VOLUME 33 | ISSUE 2 2022
U N I T E D
S T A T E S
S W I M
S C H O O L
A S S O C I A T I O N
HOW TO MAKE THE RIGHT HIRES WHEN YOU DON’T HAVE ANY APPLICANTS
How to Care for Your Employees IT’S NOT A GREAT RESIGNATION – IT’S THE EVOLUTION OF WORK
Keeping it Cool in the Pool
did you know? Every month FINIS offers a 20% discount on select products through our Deal of the Month program. Be sure to check in with Marie and find how you can save! FINIS is very proud to have been working with USSSA and its partners for over 15 years to help more people enjoy the water. In all that we do at FINIS, it is our singular mission to simplify swimming for beginners, both young and old, through high quality products and a commitment to education.
We’re here to help! Feel free to contact us any time with questions or comments! Marie Morefield 925.290.2657 | mmorefield@FINISinc.com FINISswim.com
new!
CHARACTER GOGGLES playful kid’s goggles
IN THIS ISSUE TABLE OF CONTENTS 3
Letter From the President
20 Calendar of Events
5 From the Desk of the Executive Director
22 USSSA National Conference
7 It’s a Wrap
26 Ask Al
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How to Make the Right Hires When You Don’t Have Many Applicants
12 Book Buzz 15 How to Care For Your Employees 16 USSSA Spring Workshop 18 It’s Not a Great Resignation– It’s The Evolution of Work
24 ASSA National Conference 29 What is Trauma-Informed Practice in Aquatics & Why is it Important 31 New Member List
ASSOCIATION HEADQUARTERS 4815 E. Carefree Hwy., Suite 108-480 Cave Creek, AZ 85331 480.837.5525 usssa@usswimschools.org usswimschools.org Executive Director Lisa M. Zarda, CAE, CNAP Editor Anne Swanson ASSOCIATION OFFICERS President Tracy Koleber, Nitro Swimming Vice President Buffy Folise, Chicago Swim School Treasurer Karen Clay, SwimWest Swim School ASSOCIATION DIRECTORS Brad Grzelka Atlanta Swim Academy Davina Lopez Davina’s Swim House Melissa Taylor Small Fish Big Fish Swim School Dave Tonnesen SwimKids USSWIMSCHOOLS.ORG | 1
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LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT And just like that, the summer rush is upon us! Higher temps and hopefully higher enrollments. With those increased numbers comes the added stress on multiple levels: Safety, customer concerns/issues, and of course staffing just to name a few. As you already know all eyes will be on you. Through the lens of somebody else, what do they see when observing you throughout the course of one hectic day after another? What do your customers see? What does your staff see? Do they see someone more on the erratic side, not in control of their emotions when things aren’t going right? Or do they see someone who is cool, calm under pressure... who might not have all the answers, but who is emitting an aura of confidence and professionalism even in the heat of the battle? I like to relate the story of the duck. Even if a duck is being hunted/chased from below the surface of the water by a predator, even though that duck is paddling like crazy – in fact likely paddling for its life... On the surface you see something very different. That duck, although moving fast in the water, from the surface looks calm, collected, and in control. Wishing you all your best summer ever, and reminding everyone to do our best to keep cool! When in doubt...think of the duck.
TRACY KOLEBER
TRACY KOLEBER President US Swim School Association
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FROM THE DESK OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR We are well on our way into 2022 and while in many ways challenges persist, swim schools across the country are thriving and moving forward. And while competition for talent has been as challenging as ever, swim schools are leaning in and further improving all aspects of their employee offerings and culture. And how do you make a great hire when applicants are limited? CareerPlug shares five tips to help you make the right hires even during times of low applicant flow in the article, “How to Make the Right Hires When You Don’t Have Many Applicants.” And once you hire great people, how do you keep them? John Spence in his article, “How to Care for Your Employees” shares how leaders that C.A.R.E. for their people will enthuse and energize people to be engaged. As we continue to reflect on the shift in employee expectations and work to keep swim lessons running, many schools are taking a closer look at how they can create a culture that has a positive impact on the lives of their employees and those in their communities. As Jamie Notter shares in the article, “It’s Not a Great Resignation - It’s the Evolution of Work” it’s time to ignore the pundits talking about resignations and start becoming the destination. As many of you are gearing up for your busy season, don’t forget that USSSA is here for you. We continue to secure resources to help you run your business, from health insurance plans to cyber security, our network of resources is growing. For many of you, your membership dues are coming due and we hope that you continue to value connecting with other passionate swim school owners and choose to renew. We are here for you, so if you have any questions or are looking for a resource, please don’t hesitate to reach out. We are looking forward to seeing the fruits of everyone’s labor continue to flourish and we hope to see many of you at our National Conference in Hawaii for a well deserved celebration.
