Safe Sport Update
By Reach for the Wall Staff
Update on Safe Sport Recognition within PVS:
As of February, the list of clubs that have achieved Safe Sport recognition has ballooned from 35 (the last time we counted in in May) to 138 of 3,000+ USA Swimming registered clubs.
This Fall, two more PVS teams, Arlington Aquatic Club (AAC) and Nation’s Capital Swim Club (NCAP) achieved Safe Sport Recognition. PVS now has 6 teams recognized (one of the highest numbers in USA Swimming) and there are additional team that are on the verge of meeting the criteria.
At the inception of the program, the details on the criteria for earning recognition, was only available to Club administrators and Coaches. The information has since been made public & you can now view the criteria based on the type of Club:
Within the above criteria, there are four scored sections which are composed of required components and then additional components. The required components of each section must be met in order for a team to be eligible to submit its application, plus additional components to equal a total score of 75% or 49.50 (Institution owned), 50.25 (Coach Owned) and 51.75 (Parent/board owned) points. Once a club meets the required points, they can submit for Recognition and can be renewed every 2 years.
We had a chance to speak with PVS Safe Sport Coordinator, Michael O’Shaughnessy, to address the requirements for the recognition program and some of the challenges meeting the standard. He remarked that the largest challenge clubs are facing is meeting the parent education criteria. He has done a lot of outreach at various PVS Open meets, passing out literature in the stands and speaking with parents about the merits of the program. The process is straightforward for parents to complete the training, and everything needed is accessible on the USA Swimming website. As a refresher, to get started, parents can access the USA Swimming Safe Sport information page:
If you want to skip straight to the training, you will first need to create an account with USA Swimming:
Once you have an account, you can then go to the USA Swimming Learn Portal and take the training, it’s that easy!
To encourage participation, USA Swimming also allows for the training to be done as a group. Mike advocates “Hold group/team meetings where they (Club coaches/admins) can address a variety of issues including safe sport, and take 15 minutes to walk through the Safe Sport training. They can record the names of athletes/parents in attendance and send that information to Trish Hughes at USA Swimming Safe Sport, and get credit for their completion of the training. In addition, if they would like my involvement, I would be happy to address the team, or help in any way”.
In conjunction with the Safe Sport Recognition program, Clubs also are required to have a Minor Athlete Abuse Prevention Policy (MAAPP). We addressed the fundamentals of this policy in an earlier post “SafeSport MAAPP”. We asked Mike if PVS has received feedback from Clubs and parents regarding the implementation of MAAPP: “We have tried to emphasize that, while some of the protocols may be annoying or disruptive, USA Swimming is really just trying to take steps to keep athletes safe. As you may have seen, PVS has taken its own steps of providing Authorized Volunteer badges to timers, marshals, etc, to help emphasize the concepts of MAAPP. The badges help meet staff to immediately identify who is permitted to be on deck (and who is not), and helps remind volunteers that they should be aware of ways to keep athletes safe. “
USA Swimming Investment:
At the end of December, USA Swimming released an announcement regarding the investment in the Keeping Athletes First Action Plan
The new action plan is being funded by $5 million in “Board of Directors’ designated funds,” which specifically come from the sale of the USSIC, or United States Swimming Insurance Company, that USA Swimming was formerly using to insure itself, largely against claims of sexual abuse by member swim coaches.
According to minutes from the USA Swimming Board of Directors meeting in November, the $5 million will be allocated as follows:
- Safe Sport Club Recognition Assistance – $2 million
- Education/Certification Platform – $2 million
- Online Registration – $500,000
- Staff Development/Training – $500,000
From the letter: “Very importantly, the Keeping Athletes First Action Plan will help facilitate a critical investment at the club level to support the advancement of the Safe Sport Recognition program. We stand by our goal to make every USA Swimming team a Safe Sport Recognized Club.”
As part of this initiative, USA Swimming is hosting a Webinar this Wednesday (Feb 12) for all administrators and Coaches to provide assistance and talking points when addressing Safe Sport with the parents:
| “Talking to Parents about Safe Sport” at 10:00 am MT. Register at this link: Talking to Parents about Safe Sport |
Now the numbers…In relation to the most recent Club Excellence Program, where the top 200 Clubs are recognized for their performance, 4 of the 20 Gold Medal Clubs; 14 of the 80 Silver Medal; and 1 of the 100 Bronze Clubs have achieved Safe Sport Recognition. In total that’s only 19 of the top 200 Clubs in the country that have achieved Safe Sport Recognition. The LSC’s and USA Swimming have a long way to go to achieve their 100% goal and we will continue to encourage the teams within PVS to achieve recognition.
