GAC Receives 2019 Grant Funding from USA Swimming Foundation

The Greensboro Aquatic Center’s ‘Learn to Swim Program with Guilford County Schools’ was chosen as one of 83 Make a Splash programs in the U.S. to receive grant money from the USA Swimming Foundation in early 2019. The awarded money will go toward the GAC’s continued efforts to provide free swim lessons for second grade students in Guilford County Schools. The USA Swimming Foundation awarded a total of $502,461 to programs across the country that will provide swim lessons to an estimated 25,000 children.

“We are thrilled to be chosen for this grant,” said Greensboro Aquatic Center (GAC) manager Susan Braman. “The money we received will help us finance lessons for 100 children in 2019 and be put toward our goal to teach every second grade student in Guilford County Schools water safety skills.”

In partnership with Guilford County Schools, the Greensboro Aquatic Center developed a curriculum-based ‘Learn to Swim’ healthy lifestyle program that debuted in 2011. In year one, lessons were provided during the school day to four Greensboro schools at the GAC. Over the course of the 2018-19 school year, lessons were provided to 30 schools in Greensboro and High Point at five locations. The enormous growth of this privately financed program has now seen more than 5,000 second grade students graduate from this life-changing program.

The USA Swimming Foundation vetted 241 applications through a competitive annual review process and chose 83 Make a Splash Local Partner programs to receive funding, 26 of whom are first-time USA Swimming Foundation grant recipients.

“It’s an incredible feeling to know that USA Swimming Foundation funding will be used to create a valuable swimming experience for tens of thousands of children who may not have had the opportunity to learn how to swim,” USA Swimming Foundation Executive Director Debbie Hesse said. “We are thrilled with the depth of this year’s Make a Splash Local Partner applicant pool and we couldn’t be prouder to support these exciting and lifesaving opportunities for children across the country. We owe a tremendous thank you to our partners and donors, who continue to make a difference.”

To date, 7.5 million children have received the lifesaving gift of swim lessons through the USA Swimming Foundation Make a Splash Local Partner network, comprised of 1,000 qualified lesson providers across the nation.

To learn more, visit www.usaswimmingfoundation.org/makeasplash.

For more information on Greensboro Aquatic Center’s Learn to Swim Program and the Matt Brown Learn to Swim Endowment, visit greensboroaquaticcenter.com/learn-to-swim.