LISA M. ZARDA, CAE, CNAP Executive Director | US Swim School Association
IT’S A WRAP VIRTUAL INFANT TODDLER EDUCATION WORKSHOP DATE: MAY 23, 2022 TIME: 6:00 AM – 12:00 PM PDT DURATION: 6 HOURS (TIME FOR SHORT BREAKS WILL BE PROVIDED) WORKSHOP FEE: $125.00 BY DEBBIE SAYERS DOLFUN SWIM ACADEMY
A big shout out goes to the USSSA Infant Toddler and Education Committee members and a team of many others who spent two days completing an incredible filming project, with children, parents and teachers in the pool, right before the Spring Conference this year in Mesa, Arizona. Our association’s aim is to deliver top quality education and training to our members. We will be featuring this live action footage from this filming project as we update the existing Infant Toddler courses and elevate our overall educational offerings with the development of new courses for all ages. USSSA offers our world renown Infant Toddler Instructor Education Program with a purpose to identify, highlight, and share infant toddler instructor best practices that encourage comfort, confidence, and success without trauma for children under 36 months who are learning about water safety, orientation, acclamation and learning to swim. Many of these practices apply to older learn-to-swim children as well! AND WE ARE THRILLED TO ANNOUNCE THAT WE ARE ROLLING OUT OUR NEW USSSA INFANT TODDLER INSTRUCTOR EDUCATION LIVE VIRTUAL WORKSHOP. Yes, it’s a Live Virtual Workshop, and available directly to each and every one of your existing or future Infant Toddler Instructors. This will be exactly the same as the live 6 hour workshop that is offered at conferences. As before, the Online Infant Toddler Instructor Education Course is a required prerequisite. Our first VIRTUAL IT Workshop will be taught by Krissy Bartlett of SwimKids, May 23, 2022. To register for the course and the pre-requisite, visit the USSSA website at https://www.usswimschools.org/events/ And don’t forget, your swim school can also bring the ON THE GO IT Workshop directly to your home town or region. A Live In-Person Workshop can be scheduled and delivered to you by one of our USSSA IT Presenters. For more information, please contact the USSSA office at admin@usswimschools.org So whether it’s the IT Online Course, live in-person, On the Go or now Live Virtual Workshops, you are sure to be able to receive the benefits of taking the journey to be a professional in the field of Aquatic Education through your USSSA membership.
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HOW TO MAKE THE RIGHT HIRES WHEN YOU DON’T HAVE MANY APPLICANTS BY SHELBY PALMERI CAREERPLUG
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If you’re a business owner, then you’ve faced many challenges over the last couple of years. Recruitment and retention have been big concerns in every industry, and the applicant shortage and recruiting difficulties are projected to continue into the rest of 2022. At CareerPlug, we are committed to making hiring easier for our clients, many of whom are concerned by seemingly shrinking applicant pools and the impact lower applicant count has on their ability to make the right hires. Getting hiring right matters even more when you don’t have as many applicants to choose from, but we believe that a lower applicant count doesn’t have to negatively affect a business’s hiring process. Let’s look at five helpful tips to help you make the right hires even during times of low applicant flow.
1. SHIFT YOUR MINDSET
First things first, when it comes to hiring from a smaller applicant pool, you’ve got to understand that less applicants isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It can be really frustrating when you’re not seeing as many applicants as you used to for your open roles, but really, when it comes to hiring, it’s quality over quantity! We’ve heard from clients who used to receive 50 applicants for every job posting. Now, they only receive 20 or 30 applicants. They see this as a cause for concern because the volume isn’t as high as it was before. But remember: the purpose of a hiring process isn’t to collect the most applicants, but rather to identify the right hire for the role. Consider this — we found that out of 82% of applications that come from a job board, only 1.3% of hires come from those applications. This means that sometimes more applicants just creates more work for you! Having to weed through a large number of applicants can actually slow down your recruiting process, making it take longer to get to the right candidate. You don’t need 50 people applying to your jobs, you just need one right candidate. Adopting this mindset can make hiring less stressful and help you focus on the right things. For example, you could improve your candidate evaluation methods so that you can confidently make hiring decisions no matter how many applicants you have.
2. HIRE FOR GROWTH POTENTIAL
You may be hiring for a role that has pretty specific requirements. In some cases, it may be necessary to wait months for the right person with the right experience to come along. However, in many instances, the right candidate may not have held the exact same position previously, and that’s ok! Just because a candidate doesn’t have direct experience in the role you’re looking to fill doesn’t mean they aren’t equipped to do the job. Think about the soft skills you need on your team and hire for those. When reviewing resumes or conducting interviews, look for a candidate who has a history of growth and taking on challenges. Here are some questions we ask at CareerPlug to measure growth potential and get a feel for a candidate’s career trajectory: • Tell me about a time when you knew less than others about a topic or task. What did you do to get up to speed? • Tell me about a time when you went beyond your manager’s expectations to get the job done. • When did you take on new responsibilities in your role? What or who initiated this change?
