By admin 
TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – As triple-digit temperatures arrive and the Juneteenth holiday approaches, a University of Arizona program is working to expand water access for families who have historically been excluded from pools.
Read more Tucson Now: NARTS conference comes to Tucson
The university has partnered with the African American Museum of Southern Arizona to offer free swim lessons through the “From Fear to Freedom: Dive Into Opportunity” program. The initiative targets children, teens and adults with limited access to swimming facilities.
“Before my child learned how to swim, I was very cautious, I was very nervous,” said Carmishun Coleman, whose daughter Karsly participates in the program.
Drowning is the leading cause of unintentional death for children ages 1 to 4, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Formal swim lessons are associated with an 88 percent reduction in the risk of drowning for children, according to research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics.
The CDC estimates that African American children between the ages of 10 and 14 drown in swimming pools at rates 7.6 times higher than white children nationally. African American adults under age 30 drown at rates 1.5 times higher than white adults.
“Getting them more comfortable in the water is the first step, then we’re going to expand into technique and endurance,” said Daniel Hepfer, University of Arizona aquatics assistant director.
For 8-year-old Karsly Coleman, the program offers more than safety skills.
“They provide towels, and they provide goggles and sunscreen, and free complimentary bags,” she said.
In addition to free lessons, the program provides swimsuits, goggles, towels, flip flops, sunscreen and swim caps, to ensure cost is not a barrier.
Read more FIRST ALERT WEATHER DAY: Active afternoon expected in southern Arizona
The drowning disparity traces back to segregation, when Black people were barred from public pools for generations.
“There were things that were intentionally done to discourage African Americans,” said Nikieia Johnson, director of the African American Museum of Southern Arizona. “Acid being poured into pools and things of that nature, or ‘yes, you can come and swim, but you must come the day before the pools set to be drained,’ due to stereotypical beliefs of having skin scales that were going to fall off in the pool.”
Those exclusionary practices kept entire families out of the water and created generational gaps in swimming ability. This year, the program expanded to include free lessons for teens and adults.
Shineeka Wilson, a lifelong Arizona resident, enrolled with her daughter Aaralynn.
“I was done being scared of the water,” Wilson said.
Aaralynn came in with no swimming experience.
“I didn’t know how to actually swim, but now I do,” she said. “We learned how to do the backstroke and also the freestyle.”
For Wilson, the program represents breaking a generational cycle.
“You’re never too old to learn anything,” she said. “Black people can swim.”
While the program focuses on expanding access to African American children, it is open to anyone in Tucson with limited access to swimming. Registration is open using the code AAMSAZ2026.
Read more Police respond to yet another attack at Ronstadt Center in downtown Tucson
,