HU to Offer Aquatics Program

Hampton, VA - In Fall 2008, Hampton University will be the second historically black college or university to offer a concentration in aquatics.

Only 35 colleges and universities nationwide offer aquatics programs, according to Aquatics International, a publication devoted to public and commercial swimming pool industries. The only other HBCU to offer an aquatics program is Alabama A&M.

A total of 17 credits hours will be available in HU's concentration. Classes include beginning swimming, scuba diving and life saving and water safety. Classes will be open to all majors.

Aquatics is being offered through the Department of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, whose chairperson Dr. Marilyn Wells, said the program is a perfect fit for HU.

Dr. Marilyn Wells

"We found that there was a need, and we had the expertise on campus with faculty and the facility, " Wells said, referring to the Olympic size indoor pool in Holland Hall.

Jodi Jensen is the director of aquatics and will serve as the coordinator of the aquatics concentration. Particularly for African Americans, aquatics hasn't been a popularized field of study, which has had counter effects.

Black children between the ages of five and 19 are 2.6 times more likely to drown than white children their same age, according to Centers for Disease Control statistics reported by USA Swimming, the national governing body of competitive swimming in the United States. Of the latter organization's 300,000 members, less than one percent are African-American, according to its website.

That's where HU comes in, Wells said.

"Consistent with the mission of Hampton University, we aim to be a leader in the professional preparation of promising young African-Americans," she said. "In all that we do we try to be a model for HBCUs nationwide."

Professions in the aquatics field include aquatic facility management and lifeguard management. Annual earnings in the field are from $51,030 for the middle range, to more than $71, 269 for the upper range of aquatics professionals, according to the United States Department of Labor.

National Institutes of Health statistics state approximately 75 percent of child drownings are due to less than a five-minute lapse in adult supervision.

Wells is hopeful HU's program can introduce aquatics opportunities to a new generation of learners who can make a difference.

"We feel we can prepare our students for positions in leadership and service," Wells said. For more information about the aquatics program contact Dr. Marilyn Wells at 757.727.5208 or marilyn.wells@hamptonu.edu.