3. ALWAYS BE HIRING
The worst time to be looking for the right candidate is when you have an open role that you needed filled yesterday! Passive recruiting year-round makes it easier to find people to fill open roles when they come up unexpectedly. Always look out for talented people, and keep in touch with other applicants from the past. For our clients, we recommend always having a passive job posting up — this is a job posted only to your careers page (not job boards) with a status of “Accepting for Future Openings.” A job of this type indicates that you are passively recruiting and will reach out to candidates when an opening becomes available. Passive recruiting helps you keep more candidates in your hiring pipeline, which gives you more options when it’s time to make those important hires. Continued on next page...
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4. PROVIDE A GREAT CANDIDATE EXPERIENCE
A positive candidate experience is always important, even more so in a competitive job market where qualified candidates will have many options. Having a smaller applicant pool is an opportunity to treat every applicant like a person instead of a number and to provide excellent and timely communication throughout the hiring process. Candidate experience matters because it can make or break a candidate’s decision to accept your job offer which is especially important when there are fewer candidates to choose from. Based on our research in our annual Candidate Experience Report, 80% of candidates said a positive candidate experience influenced their decision to accept an offer.
80%
OF CANDIDATES SAID A POSITIVE CANDIDATE EXPERIENCE INFLUENCED THEIR DECISION TO ACCEPT AN OFFER
A great candidate experience, as well as being a great place to work, will also have a positive impact on your employer brand. This will make it easier to attract and hire those top choice candidates.
5. USE AN ATS TO MAKE HIRING EASIER
An applicant tracking system (ATS) like CareerPlug can help you with many parts of the hiring process. An ATS can help your job posts get more visibility and can help you craft job descriptions that attract more candidates. It can also help you evaluate candidates quickly and consistently through every step of the hiring process. An ATS makes it easier to keep up with every applicant so that no one slips through the cracks. CareerPlug also offers text recruiting so employers can move applicants through the hiring process quickly, which is important when working with a limited number of applicants.
REMEMBER: QUALITY OVER QUANTITY
Though having fewer applicants to choose from can feel challenging, applicant quality matters much more than quantity. Focus on providing a great experience to the candidates you do have and hire for growth potential when you can. It can also be a good idea to implement passive recruiting which can be done easily through an ATS like CareerPlug. And when you’re actively hiring? An ATS can help you move applicants through your hiring process more efficiently, helping you make those right hires sooner. Reprinted with Permission.
USSSA BOOK BUZZ
I love reading motivational books. For swim school owners, managers, teachers, or anyone who needs to be motivated to workout, this is the book for you! BY JEFF PURCHIN OWNER 5 CITIES SWIM SCHOOL CALIFORNIA
We all work hard everyday. We get into a routine. We get stressed at times and we put the hours in. It’s so important to do some kind of physical activity everyday. I work out everyday. It’s a habit for me. Reading this book however, made me feel like I needed to up my game! I am reviewing “Living with A Seal” by Jesse Itzler. It’s hilarious and inspiring. This is a true story of a very successful entrepreneur who needed to get his butt kicked while working out. He is the co-founder of Marquis Jet, the worlds largest prepaid private jet card company which he and his partner sold to Berkshire Hathaway. Jesse then helped pioneer the coconut water business with a company called Zico Coconut Water. That company was eventually acquired by the Coca-Cola Company. He has done so much more. He is one of the owners of the NBA team The Atlanta Hawks. Jesse has always been in good shape. He just wanted to go to a different level. He wanted to be challenged by the best so he hires an actual Navy Seal for 31 days. The Seal moves into Jesse and his wife’s home. The month he hired the Seal was a December in New York City. You are talking about twenty inches of snow and strong winds. Airports were closed. Trains were delayed. City buses abandoned. None of this stopped the Navy Seal to get a workout with Jesse multiple times a day and at all hours. Every day at anytime with no warning the Navy Seal would get Jesse up and work out. Every workout was different, challenging and sometimes seeming impossible to accomplish. As the month continued on, the workouts would get tougher and even more challenging. The Seal’s perspective with workouts is it does not have to be fun. It has to be effective. As Jesse continues throughout the month he definitely experienced this. The Navy Seal communicates to Jesse is that if the workouts don’t suck, we don’t do it. He also emphasized that if you want to be pushed to your limits you have to train to your limits. At times the Seal would come right into Jesse’s bedroom in the middle of the night (his wife sleeping next to him) and he would wake Jesse up and say, “Let’s Go!” He never wants Jesse to feel comfortable! During the month the Seal would follow Jesse to out of town business meetings, and any activities he would be doing . How I can relate to this book is if you can see yourself doing something, you can do it. If you can’t see yourself doing something, usually you can’t achieve it. This book had some good humor and kept me inspired. The challenges he put Jesse through were crazy. He put Jesse through a lot of difficult training. The harder the training, the more courage it took and the satisfaction he derived from it. This book teaches about how you only have one shot in life and you should find out what you are made of. I highly recommend reading this inspiring book. I loved it. I have purchased this book for friends and have always received great reviews. Jeff Purchin started his first swim school in Los Angeles at the age of 19 in 1979. In 1984 founded the 5 Cities Swim School in Arroyo Grande California. He has been a member of the Swim School association for 31 years. Served on the board of directors twice plus serving on a lot of different committees. Is married to Melissa and has two children Jaron and James. In 1981 earned a under graduate degree in Business / Recreation from San Diego State University.