The Full List of Safe Sport Recognized Clubs (138 Clubs in alpha order):
| Aces Swim Club (Colorado LSC) |
| Ad Astra Area Aquatics (Missouri Valley LSC) |
| AGON (Indiana LSC) |
| Alamance County Community Y/BAC (North Carolina LSC) |
| Alexandria Swim Club (Minnesota LSC) |
| All Star Aquatics (Potomac Valley LSC) |
| Alto Swim Club (Pacific Coast LSC) |
| American Energy Swim Club (Oklahoma LSC) |
| Ames Cyclone Aquatics Club (Iowa LSC) |
| Aquajets Swim Team (Minnesota LSC) |
| Aquatic Club of Elkhorn (Midwestern LSC) |
| Arena Club Aquatics (Maryland LSC) |
| Arkansas Dolphins (Arkansas LSC) |
| Arlington Aquatic Club (Potomac Valley LSC) |
| Asphalt Green Unified Aquatics (Metropolitan LSC) |
| Avon Community Swim Team (Indiana LSC) |
| Azura Florida Aquatics (Florida Gold Coast LSC) |
| Berkeley Aquatic Club (New Jersey LSC) |
| Bixby Swim Club (Oklahoma LSC) |
| Bloomington Normal Swim Club (Illinois LSC) |
| Boise Swim Club (Snake River LSC) |
| Boonville Aquatic Dolphins (Indiana LSC) |
| Boulder Swimming (Colorado LSC) |
| Bozeman Multisport Aquatics (Montana LSC) |
| Buckeye Swim Club (Ohio LSC) |
| Buenaventura Swim Club (Southern California LSC) |
| Buffalo Area Aquatic Club (Niagara LSC) |
| Cape Fear Aquatic Club (North Carolina LSC) |
| Cascade Swim Club (Pacific North LSC) |
| Cheyenne Mountain Aquatics (Colorado LSC) |
| Colorado Torpedoes (Colorado LSC) |
| Columbia Aquatics Association (Maryland LSC) |
| Coral Springs Swim Club (Florida Gold Coast LSC) |
| Cypress Fairbanks Swim Club (Gulf LSC) |
| Downeast Family YMCA (Maine LSC) |
| East Carolina Aquatics (North Carolina LSC) |
| El Paso Aqua Posse (Border LSC) |
| Elevation Athletics (Colorado LSC) |
| Empire KC Swim Club (Missouri Valley LSC) |
| Enfinity Aquatic Club (North Carolina LSC) |
| Fairfax Foxes (Potomac Valley LSC) |
| Fishers Area Swimming Tigers (Indiana LSC) |
| Flashes Aquatics (Indiana LSC) |
| Flatiron Athletic Club (Colorado LSC) |
| Flood Aquatics Swim Team (Florida Gold Coast LSC) |
| Fort Wayne Swim Team (Indiana LSC) |
| Fox Swim Club (Maryland LSC) |
| Frederick Area Swim Team (Maryland LSC) |
| Front Range Barracudas (Colorado LSC) |
| Gulf Coast Swim Team (Florida LSC) |
| Hickory Foundation YMCA Seahorse Swim Team (North Carolina LSC) |
| High Point Swim Club (North Carolina LSC) |
| Hilltop Aquatic Swim Team (Utah LSC) |
| Hockomock Area YMCA Lightning (New England LSC) |
| Indiana Swim Club (Indiana LSC) |
| JCC Bridgewater Tide (New Jersey LSC) |
| JCC Swimming (Maryland LSC) |
| Jets Aquatic Club (Arkansas LSC) |
| Lakeside Aquatics Team (Louisiana LSC) |
| Lawrence County Aquatics (Indiana LSC) |
| Lehigh Valley Aquatics (Mid-Atlantic LSC) |
| Long Reach Swim Club (Maine LSC) |
| Los Gatos Swim Club (Pacific Coast LSC) |
| Loyola Blakefield Aquatics (Maryland LSC) |
| Magnolia Aquatic Club (Gulf LSC) |
| Mako Aquatics (Minnesota LSC) |
| Martin County Swimming (Florida Gold Coast LSC) |
| Meridian Swimming Assoc. (Mississippi LSC) |
