Making Waves with Swim Education: Spring 2026 Avenue Swim Club
For many children, learning to swim is more than just a recreational skill; it is a life-saving one. Yet access to swim instruction remains out of reach for many families, leaving children without the opportunity to develop the water safety skills and confidence needed to stay safe around aquatic environments, especially in our coastal community.
Through the Avenue Swim Club, Fuse Project is helping change that.
In partnership with the City of Mobile Swim Association (CMSA) and supported by USA Swimming, the Avenue Swim Club provides Florence Howard Elementary students with free swim instruction focused on water safety, skill development, and confidence building. Held at the City of Mobile Swim Association pool on the campus of Bishop State Community College, just minutes from Florence Howard Elementary School, the program gives students access to an opportunity that many may not otherwise have.
Throughout the Spring 2026 semester, over 150 students in kindergarten through fifth grade participated in seven four-week swim sessions. Students attended lessons Tuesday through Thursday afternoons, spending 40 minutes in the water learning essential skills that will benefit them for years to come.
The program is designed to meet students where they are. During the first week of each session, participants are evaluated and grouped by skill level. Beginning swimmers focus on becoming comfortable in the water and developing foundational skills, while more advanced swimmers continue building technique and endurance. Students are grouped based on their ability level, ensuring each child receives instruction appropriate for their experience and comfort level.
Throughout the program, students learn:
Foundational swim strokes
Proper floating, kicking, and breathing techniques
Safe water entry and exit practices
Water survival and emergency awareness skills
Confidence in and around aquatic environments
COMMUNITY SUPPORT MAKES A SPLASH
This spring, students received a special visit from Mobile Mayor Spiro Cheriogotis, who stopped by Swim Club to meet participants, offer words of encouragement, and see firsthand the impact the program is having on local children. His visit highlighted the importance of water safety education and community partnerships in creating opportunities for local youth. Local media were also on hand to share the story and help raise awareness about the program's impact throughout the community.
To help encourage consistent participation, Fuse Project introduced a perfect attendance incentive during the February session. Students who attended every lesson were entered into a drawing for a $50 gift card. Because transportation and scheduling challenges can sometimes make attendance difficult, the incentive was designed to encourage students and families to prioritize participation and maximize the benefits of the program.
While these skills help students become stronger swimmers, the program's impact extends far beyond the pool.
According to Coach Sarah Allen with the City of Mobile Swim Association, one of the most rewarding aspects of the program has been watching students overcome their fears and discover confidence they didn't know they had.
“Many of the children began the program with significant fears and hesitation around water. Through consistent instruction, encouragement, and practice, they have successfully overcome many of those challenges. Participants have become comfortable putting their faces in the water, developed breath control skills, learned essential water survival techniques such as floating on both their backs and fronts, and gained confidence jumping into the water, returning to the wall, and floating independently.”
For many students, simply getting into the water can feel intimidating at first. Over the course of each session, however, instructors watch those fears begin to fade as students build trust in themselves, their instructors, and their abilities.
Allen noted that the transformation is often remarkable.
“The improvement demonstrated by these children has been truly inspiring, and I am extremely proud of their dedication and perseverance. Their progress reflects not only their hard work but also the commitment of our instructors, who have invested considerable time and effort to ensure each child develops critical water safety skills.”
The importance of programs like Avenue Swim Club cannot be overstated. Drowning remains one of the leading causes of accidental death among children, and studies consistently show that formal swim lessons significantly reduce the risk of drowning. Access to swim instruction, however, is not always equitable. Many children, particularly those in underserved communities, face barriers to learning these essential skills due to cost, transportation, or limited access to facilities.
By offering swim lessons at no cost to families, Avenue Swim Club helps remove those barriers while providing students with knowledge that can save lives.
Here on the Gulf Coast, water is part of everyday life. From Mobile Bay and local rivers to beaches, lakes, swimming pools, and boating activities, children in our community are surrounded by water year-round. Because of that reality, swimming and water safety are not simply recreational skills; they are essential life skills. Avenue Swim Club helps ensure students have the knowledge, confidence, and experience needed to safely navigate the aquatic environments that are such an important part of life in our region.
“In addition to learning swimming fundamentals, participants have gained valuable knowledge that can help them respond safely in emergency situations around water. This program has had a meaningful impact on the children and their families by increasing water confidence, promoting safety awareness, and building lifelong skills that can help prevent water-related accidents.”
The atmosphere at Swim Club is energetic, joyful, and encouraging. Students celebrate one another's successes, cheer on their peers, and look forward to each session. Whether it's floating independently for the first time, swimming across the pool, or overcoming a fear of putting their face in the water, every achievement is met with excitement and pride.
Each four-week session concludes with a celebration recognizing students for their hard work and growth. Participants receive a certificate of completion, a goody bag, and a donut—a fun symbol of a lifesaving ring—to commemorate their accomplishments and encourage them to continue building their skills.
This year, Fuse Project also expanded its support by sponsoring students who successfully completed the Community Impact Program and wanted to continue developing their skills through Swim Fit and group lesson programs. In addition to end-of-session celebrations, students were eligible for weekly attendance incentives throughout the semester, creating additional opportunities to recognize commitment, consistency, and personal growth.
Fuse Project extends sincere gratitude to the City of Mobile Swim Association, USA Swimming, Tyler Kerns, Sarah Allen, and the entire team of instructors and staff who make Avenue Swim Club possible. Their dedication is helping equip local children with skills that will benefit them for a lifetime.
At Fuse Project, we believe every child deserves access to opportunities that help them learn, grow, and thrive. Avenue Swim Club is about more than swimming; it is about confidence, safety, opportunity, and equipping children with life-saving skills that can serve them for years to come. In a coastal community like ours, that impact reaches far beyond the pool and helps ensure that every child deserves an opportunity to succeed, regardless of their ZIP code.