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JOHN SPENCE WILL BE SPEAKING AT THE 2022 NATIONAL CONFERENCE IN MAUI, HAWAII! REGISTRATION AND DETAILS NOW AVAILABLE ON THE USSSA WEBSITE!
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HOW TO CARE FOR YOUR EMPLOYEES BY JOHN SPENCE
Recently, I posted this comment and the quote below on my LinkedIn page. And then something wonderful happened.
You can’t do it all. If you’re trying to juggle too many balls, you’re bound to drop a few. Hire great people, set clear expectations, and then get out of their way and trust that they’re going to do a superior job. It’s the only way you can scale a business. One of the comments came from Bill Quiseng, an expert on customer service and other business topics. He had some sage advice on how a leader can effectively delegate. HERE IS WHAT HE SHARED. Thank you, John Spence, for sharing. I agree. And more. We don’t walk the MBWA talk, we walk the walk. We CBWA (C.A.R.E. By Walking Around). LEADERS WILL C.A.R.E. FOR THEIR PEOPLE. • Communicate openly, transparently, interactively, and frequently any information that their people need to know. They will listen empathetically to the people’s concerns and complaints. • Appreciate the important roles and responsibilities of their people. • Recognize and offer accolades for their people’s individual accomplishments and acts of service to colleagues or customers. • Empower people to make the right decisions for themselves and their business. Our leaders’ commitment to C.A.R.E. will enthuse and energize people to be engaged with their colleagues, customers, and the business. And everyone’s lives will be enriched to move up. This is a fantastic model, and I strongly encourage you to give it some thought and especially focus on how you can implement these great ideas from Bill. John Spence is an author, international executive coach, professional development educator, virtual trainer, strategic planning facilitator, keynote speaker and developer of online learning programs. John is recognized as one of the top business thought leaders and leadership development experts in the world and was named by the American Management Association as one of America’s Top 50 Leaders to Watch along with Sergey Brin and Larry Page of Google and Jeff Bezos of Amazon. Reprinted with Permission.
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SPRING WORKSHOP WRAP UP! BY ANNE SWANSON UNITED STATES SWIM SCHOOL ASSOCIATION
The 2022 Spring Workshop theme was “Unleash the Possibilities” and did we ever! This year’s workshop in Mesa, Arizona was the largest we have ever had! Those who joined us in March participated in a reimagined agenda that included more roundtables and inspiring sessions. Based on survey feedback, the new agenda was a huge success with the majority of attendees reported loving or liking the new format. Although we will continue to tweak the agenda based on feedback, it was a great start to a re-fresh of the Spring Workshop. Attendees also had an opportunity to visit one of two local swim schools for in-water sessions. SWIMKids USA and Hubbard Family Swim School both hosted a full afternoon of in-water sessions with varying topics. Attendees were also treated to a reception at Aqua-Tots Headquarters where they were greeted with sunshine and smiles. A great time was had by all who were able to attend. A huge thank you to all of our sponsors and exhibitors who joined us there as well! With having sold out exhibitor space this year, attendees were able to visit with existing partners as well as meet some new ones! If you weren’t able to attend the Spring Workshop, you can still access slides from the workshop in the USSSA portal. BIG ANNOUNCEMENT! In case you missed it, it was announced that USSSA now has a new sponsor, SimplyInsured, that offers you a menu of medical, dental and vision insurance options. In just a few clicks, get an instant online quote for medical, dental and vision insurance with recommendations to help you select from the best plans available in your area. To get your free quote or for more information, please visit: http://simplyinsured.com/usssa SAVE THE DATE! Save the date for Spring Workshop 2023 at the Catamaran San Diego! It will take place February 21-22, 2023. We can’t wait to see you there!
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FROM YOUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS
I have a lot of little takeaways BIGGEST from the Spring Conference. TAKEAWAY FROM SPRING WORKSHOP? My biggest takeaways from Spring Workshop were really reminders of things I just have to get better at doing like; delegating more tasks so I’m able to focus on my business and spend less time working in my business and assume nothing and repeat important messages frequently. My new nugget is stealing Davina’s “Grab Kit.” TRACY KOLEBER NITRO SWIMMING
My biggest takeaway from Spring Workshop is how incredibly awesome, caring and helpful our membership is. After 10 years of attending these, I still continue to learn and make new swim school friends. BRAD GRZELKA ATLANTA SWIM ACADEMY
My biggest takeaway from our Spring Workshop was to appreciate the amazing staff we have at this association that care so deeply about giving all of you the best experience possible. And we know we are lucky to work with all of you in such an important lifesaving and life changing industry. In the aftermath of two really tough years, swim schools are coming out stronger and more passionate than ever about making a positive impact for their students, staff and communities. It’s an exciting time with great possibilities to come! LISA ZARDA USSSA
Listening to Davina and Karen talk about Emergency Action Plans gave me some more ideas of how to make our EAP even better than it is by adding some little things like a grab kit and having more in person trainings. In listening to Miren talk I want to add in finding out our employee’s purpose or helping them figure out their purpose if they don’t know it. In listening to David I had quite a few ideas, the main one being surveying staff to find out what they are looking to get into as a future career and seeing how that may help us as a swim school and how to possibly keep them working for us AND get into their future career. Overall this was a great conference with multiple take aways! BUFFY FOLISE CHICAGO SWIM SCHOOL
I AM CONSTANTLY REMINDED HOW IMPORTANT MY SWIM SCHOOL FRIENDS ARE.