| Metrowest YMCA (New England LSC) |
| Mexico Tiger Sharks (Niagara LSC) |
| Mexico YMCA Mid-Mo Marlins (Missouri Valley LSC) |
| Mid-Cities Arlington Swimming (North Texas LSC) |
| Missoula YMCA Swim Team (Montana LSC) |
| MSSC (Potomac Valley LSC) |
| Mundelein Mustang Swim Club (Illinois LSC) |
| Nation’s Capital Swim Club (Potomac Valley LSC) |
| Naval Academy Aquatic Club (Maryland LSC) |
| North Coast Aquatics (San Diego-Imperial LSC) |
| Northern Dutchess Aquatic Club (Metropolitan LSC) |
| Northridge Area Swimming Assoc (Indiana LSC) |
| NOVA of Virginia Aquatics, Inc (Virginia LSC) |
| NSEA Swim (North Carolina LSC) |
| Nu Wave Swim Club (Louisiana LSC) |
| Oswego Laker Swim Club (Niagara LSC) |
| Paseo Aquatics Swim Team (Southern California LSC) |
| Performance Aquatics (Florida Gold Coast LSC) |
| Pine Crest Swimming (Florida Gold Coast LSC) |
| Plainfield Community Aquatics (Indiana LSC) |
| Portland Porpoise Swim Club (Maine LSC) |
| Pueblo Swim Club (Colorado LSC) |
| Raleigh Swimming Association (North Carolina LSC) |
| Rappahannock Area YMCA Swim Team, Inc (Virginia LSC) |
| Riptide (Minnesota LSC) |
| Sailfish Swim Club (Michigan LSC) |
| Sailfish Swim Team (New England LSC) |
| Salt Lake Swim Legends (Utah LSC) |
| San Gabriel Sea Gulls (California LSC) |
| Sandhills Sandsharks (North Carolina LSC) |
| Sarasota Tsunami Swim Team (Florida LSC) |
| Sarpy County Swim Club (Midwestern LSC) |
| Sea Dragon Aquatics (Florida LSC) |
| Sharks Swim Club (Gulf LSC) |
| South Florida Aquatic Club (Florida Gold Coast LSC) |
| South Louisiana Swim Team (Louisiana LSC) |
| Southeastern Swim Club (Indiana LSC) |
| Southwest Aquatic Team (Border LSC) |
| Splash Club, Inc. (Oklahoma LSC) |
| St. Bernard Swim Club (Louisiana LSC) |
| Steel Aquatic Club (Middle Atlantic LSC) |
| Sterling Stingrays (Illinois LSC) |
| Stingrays (Georgia LSC) |
| Summit Swimming (Georgia LSC) |
| Sun-shine Aquatics Swim Club (Hawaiian LSC) |
| Swim Charleston (South Carolina LSC) |
| Swim Fort Lauderdale (Florida Gold Coast LSC) |
| Swim GSA (North Carolina LSC) |
| Swim Torrance (Southern California LSC) |
| SwimMAC Carolina (North Carolina LSC) |
| Syracuse Chargers (Niagara LSC) |
| TAC Titans (North Carolina LSC) |
| Team Charlotte Swimming (North Carolina LSC) |
| Team Eugene Aquatics-YMCA (Oregon LSC) |
| Team Velocity (Florida LSC) |
| Thames Aquatic Club (Connecticut LSC) |
| The Fish (Potomac Valley LSC) |
| Tomball Area Swim Club (Gulf LSC) |
| Town Wreckers Swim Team (Niagara LSC) |
| Tri-City Channel Cats (Inland Empire LSC) |
| Trident Swim Club (California LSC) |
| Washington Township Swim Club (Indiana LSC) |
| Waterloo Swimming (South Texas LSC) |
| West Texas Typhoon (Border LSC) |
| Wichita Swim Club (Missouri Valley LSC) |
| WTRC Sharks Swim Team Inc. (Ohio LSC) |
| Y in Central Maryland (Maryland LSC) |
| YMCA of Hagerstown (Maryland LSC) |
| YMCA of Northwest North Carolina Riptyde (North Carolina LSC) |
| Y-Spartaquatics Swim Club (South Carolina LSC) |