High School Scuba Diving Program

[boulderjohn]

I doubt the liability for a scuba class would run more than for a football or basketball program...after all for the most part the other participants aren't trying to knock you down and take your equipment...
Mike

I agree. I think the primary issues are related to funding and the fact that there is not enough demand for it to make schools go through the major effort it would take to set it up.

You also have to remember that not everyone can teach a high school class. You have to be a certified teacher. That means a school would have to have a scuba instructor who is on the staff, or they would have to have a working relationship with an LDS that would meet all legal requirements of supervision--and tehre are a lot of them.

That being said, I don't think it would be all that hard for a dedicated soul to make it happen. None of this is insurmountable.

 

[Jon C]

If only they had a scuba course when I was in high school. I would have really enjoyed those 5 1/2 years a lot more....

 

[SparticleBrane]

I doubt the liability for a scuba class would run more than for a football or basketball program...after all for the most part the other participants aren't trying to knock you down and take your equipment...


Mike

Yes, but football and basketball bring money in to the school, whereas scuba...doesn't. All they'd see from scuba is negative cash flow.

 

[TheHobster]

Yes, but football and basketball bring money in to the school, whereas scuba...doesn't. All they'd see from scuba is negative cash flow.

Having been involved with HS and College sports for many years, I would argue how much money FB and BB bring in compared to the expenses they generate. Especially football.

As far as liability, a football or basketball injury is usually treated by on staff medical personnel, mainly athletic trainers; a dive injury most often requires specialized medical treatment, usually involving at least one physician.

As far as expenses and gear, rental is always a possibility; I know one college that had a lab fee of $50 to cover rental gear for the class that was provided by the LDS; also, if a teacher is in the class/pool, it can be accomplished.

Most common, is the HS is apparently outside NC (sorry Sparticle), they have a pool and probably some kind of Aquatics course. We have done Discover SCUBA's for them and charge $25 (sometimes I also come in and do a water polo session as well, with the real rules); then give the particpants a $25 discount for class if they take class within 90 days of end of school year.

I am just shocked that Sparticle say many HS in NC do not have pools. 2 swimmers from NC STate won medals at the 76 Olympics in swimming and Duke, UNC and NC State are well respected college programs. Why it hasn't trickled down I don't know. Combine that with all the water in NC and it would appear to me to be a public service to have pools and swimming in the schools.

 

[boulderjohn]

I am just shocked that Sparticle say many HS in NC do not have pools.

It is a very rare feature in Colorado as well. We're struggling to buy books.

 

[mikerault]

I don't believe broken bones (leg, arm, collar bone, fingers, toes, spine) are treated by onsite staff, neither are internal injuries, serious muscle tears, rotator cuff injuries or blown knees. In addition head injuries and other serious injuries are not treated by onsite staff. I guarentee there are more injuries treated by offsite medical staff for a given program (baseball, football, basketball, soccer) than a scuba class would generate.

Mike

 

[SparticleBrane]

Most common, is the HS is apparently outside NC (sorry Sparticle), they have a pool and probably some kind of Aquatics course. We have done Discover SCUBA's for them and charge $25 (sometimes I also come in and do a water polo session as well, with the real rules); then give the particpants a $25 discount for class if they take class within 90 days of end of school year.

I am just shocked that Sparticle say many HS in NC do not have pools. 2 swimmers from NC STate won medals at the 76 Olympics in swimming and Duke, UNC and NC State are well respected college programs. Why it hasn't trickled down I don't know. Combine that with all the water in NC and it would appear to me to be a public service to have pools and swimming in the schools.

It hasn't trickled down because like boulderjohn said, money is very tight for educational purposes.
As an example, in my 11th grade AP US History class, the books were falling apart but it wasn't the Social Studies department's turn to get new books...so they had to buy binders, rip the hardback covers off the old books (or not, since most were falling apart at the seams) and put them into 3-ring binders. They had to stay at school--we couldn't take them home to study. We were encouraged to buy our own...which I did.