They get me, support my crazy ideas, encourage me to grow, and celebrate my successes. United States Swim School Association is a very close, loving group of swim schools that have members that are working hard to make a difference, a world without drowning, one swim lesson at a time. KAREN CLAY SWIMWEST SWIM SCHOOL
Coming to spring conference always reminds me that the swim school friends ROCK, its always fun to catch up and spend time with people who are like minded, encouraging and give you amazing ideas. Some of the takeaways from the spring workshop was from David’s talk that we need to listen and ask our staff what they are looking for in a career and start to look at our jobs and careers we offer through the lens of the generation I’m hiring. Another major take away that I’m looking forward to implementing at my swim school is from Miren’s talk on how I can make my school more socially responsible and to make these decisions with my team, not just management. What I also liked about this conference is the vulnerability that Mary shared. It takes courage and strength for her to share her experience and I want to thank her and the conference organizers that gave us that opportunity to listen to Mary. Its important to learn from people and their experiences, good or bad and show empathy towards one another in the industry. DAVINA LOPEZ DAVINA’S SWIM HOUSE
I LOVED THE CONFERENCE AND SO MANY AMAZING SPEAKERS AND TOPICS. My biggest take away was Miren’s talk on B corporations and her and her team’s journey to becoming a B corporation. Miren is a force for good and paves a pathway to contribution that we are all called to. Thank you Miren for you and your team’s actions and leadership! DAVE TONNESEN SWIMKIDS SWIM SCHOOL USSWIMSCHOOLS.ORG | 17
BY JAMIE NOTTER PROPEL
IT’S NOT A GREAT RESIGNATION—IT’S THE EVOLUTION OF WORK Yes, millions of people have been quitting their jobs, thus there is logic in calling in the “Great Resignation,” but it startles me that we’re not noticing how incredibly employer-centric that term is. All the employers notice are the resignations, that they “lost” some of their resources. Well, there’s another name for those resources, and it’s “human beings.” And you’re not “losing” them, because you didn’t own them in the first place. Perhaps we should be examining this phenomenon from the perspective of the humans, because guess what—the humans don’t care about the resignation part. They didn’t wake up and say “ I want to quit.” They woke up and said “I want more than what you’re giving me, and quitting will give me the opportunity to find that.” They care about where they are going next. They realized that the conditions you put on their employment with you were, in fact, unacceptable.
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They wanted more flexibility, more control, and the ability to work in ways that worked for THEM, not the policy manual. They wanted to collaborate in ways that actually work, rather than being forced to attend an endless series of unproductive meetings. They wanted an office space that is designed with intention about what happens there. These, in fact, are all very human things to want, which is why Maddie and I wrote about them in our book, Humanize, over a decade ago. But the pandemic fast-tracked these issues. What used to be things that only the really cool organizations did are now becoming table stakes.
IF YOU WANT TO WIN THE GREAT RESIGNATION, THEN IGNORE THE RESIGNATIONS AND START BECOMING THE DESTINATION.
Start embracing the new principles of work. Embrace customization. Design your organization around the needs of employees. Double down on transparency. Be more precise in your definition of collaboration (hint: “meeting” is not the only way to collaborate). Stop listening to the pundits gabbing about how many millions of people quit, and start relishing the fact that millions of people are now looking for organizations that are embracing the evolution of work rather than resisting it. I don’t think employers are going to get another opportunity like this for a long time, so take advantage of it. Jamie Notter is an author and growth strategist at PROPEL, where he helps leaders integrate culture, strategy, and execution to achieve breakthrough performance and impact. He brings twenty-five years of experience to his work designing culture-driven businesses, and has specialized along the way in areas like conflict resolution and generations. Reprinted with Permission
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
FOR MORE DETAILS, VISIT: USSWIMSCHOOLS.ORG/EVENTS
THANK YOU ANNUAL SPONSORS
MAY 23, 2022
VIRTUAL INFANT TODDLER EDUCATION WORKSHOP JUNE 9, 2022
CERTIFIED POOL AND SPA OPERATOR (CPO) COURSE
SEPTEMBER 19-21, 2022
USSSA NATIONAL CONFERENCE MAUI, HAWAII
SEPTEMBER 22-23, 2022
OWNER’S CIRCLE MAUI, HAWAII
FEBRUARY 21-22, 2023
SPRING WORKSHOP SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA OCTOBER 2-4, 2023
USSSA NATIONAL CONFERENCE ORLANDO, FLORIDA
PARTNER CALENDAR OF EVENTS: JUNE 21-23, 2022
AUSTRALIAN SWIM SCHOOLS CONFERENCE
CHARLIE BANANA CINTAS CONSTANT CONTACT COUNCILMAN HUNSAKER GREEN SPROUTS NORDPASS PROVEN PROMOTIONS SPOT TV 20 | USSWIMSCHOOLS.ORG
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Hawaii… Here We Come!
