Make A Splash
Make a Splash
TAC is committed to providing the leadership necessary to help save lives by raising awareness and providing quality swim lessons to the entire Triangle community. In order to provide lessons to the entire Triangle community, TAC has partnered with USA Swimming’s “Make-A-Splash”
Created by the USA Swimming Foundation, Make-a-Splash’s initiative is to save children’s lives through swim lessons. Through this program, eligible swimmers in the Triangle can register for swim lessons at a free or reduced rate. Swimmers must submit free or reduced lunch eligibility letters from their school system to qualify, and after approval, they are able to enroll in the TITANS Aquatic Programs – Learn to Swim. We believe that the best learning happens in an inclusive environment, so all Make-a-Splash participants are enrolled in our public lessons where no swimmer is grouped based on their race, gender, or socioeconomic status. TAC is proud to be recognized as a Make-a-Splash Local Partner and one of the largest Make-a-Splash programs in the country!
In a recent report published by Wake County Human Services1, there has been an average of 35.2 drowning cases per year in Wake County between 2012 and 2018. Most of these drowning cases occurred in a pool and with individuals between the ages of 2 and 4. Other reports provided by USA Swimming report the following:
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- 79% of children in households with incomes less than $50,000 have little-to-no swimming ability.2
- Research shows 64% of African-American, 45% of Hispanic/Latino, and 40% of Caucasian children have little to no swimming ability.2
- 10 people drown each day in the United States. 3
- Formal swimming lessons reduces the likelihood of childhood drowning by 88%.4
Thanks in part to grants and generous donations for Make-a-Splash, Triangle Aquatic Center is accepting Make-a-Splash registrations and enrollments! Triangle Aquatic Center shares the same mission as Make-a-Splash to bring awareness of the importance of water safety to ensure children are given the opportunity to learn how to swim!
Please contact Darria Chance or stop by our Welcome Desk if you or your youth-based organization would like to participate in swim classes or if you would like to contribute to this important effort.
"It’s an incredible feeling to know that USA Swimming Foundation funding will be used to create a valuable swimming experience for thousands of children who may not have had the opportunity to learn how to swim,” Scott Usher, Director of Development for the USA Swimming Foundation said. “We are thrilled with the depth of this year’s swim lesson provider applicant pool and we couldn’t be prouder to support these life-saving opportunities for children across the country. We owe a tremendous thank you to our partners and donors who continue to make a difference in our mission of saving lives and building champions."
TITANS Aquatic Programs: Learn to Swim Receives 2021 Grant Funding From USA Swimming Foundation
Cary, NC – April 10, 2021 – TITANS Aquatic Programs: Learn to Swim at the Triangle Aquatic Center (TAC) was chosen as one of 67 from the USA Swimming Foundation’s nationwide network of swim lesson providers to receive grant money in early 2021. The grant award will go toward TAC’s continued efforts to provide free or reduced-cost swim lessons. The USA Swimming Foundation has awarded a total of $507,618 to programs across the country who will provide swim lessons to an estimated 13,800 children.
“We are thrilled to be chosen once again for this grant,” said Mark Frank, TAC’s Director of Operations. “The money we received will be put toward our newest program to take Learn to Swim out into the community.” TAC will be implementing a Take Make a Splash on the Road initiative this year, offering lesson programs at eight local pools with a high concentration of lower income patrons. The grant money will allow the facility to add several new teams of instructors to travel to pools and offer lesson services.
TAC’s Learn to Swim Program has been in place now for nearly ten years and has serviced more than 11,000 patrons in the program. Make a Splash participants number well over 1,400 in the five years of offering reduced-priced lessons.
The USA Swimming Foundation vetted 243 applications through a competitive annual review process and chose 67 programs to receive funding.
“It’s an incredible feeling to know that USA Swimming Foundation funding will be used to create a valuable swimming experience for thousands of children who may not have had the opportunity to learn how to swim,” Scott Usher, Director of Development for the USA Swimming Foundation said. “We are thrilled with the depth of this year’s swim lesson provider applicant pool and we couldn’t be prouder to support these life-saving opportunities for children across the country. We owe a tremendous thank you to our partners and donors who continue to make a difference in our mission of saving lives and building champions.”
