Industry advocates show support for New Jersey water safety education bill

Industry advocates for water safety initiatives gathered on Memorial Day weekend in Spring Lake, New Jersey, to support assemblyman Sean Kean's legislation (A618), which proposes K-12 school districts to provide instruction on water safety as a requirement.

The bill is currently awaiting consideration in the Assembly Education Committee. Dominick Mondi, executive director of Northeast Spa and Pool Association (NESPA) and the NESPA Foundation, Olympic gold medalist Rowdy Gaines, and Joe Ohme, founding board member of the New Jersey Swim Safety Alliance (NJSSA), joined the assemblyman to show support for the bill.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), drowning is the leading cause of death for children aged one to four. Drowning is the second leading cause of death for children five to 14, following motor vehicle crashes. According to data from the New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH), 78 people died in the state due to drowning in 2020.

For children aged one to four, learning to swim from a qualified instructor drastically reduces the risk of drowning by 88 per cent and is critical in keeping children safe in the water.

Affirming the NESPA Foundation's dedication to support swim education around the region, the foundation has committed $25,000 to Step into Swim, an initiative of the Pool & Hot Tub Alliance (PHTA) and its foundation, committed to safe swim education and drowning prevention. As part of this pledge, the foundation will match donations made at NESPAfoundation.org. PHTA will also match this doubled donation, meaning each donation is quadrupled.

"The ocean and pool provide amazing opportunities for exercise, relaxation, fun, and cooling off. However, we must always be careful around water—the ocean, lakes, rivers, as well as pools and hot tubs," says assemblyman Sean Kean. "It is important that water safety is taught in schools as part of health and physical education. I hope that this is just the beginning, that learning in the classroom leads to actual swim lessons in water."

"The NESPA Foundation is focused on creating more opportunities for children to learn lifesaving water skills and introducing kids to a lifelong love of aquatics," says Mondi. "Drowning prevention starts with building respect for water and understanding water conditions. This bill helps us bring this critical information to more young people in New Jersey."

"Partnering with Step into Swim aligns perfectly with our efforts to educate more children and families about water safety," Mondi added.