NATIONAL CONFERENCE 2022 SEPTEMBER 19-21, 2022 HYATT REGENCY MAUI RESORT AND SPA LAHAINA, HAWAII
Does the sound of crashing waves alongside laughter and inspiring conversations sound good to you? If so, don’t miss out on this year’s National Conference. In line with this year’s theme, “Fast Track on Island Time” we have worked to curate an agenda that will be both inspiring and rejuvenating. The three days of conference will have a mix of general sessions, breakout sessions, roundtables, and plenty of great networking opportunities. Some highlights of the conference are sure to be member-favorite Bruce Sullivan, in addition to Dr. Regina Lewis who will be speaking on your business and inclusion. Be prepared to let your hair down for a Hawaiian-Style Awards Banquet as well as meet up with friends and colleagues during a casual poolside networking session. In place of the usual “Owner Track” and “Instructor Track”, we will instead be offering “Option A” and “Option B.” This adjusted agenda will bring a well-balanced selection of sessions for everyone from Owner to Instructor, and all those between. So be sure to grab your most highly regarded staff and sun screen, and join them in saying “Aloha” to a National Conference not soon to be forgotten. REGISTER TODAY AT HTTPS://WWW.USSWIMSCHOOLS.ORG/EVENTS/
OWNER’S CIRCLE 2022 SEPTEMBER 22-23, 2022 HYATT REGENCY MAUI RESORT AND SPA LAHAINA, HAWAII
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Looking for a reason to stay in Hawaii longer? We don’t blame you! Stay on for an Owner’s Circle after National Conference concludes. This day and a half VIP ownersonly event is the perfect way to wrap up your time in Maui. Thursday morning will kick off with the one and only Bruce Sullivan! Afterwards, you’ll hop on a chartered bus and make your way to a private catamaran boat tour for the afternoon. The boat ride will include lunch and drinks as well as an opportunity to snorkel. After the boat ride concludes, you’ll return to the hotel in time to get ready for dinner at a local favorite. On Friday morning, you’ll have the chance to participate in a ‘feel good’ opportunity with the Pacific Whale Foundation. You’ll learn about the importance of their conservation efforts and will come together for some team work to leave a lasting impact on the great state of Hawaii. Spots are extremely limited for Owner’s Circle so we encourage you to register today if you are interested! To sign up, visit https://www.usswimschools.org/events/.
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ASSA NATIONAL CONFERENCE For many of our swim school members, the disruption Covid caused had them to focus internally on their businesses the basics that kept schools’ heads above water. Now that we are moving into a more normalized way of operating, it’s time to take a step forward and invest time back into understanding and growing our business in this post-pandemic environment - and Australian Swim Schools’ National Conference will allow you to do just that. With three days of inspiration, challenge, and guidance, let’s refocus your business so you can Re:ENGAGE. Why not join us on the Gold Coast, Australia this June. Here is a snapshot of what’s on offer. Day 1 of the conference delves into the people of our business. Starting with our keynote speaker, Dr Liam Mayo unpacking the role trust plays in developing leadership in this new culture. Swimming Pool and Spa Association of Australia CEO, Lindsay McGrath adds to the theme by identifying the purpose you are creating and how that can attract and retain both customers and staff. Industry leaders, Aquatic Achievers share how they identify and nurture talent through their recruitment and staff retention process.
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Day 2 sees us head inside our swim school businesses, using the data we already have to inform our decision making, our marketing and identifying who our competition really is. Coupled with this is an examination into how other industries are developing - and what we can learn from them to adapt to our industry. With our leadership and staff development taken care of on Day 1, and our business analytics on Day 2, Day 3 takes us into externalizing our business, with a focus on brand development, strategic marketing, and using strategic partnerships to grow our brand.
It’s time to take the next step forward in our businesses. Travel borders are open, so come and join our growing number of international guests at the 2022 Australian Swim Schools Association National Conference. Can’t make it face-to-face? We have an online program option as well. HEAD TO ASSC.AUSTRALIANSWIMSCHOOLS.ORG.AU FOR THE FULL CONFERENCE PROGRAM AND TO GRAB YOUR TICKETS.
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YOU’VE SPOKEN IN THAT PAST ABOUT THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF SKIN IRRITATION. CAN YOU PLEASE REVIEW AGAIN? SUMMER IS COMING.