And yes, NCSU has a great aquatics program, especially the scuba portion...

 

[TheHobster]

I don't believe broken bones (leg, arm, collar bone, fingers, toes, spine) are treated by onsite staff, neither are internal injuries, serious muscle tears, rotator cuff injuries or blown knees. In addition head injuries and other serious injuries are not treated by onsite staff. I guarentee there are more injuries treated by offsite medical staff for a given program (baseball, football, basketball, soccer) than a scuba class would generate.

Mike

True, however, in my experience, every athlete in a sports program has to show proof of medical insurance, and then they are usually also covered by the schools blanket athletic coverage. That pays secondary, meaning after the athletes medical insurance pays. So the school can only be sued for negligence, which is hard to prove as there is such a large body of legal precedents for assumption of risk for athletic injuries.

While yes the above happens, and Lord knows I spent alot of time in training rooms as both an athlete and coach checking up on my swimmers and polo players, and saw the football and other dry athletes in there. The serious stuff is rare, and the actual liability of the school is very limited in reality.

A SCUBA injury however, for some reason causes a lawsuit a higher percentage of the time than an athletic injury. That's why the agencies are so particular that forms are completed etc. However, limiting the schools exposure to a lawsuit would be if that instructor or LDS amends the professional liability insurance to include the school and district as an additional insured. Simple process with a small, if any, cost.

However, in this litigious society we are a part of, the best answer may be the club way; or in the case of a couple schools we use, the Adult Ed arm of the district. In this case we are not a "regular course offering" and we have named the school and the district as additional insureds. They get an offering, the Aquatic Director shows facility useage, and we have water, that most precious of commodities for a LDS!

 

[scubaroro@]

Please check out the Beneath The Sea website. BTS is a non-profit organization dedicated to educating the public about the importance of the ocean. BTS is celebrating its 35th year. We offer a one day free Marine Careers Program for high school and college students interested in learning more about the types of marine careers. The program is March 25th, 2011. This is the fourth year that we are offereing it. It is part of the Beneath The Sea expo in New Jersey March 25 to 27, 2011. The Marine Careers Program is one day of speakers from marine fields, workshops and exhibitors who offer marine curriculums. When the program ends, the attendees also get free entry into the expo floor of about 400 exhibitors. Some of our past speakers have been Wyland- International Marine Artist, Dr. Phil Nuytten - Inventor of Underwater Technology, David Doubilet- renowned underwater photographer, Dr. Sylvia Earle - world class authority on sharks and their behavior, and many more. We also offer a vairety of interactive workshops during the day as well.

Beneath The Sea also offers several scholarships for young people interested in learning scuba diving, taking marine science education, etc. The deadline for most of the scholarships is January 31, 2011 so let the students know about the scholarships now. The applications are on the website.

Feel free to contact me if you have questions. The website offers more information.

 

[formula1mb@aol.com]

There are some programs still around. Here in Orange County, there's a program through North County ROP targeted at highschool students but also open for adults. It qualifies for hs credit and you can get your AOW all the way up to NAUI instructor, in addition to rescue diver and lifeguard cert's as options. Amazing the program wasn't canceled even with all the budget cuts and still going on at Sonora HS.

I personally took it ~ 2 years ago when I wasn't working and have to say it was a pretty cool program. Definitely not a quickie type cert, lots of theory and pool time, plus 10 beach dives (5 with instructor, 5 without) so you have to actually earn it. They don't even let you in the pool until you do the basic Red Cross first aid class which is part of the first two weeks. Looking back, really grateful for the program and almost glad I lost that job because otherwise I probably would've never been certified. It was always one of those things I thought would be cool to know but with work and everyday life you keep putting it off---but with this program, practically free and very solid program and figured what excuse do I have now?

I think it's a great program to have esp for highschool students, give them something to actually inspire them and plus teach them a great life long hobby and maybe even a career.


Marine Diving, Life Guard, Aquatics
ROP at Sonora High School