Reestablishing a Culture of Water Competency at an HBCU

African American children ages 5 – 19 years drown in swimming pools at rates of 5.5 times higher than those of whites (Gilchrist & Parker, 2014). Literature suggested culture is the culprit for this disparity. A fear of water dates to slavery (Pitts, 2007). After slavery was abolished, the memory of drowning remained part of the African American culture. In the twentieth century, the popularity of swimming grew with the increase in public pools. The era of the Jim Crow laws kept African Americans out of public pools (Pitts, 2007). Although the political landscape has shifted since the Jim Crow era, inequities have continued to linger. Despite the reported disparity between drowning among African Americans and others, a gap exists in the literature regarding aquatic programming at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Delaware State University (DSU) is addressing the fear of water among students on campus and among members of the surrounding community to DSU by implementing the American Red Cross Parent Orientation to Swim Curriculum. DSU’s current motto is “Making our mark on the world;” the previous motto was, “Only an educated man is free.” We prefer to recall that Plato said, “A man is not learned until he can read, write, and swim” (Silver, 2018)

Physical Activity, Distressed Behavior, and Time-on-task in a Child with Autism

Autism is a complex developmental disability that typically appears during the first three years of life and is usually diagnosed between the ages of two and three years (2-4). The term autism refers to not one disorder but a group of disorders known as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). ASD is described as impairment in one or more of the following three categories: reciprocal social interaction, communication, and specific pattern of behaviors, interest, and activities. For any of these impairments, the child has the potential to display distressed behaviors (5). Distressed behaviors can include verbal outburst, self stimulatory behaviors, aggression, etc. and various other behaviors of concerns. Distressed behaviors, such as hand flapping, appear to form a functional response to stimuli this response often negatively impacts others. These behaviors are more likely among persons who are receiving aversive stimulation, such as having to engage in non preferred academic task. (5). Of concern in this paper is can the use of physical activity decrease distressed behavior. The literature demonstrates that increasing physical activity can has also demonstrated decreased distressed behaviors; unfortunately physical education programs have been decreasing in many public schools (11). Along with academic and behavioral benefits, there is a well established link between physical activity and positive health outcomes. A large part of this risk is associated with physical inactivity. The majority of literature regarding physical activity involves children who are typically developing. This study will apply these findings to a student with Autism. This research will introduce three ten minute bouts of noncontingent physical activity per day will decrease distressed behavior and increase time-on-task. A single subject design was utilized to observe a student with autism in a classroom setting. It was hypothesized that a correlation exists between physical activity, distressed behavior, and time-on-task. During this study a wealth of data were collected regarding the impact of physical activity on distressed behaviors and time-on-task. The Fischer exact probability test was significance (p =.025); from base line through intervention the subject decreased the number of disruptive behaviors. This study demonstrated that physical activity should be implemented amongst students with Autism to decrease distressed behaviors for a single subject

A Comprehensive Analysis of Aquatic Programming at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)

This article provides a comprehensive examination of aquatic programming at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). HBCUs consist of public, private, 2-year, and 4-year institutions (U.S. Department of Education, 2018). Historically, HBCUs provided descendants of the enslaved access to higher education opportunities (Brown, Donahoo, & Bertrand, 2001). HBCUs now serve a more diverse community and the core focus remains on inclusion, social justice, diversity, empowerment, leadership, and cultural competence (Kennedy, 2012; Rawlins, 2018). Consequently, HBCUs may provide an ideal environment to address aquatic activity and the drowning disparity in the African American community. In the current study, researchers sent a survey to 102 HBCUs to better assess the prevalence of aquatics programming at these institutions. Approximately 38 percent of the HBCUs responded to the survey. The results of this study indicate that there is inconsistent institutional knowledge about competitive and non-competitive swimming programs from the past to the present. However, 31 percent of participants reported offering swim classes to members of the campus community. Additionally, 51 percent of participants reported offering swim courses for college credit. Most importantly, 49 percent of participants indicated a desire to build or expand aquatics programming. The drowning disparity is a result of a cycle that includes historical barriers that denied many African Americans’ access to aquatic facilities and programming (Anderson, 2017). Identifying aquatics programming at HBCUs is a critical step to addressing the drowning disparity

A Comprehensive Analysis of Aquatic Programming at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)

This article provides a comprehensive examination of aquatic programming at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). HBCUs consist of public, private, 2-year, and 4-year institutions (U.S. Department of Education, 2018). Historically, HBCUs provided descendants of the enslaved access to higher education opportunities (Brown, Donahoo, & Bertrand, 2001). HBCUs now serve a more diverse community and the core focus remains on inclusion, social justice, diversity, empowerment, leadership, and cultural competence (Kennedy, 2012; Rawlins, 2018). Consequently, HBCUs may provide an ideal environment to address aquatic activity and the drowning disparity in the African American community. In the current study, researchers sent a survey to 102 HBCUs to better assess the prevalence of aquatics programming at these institutions. Approximately 38 percent of the HBCUs responded to the survey. The results of this study indicate that there is inconsistent institutional knowledge about competitive and non-competitive swimming programs from the past to the present. However, 31 percent of participants reported offering swim classes to members of the campus community. Additionally, 51 percent of participants reported offering swim courses for college credit. Most importantly, 49 percent of participants indicated a desire to build or expand aquatics programming. The drowning disparity is a result of a cycle that includes historical barriers that denied many African Americans’ access to aquatic facilities and programming (Anderson, 2017). Identifying aquatics programming at HBCUs is a critical step to addressing the drowning disparity

Self-reported Water Competency Skills at a Historically Black College & University and the Potential Impact of Additional HBCU-based Aquatic Programming

This article provides an analysis of self-reported water competency skills at a Historically Black University (HBCU). A survey was administered to undergraduate students who lived on campus at one HBCU. Of the 254 respondents that reported the ability to swim, only 187 respondents self-reported the ability to swim and the ability to perform water competency skills. The biggest discrepancy occurred within individuals that identified as Black or African American. In this group, 142 out of 250 participants proclaimed the ability to swim. However, the number of Black or African Americans that could swim dropped to 84 when researchers operationally defined swimming as having the ability to perform all five water competencies identified by the American Red Cross (Quan, 2015). Acknowledging that the community role of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) has embodied the African American community since their inception. The Social-Ecological Model illustrates how historical factors impact the drowning disparity that persist today (Dahlberg & Krug, 2006; “The Social-Ecological Model: A Framework for Prevention |Violence Prevention | Injury Center | CDC,” n.d.). The results of this study combined with the rich history of HBCUs points to the need for additional aquatic water safety education and programming at HBCUs