Welcome back to our “Ask the Expert” feature, designed to assist you with issues related to swimming pool water, mechanical equipment, space conditioning and code compliance. Ask a question, and we will try to answer to the best of our ability. Sure thing. There are three major types of irritation, which we have grouped below for convenience. The good news is that they can be addressed with good strategy, some equipment, and a little discipline. While this pertains to all swim school pools, the effects are more pronounced with heavily used indoor pools.
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CHEMICAL IRRITATION: The most basic form of irritation, this is normally caused by improper or out of range chemical levels in the indoor pool. While excessive chlorine is the main focus of many, other chemical parameters such as out of range pH, calcium, and alkalinity are also common culprits. Low pH has been directly linked to eye irritation and is the major contributor to aggressive pool water balance. Alkalinity and calcium hardness are minor contributors but can combine to cause aggressive water. Solution: The solution to basic chemical irritation is to take direct control of water chemistry on a minute-by-minute basis. A reliable ORP/pH control system is one of the cornerstones of proper pool operation – especially with heavily used pools. A 7.3-7.5 pH level and an ORP greater than 700 mV is highly recommended, with a corresponding Chlorine level between 1.5 PPM and 3.0 PPM (see below). Calcium Hardness of 300-700 PPM and Alkalinity of 50-120 PPM are also needed in order to adjust the pool water to proper Langelier balance. Stabilizer should never be used on indoor pools under ANY circumstance. With direct control of pH and ORP, the other parameters can be reviewed and corrected on a weekly basis. Without this critical baseline step, any further solutions will be rendered somewhat useless. ADVANCED IRRITATION: You can maintain chemical parameters absolutely perfectly 24/7 and still have severe irritation. The major culprit is combined chlorine or chloramines. These are formed by a reaction between chlorine and organic substances, both guaranteed to be present in every pool. You should test and monitor chloramine levels on a weekly basis at minimum, as the complaints will begin above 0.4 PPM. Holding tight chemical parameters, using a self-shocking chlorinator (Pulsar feeder, Solution™ feeder, some saline chlorinators, etc.), and maintaining higher ORP levels can minimize chloramines but not completely prevent. NOTE: Chloramine irritation is linked to lifeguard lung, asthma, and other potentially harmful ailments.
Solution: The solution to chloramines is to directly control them using Ultraviolet Light (UV). UV comes in two varieties – medium pressure and Low pressureAmalgam. Low pressure units are simpler in design, utilize less wattage (normally 100-150 watt lamps), and cost less to own and operate, but they operate in a more narrow wavelength. Some swim school owners have reported considerable success using these units, while others have not. Medium pressure UV units utilize higher wattage lamps (normally 1,000-1,500 watt), cost a bit more to purchase and operate, and a bit more to maintain on an annual basis. UV is the choice of most USSSA member that successfully operate busy indoor pools with zero chloramine issues. While other types of systems are designed to remove chloramines with ventilation, air flow, etc., removing the chloramines from the water itself tackles the source of the problem and thus is the preferred method of operation. MYSTERY IRRITATION: You can have all your chemical levels in perfect shape, and have a great UV system cranking away – keeping your chloramine level at our near zero, and STILL experience some irritation. This type is less severe than the other two, and normally affects swim school instructors more than it does the students or attending parents. It is much more difficult to diagnose and to eradicate. The culprit appears to be, among others things, carbon-based organics that have been busted up, but not completely removed from the pool water. Bad ventilation or other design issues can contribute to the problem. Solution: Lose some water: The old adage that “dilution is the solution to pollution” is very true. While best practices and while Canadian / European codes dictate that pools should dilute with 4-10 gallons per each bather. It is recommended to lose a minimum of 4-gallons water for EACH swimmer that you have PER WEEK.
