Equitable Aquatics

03/01/2023

Creativity wins!

Recruiting ✔️
Community outreach ✔️
Life skills ✔️
Public health education ✔️

Love this new Lifeguard Academy.

The goal is to boost the number of lifeguards at city pools in the summer of 2023.

09/21/2022

NRPA friends — I’d love to see you tomorrow in Phoenix and give you an sticker 🌵🌈🎙

09/07/2022

Worth a listen for podcast fans 🎧

08/16/2022

Listen in to to hear my conversation with Cort Jones 🎧

On the latest episode of , we're joined by a recipient of the Young Professional Fellowship, Kate Connell, CPRP. Kate is the aquatics program supervisor for Iowa City Parks and Recreation Department and the creator of Equitable Aquatics.

Tune into our conversation to learn how Kate’s helping to build more inclusive, equitable communities through aquatics: https://www.nrpa.org/blog/on-a-mission-to-make-aquatics-more-equitable-episode-118/

08/14/2022

We hope our aquatics friends are wrapping up a safe & inclusive summer. The Equitable Aquatics Facebook group is back open for business & conversation. Hope to engage with you there!

05/28/2022

The Equitable Aquatics Community Facebook group is temporarily paused for a summer break ✨

This page, too, will be quiet for a social media sabbatical 🧠

Have a safe & impactful summer out there ☀️

And thank you for all you do to make aquatics more equitable 🌈

Image ID: rainbow watercolor background with “Equitable Aquatics: it starts with you” written across background in white text.

05/10/2022

Please join me on June 1st at 2pm EST for a free virtual webinar on Inclusifying Your First Aid Approach with National Recreation and Park Association Aquatics Network.

This webinar is designed for anyone who works in the field of first aid (and with any certification affiliation) and especially aquatics professionals.

We will cover:

1️⃣ What inclusion is and how it relates to our work as First Responders
2️⃣ Framing inclusion in First Aid as a practice towards equity
3️⃣ Understanding differences & considerations that impact care & response
4️⃣Training concepts and practice ideas to implement

You must preregister here: https://tinyurl.com/yhr8nybn

Recordings generally are made available to those who are NRPA members.

Image ID: green and pink graphic that says “Equitable Aquatics presents Inclusify Your First Aid: a webinar with NRPA Aquatics Network.

04/13/2022

Language and best practices can change quickly.

Asking for someone's pronouns, name, or chosen name is best instead of using "preferred" as a qualifier.

Here's more info.

Educator and consultant Schuyler Bailar offers best practices for employers aiming to improve inclusion.

04/07/2022

The “I Am A Chicago Lifeguard” is sign of a new era for CPD.

CHICAGO — With summer activities just a few months away, the Chicago Park District is hoping a new campaign will help rebuild any trust lost after the sexual harassment scandal of last year. &…

04/06/2022

What role do pools play in deterring crime?

The pandemic has limited access to public pools in New York this summer — and violence has soared.

03/30/2022

Raise autistic voices this April for Autism Month.

03/28/2022

Recreation Management released their annual aquatics trend report and there's some great data within.

More than one-third (33.8%) of respondents with learn-to-swim programs said they currently have a low-income outreach program which is up from 29.4% in 2020.

Y respondents were the most likely to reach out to low-income and minority audiences for their learn-to-swim programs, while rec centers were the most likely to provide learn-to-swim programs to help overcome water fears.

Here is the link if you'd like to check it out to use for data when bringing ideas for outreach to your team.

General Facility Information Budget Issues Water & Resource Management Outfitting Aquatics Equipment Programming Water Safety The Model Aquatic Health Code COVID-19 Mitigation Measures Industry Challenges

03/21/2022

Equitable Aquatics stands with Lia Thomas and is proud of her recent accomplishments as a NCAA athlete.

There are many myths and misconceptions being propagated about trans athletes and many of the shares are centered around Lia. Many of the talks at elite levels are emboldening discriminatory anti-trans laws at secondary levels which further restricts aquatics access for excluded groups.

Please spend time educating yourself on trans equity in sports today with some of the resources below.

Gender Justice — https://www.genderjustice.us/get-the-facts-trans-equity-in-sports/

Human Rights Campaign — https://www.hrc.org/resources/myths-and-facts-battling-disinformation-about-transgender-rights

Trans Athlete state breakdown of anti-trans athlete laws at high school level — https://www.transathlete.com/k-12

Image ID: photo of Lia Thomas in water with white text overlayed that says “we stand with Lia Thomas”.

03/15/2022

Wrapping up an incredible two days with the folks at the Utah Recreation and Park Association conference in St George.

I met so many professionals doing great work with their teams & recreation agencies and who are eager to expand their reach to include more folks.

Special thank you to those who planned the URPA conference. Can’t wait to recreate in more of this amazing state before we head home!

03/11/2022

I know a lot of us are filling our days with marathon interview sessions.

Here are a few behavioral & policy adjustments to consider during interviews.

Image ID:

Green graphic that shares Inclusive Hiring Tips such as:
Equal process
Questions about DEI
Examined biases
Ask name/pronouns
Share culture & values
Bottom of graphic has bubble image that says:
"Normalizing conversations around diversity can lead to developing better practices in interviews such as sharing workplace values, including questions about inclusion, and goals to eliminate hiring bias and unequal processes."

03/11/2022

Check this out! A step towards equity in aquatics, perhaps?

H/T to Lakeview Aquatics (struggling to tag!) for sharing this!

The Foundation signed a partnership with Aqwa Itineris on 4 March in Auriol (13). It looks like a normal truck on the outside, but inside the

03/02/2022

When we’re learning about inclusion and learning about diversity, we can adopt language we see and hear that may be problematic.

Language is always evolving so having resources that update option and provide nuance to terms and phrases is key.

Here’s a thorough source on disability language.

Disability Language Style Guide Revised, August 2021 Access the Spanish language translation of this guide here. Spanish language guide PDF An Italian version of the guide is available here. You can also access a Romanian translation of the guide here. You can also download the NCDJ Style Guide as a...

03/01/2022

It's hiring season and we all can feel it! Consider layering some behaviors and best practices that will work to ensure as fair and inclusive of a hiring process as possible - starting first with JOB ANNOUNCEMENTS.

Gender Neutral Language - remove assumptions about gender in your job announcement and follow-up communications.

Spaces To Affirm - audit your application to see if you ask for a space aside from legal name for folks to fill out and if you include a spot for pronouns. Make sure the hiring manager or interviewer is getting any information that may get filtered out about these two topics.

Only Necessary Qualifications - consider what is needed for qualifications and reflect those in your language. Create less barriers for applicants by being clear about training needed and included upon hire.

Include DEI Values - spell out your agency's commitment to DEI by including it in the work performed, agency profile, and note to applicants.

State Pay Ranges - be forthright with the pay range and hourly pay for all jobs.

What other things do you consider with JOB ANNOUNCEMENTS to make them as inclusive as possible?

Image ID: white and pink graphic that includes imagery for above 5 points.