Movement
In addition to weighted supports, the program will incorporate push-and-pull equipment such as weighted carts, wagons, and therapy ropes. Students will engage in structured proprioceptive activities—like pushing, pulling, and carrying—that help regulate the nervous system and improve attention.

Additional tools, including medicine balls, balance equipment, and other movement-based materials, will provide opportunities for physical activity that supports both coordination and classroom readiness.

Research shows that these types of “heavy work” activities are widely used in school-based occupational therapy to help students better access learning by improving focus, self-regulation, and sensory processing.

“This project directly supports our mission to remove barriers to learning and ensure all students have access to a safe, inclusive, and supportive environment,” said Eunice Salgado, School Site Coordinator. “We are grateful to NDAD for helping us fulfill this mission.”

Creating Inclusive Learning Environments
By investing in sensory supports and adaptive equipment, Berg Elementary is creating a more flexible and responsive learning environment—one that helps students build the skills they need to succeed both academically and socially.

“Supporting students’ sensory and regulation needs is essential to creating an environment where all children can learn and succeed,” said DeAnn Burckhard, NDAD Marketing Director. “When we invest in tools that help students feel calm, focused, and supported, we’re removing barriers and opening the door for greater engagement, confidence, and long-term success.”

Continuing a Legacy of Impact
NDAD’s Gibbens Memorial Grant supports projects that enhance health, well-being, and quality of life for individuals in at-risk populations. Established in 2015 in honor of NDAD founders Faye and Ron Gibbens, the grant carries forward their legacy of creating meaningful opportunities and improving lives across North Dakota.