So if you have 1,000 bathers in one week, you should lose 4,000 gallons of water that week. If you backwashed 500 gallons, then you will need to make up the rest in a proactive water dump. If you have a “water saving” filter, then you will need to be more diligent in your dilution strategy. We are all for saving water, just not in the swimming pool environment (for obvious reasons). As soon as your instructors start to complain about irritation, you need to move quickly. Many successful operators have drained 1-2’ of water from the pool and refill overnight, before the next lessons are scheduled. This seems to head off the problem the quickest, but then you need to KEEP up with the water replacement strategy. There are a couple of alternatives to a significant water replacement, and one of the most popular is to waste a small amount of water on a consistent basis. This is preferred as many city water supplies often produce UGLY and sometimes greenish water. Losing as little at 10-gallons every half hour – easily measured in (2) 5-gallon buckets - can provide a 3,360-gallon weekly replacement program. You can even install a “gallon per hour” meter to calibrate this water replacement program without having to guess with a bucket. Yes, your water quality is an important investment in your facility. Irritation can scare away good customers forever, and bad news travels fast. Taking steps above can help you minimize this issue, and don’t hesitate to contact us for more information if you have an extra difficult case. Please feel free to forward your questions and comments through the USSSA office, or directly to me via email at amendoza@ceswaterquality.com. Best Regards, Alvaro G. Mendoza
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WHAT IS TRAUMAINFORMED PRACTICE IN AQUATICS & WHY IS IT IMPORTANT? In the era of the Covid-19 pandemic, we are all more aware than ever before of the devastation caused by situations that threaten our sense of personal safety, freedom, and survival, potentially leading to trauma. Here we share a little about the concept of trauma-informed practice and its application in aquatics including in swim schools, swimming lessons and swim squads. Continued on next page... USSWIMSCHOOLS.ORG | 29
WHERE DOES THIS COME FROM? The term trauma-informed practice has emerged in recent years in response to the explosion in scientific knowledge of how trauma is caused and the harmful short and long terms impacts on people’s wellbeing, behaviour and life outcomes. WHAT IS IT? Trauma-informed practice describes an approach to conducting all activities such that the risk of inadvertently causing trauma or retraumisation for anyone is minimised. It takes into account the possibility that many people have experienced traumatic situations in their life, that we or even they, may be unaware of.1 HOW DOES THIS RELATE TO THE SWIM SCHOOL? A swim school is therefore trauma-informed if all staff members including leadership, customer service, swim teachers and coaches, along with parents and caregivers are informed about, sensitive and responsive to, trauma-related issues. TRAUMA-INFORMED PRACTICE VIEWS THROUGH A TRAUMA-INFORMED LENS When someone is trauma-informed, they are able to see behaviour in a whole new light. Some people describe it as like looking through a camera lens or putting on a pair of glasses that completely transforms the way of seeing and interpreting a person’s behaviour. Others describe it as like learning a whole new language. QUESTIONS TO ASK? When viewing behaviour through a trauma-informed lens, we ask questions such as, “what has happened to you?” and “what do you need right now to help you feel safer?” rather than, “what is wrong with you”, and “how can I shame, blame or punish you for this behaviour to make it stop?” THE CORE PRINCIPLES INVOLVED IN TRAUMA-INFORMED PRACTICE Trauma-informed practice involves a strengths-based framework based on five core principles, being; • Safety (physical, emotional, psychological) • Trustworthiness (transparency) • Choice (consent) • Collaboration • Empowerment, and underpinned by respect for diversity in all its forms. These principles operate at all levels within the swim school. They are intended to empower individuals, generate a sense of interpersonal safety and help prevent inadvertently causing trauma and/or retraumatisation.1,2 WHY IS TRAUMA-INFORMED PRACTICE IMPORTANT? Trauma-informed practice helps us to: First, Do No Harm Becoming trauma-informed is one of the most worthwhile investments you can make for yourself and those you care for and engage with on a daily basis. As you learn the language of trauma, you will learn to read body language and people’s reactions including your own, in a whole new light. You will also develop a new vocabulary for describing what you see and experience. For example, phrases like “she’s just being difficult, strong-willed, naughty or stubborn” become, “she’s feeling unsafe at the moment”, which in turn can influence the way you respond.
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LEARN MORE Trauma-informed aquatics is applicable for anyone involved in aquatics including staff, educators, parents and caregivers. The valuable knowledge and skills learned are transferable to interpersonal interactions in other contexts too, which is an added bonus. World Wide Swim School and TraumaInformed Aquatics are partners in offering education in trauma-informed practice for the aquatics industry. If you would like to learn more about trauma-informed practice in aquatics and begin the professional development pathway to becoming a trauma-informed aquatics visit https://wwsshub. ditaplayer.com.au/catalog/trauma-informed-practice-in-aquatics To get in touch contact us at https:// worldwideswimschool.com/contact 1 Kezelman, C.A. & Stavropolous, P.A. (2020). Blue Knot Foundation 2020 Organisational Guidelines for Trauma-Informed Service Delivery. Retrieved 3 Nov 2021, from https://blueknot.org.au/resources/ blue-knot-publications/guidelines/ 2 Harris, M., & Fallot, R. D. (2001). Envisioning a trauma-informed service system: A vital paradigm shift. In M. Harris & R. D. Fallot (Eds.), Using trauma theory to design service systems (pp. 3–22). Jossey-Bass/Wiley. 3 Van der Kolk, B. (2000). Posttraumatic stress
disorder and the nature of trauma. Dialogues Clin Neurosci. 2000;2(1):7-22.
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Get ready to fast track your business on island time! Join us in Maui, Hawaii for the National Conference this September. Register before August 1 and save $100 per registration! For the entire agenda and speaker lineup, visit https://www.usswimschools.org/events/ HYATT REGENCY MAUI RESORT AND SPA LAHAINA, MAUI, HAWAII *Rooms are filling up fast! Make your reservations today! Call the Hyatt Regency Maui at (808) 661-1234 to book your room. Please reference USSSA when calling to access the group rate. • Single/Double Ocean Front $409 per night (plus resort fee & tax)
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