Millions of children have received the lifesaving gift of swim lessons through the USA Swimming Foundation’s network of swim lesson providers, comprised of more than 1,500 qualified lesson providers across the nation. Since 2007, more than $6 million has been awarded in learn-to-swim grants. To learn more, visit www.usaswimming.org/foundation.
For a full list of 2021 USA Swimming Foundation grant recipients or to donate to the Foundation, please visit www.usaswimming.org/foundation
For more information on TITANS Aquatic Programs: Learn to Swim visit www.triangleaquatics.org.
TITANS Swim Academy Receives 2018 Grant Funding from USA Swimming Foundation
Cary, NC – April 2, 2018 – Triangle Aquatic Center’s TITANS Swim Academy was chosen as one of 78 Make a Splash programs in the U.S. to receive grant money from the USA Swimming Foundation in 2018. The awarded money will go toward TITANS Swim Academy’s continued efforts to provide free or reduced cost swim lessons. The USA Swimming Foundation awarded a total of $436,515 to programs across the country that will provide swim lessons to an estimated 16,000 children.
“We are incredibly excited to be chosen for this grant and know that we will be able to positively affect the lives of many local kids,” Mark Frank, Director of Operations at TAC, stated. “With this money we can continue to grow our Make a Splash program, working towards our goal of drown-proofing the community.”
Triangle Aquatic Center has been part of the North Carolina Triangle area community for the past ten years. In an effort to reduce the drowning occurrences in the Triangle area, the TITANS Swim Academy was created to provide quality swim lessons to the public. TAC has provided swim lessons since the doors opened in 2007 and formally introduced the TITANS Swim Academy in 2016. The TITANS Swim Academy offers parent-child lessons, youth swim lessons, swim team prep, adult lessons, and more all focused on swimmers growth and development with an individual paced style! Swim Instructors teach over 275 swimmers each month and share a passion to help each swimmer obtain their goals.
The USA Swimming Foundation vetted 200 applications through a competitive annual review process and chose 78 programs to receive funding, 36 of whom are first time Make a Splash grant recipients.
“We are thrilled to be awarding this funding and so proud that it will be used to create a valuable swimming experience for thousands of children who may not have had the opportunity to learn how to swim,” USA Swimming Foundation Executive Director Debbie Hesse said. “These exciting and lifesaving opportunities would not be possible without the support of our USA Swimming Foundation partners and donors, who continue to help us make a difference across this country.”
More than 850 Make a Splash Local Partners promote water safety education in their communities and provide scholarships and transportation for children to participate in their swim lesson programs.
Full list of Make a Splash grant recipients.
For more information on TITANS Swim Academy visit www.triangleaquatics.org/programs
Triangle Aquatic Center Introduces PNC Bank as the Presenting Sponsor for the Center’s Make A Splash Program
Cary, NC – June 1, 2018 – The Triangle Aquatic Center (TAC) is pleased to announce that PNC Bank is once again the presenting sponsor for Make A Splash Learn to Swim Initiative.
Make A Splash is a child-focused water safety initiative created by the USA Swimming Foundation. The goal of the initiative is to prevent drownings by teaching every child in the United States how to swim. Make A Splash works by providing free or reduced priced swimming lessons to underprivileged children at centers like TAC throughout the U.S. The three main focus areas of Make A Splash are:
- Raising Awareness – educating the nation about how important it is to get children into swimming lessons.
- Aligning Partners – Bringing together national organizations, community-based water safety coalitions and advocacy groups, and volunteers to help spread the water safety message.
- Increasing Participation – The current goal is to reach 1 million children annually through the Make a Splash Local Partner swim lesson provider network by December 31, 2018.
“As summer approaches, water safety is a critical skill for children to learn and we are pleased to help the Triangle Aquatic Center in its mission,” said Jim Hansen, PNC regional president for Eastern Carolinas.
- Wake County Human Services Public Health Report, Injuries, 2017. https://www.wakegov.com/humanservices/data/Documents/Injury%20Report%202017%20REV%20120517.pdf
- USA Swimming Foundation study through the University of Memphis and University of Nevada, Las Vegas, 2017. https://www.usaswimmingfoundation.org/utility/landing-pages/news/2017/05/25/usa-swimming-foundation-announces-5-10-percent-increase-in-swimming-ability-among-u.s.-children
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, 2009
