Dr Charles Van Der Horst Water Safety Initiative

Swim for Charlie completed its 2nd year of water safety and basic swimming skills lessons for North Carolina 2nd grade students. The program is during the school day and is part of their Health and Physical Education curriculum. During the 2022-2023 academic year the program offered free 8 50-minute lessons to all 922 2nd grade students in 15 elementary schools in 2 North Carolina school districts, 8 in Durham Public Schools and 7 in Orange County Schools. Of those students 788 (85%) participated, with 752 (95%) students completing more than 1/2 of the lessons. This was 4 times as many students as participated in the program the first year. The program prioritizes high need schools, defined as Title I schools with high percentages of students eligible for free and reduced lunch. 622 (79%) of the students were either afraid of the water or had no water safety/swimming skills prior to the start of lessons. These children were at high risk of drowning if they were in a body of water over their heads. 326 (55%) of these high-risk students advanced to being able to get from a front to a back float, stroke to the edge of a body of water and pull themselves out. Their risk of drowning was markedly reduced. Of the 166 (21%) students who began with some water safety/swimming skills 141 (88%) had significant improvement. The program made accommodation for several students in both school districts with disabilities and special needs, allowing them to participate with their peers. Swim for Charlie made new partnerships during this time with 3 more pools. This will allow the program to expand to offer the program to over 1400 students in 24 Durham and Orange County schools for the 2023-2024 academic year.