Florida A&M University’s Aquatics Club created an online fundraiser after their pool supplies were destroyed in May ; three tornadoes devastated the Tallahassee community earlier this year, causing significant damage to the FAMU campus. U.S. News reports that the city sustained $50 million in damages. The storm impacted various areas on FAMU’s campus, such as the FAMU pool. The pool staff created a GoFundMe after the storm ruined the pool shed for dry equipment. Jaleel Reed, the onsite supervisor for the FAMU pool, stresses that the pool lacks the resources it needs to be safe and attractive for students.
“We are lacking funding from the school, we only get about enough to cover the necessary stuff to run the pool and have enough chlorine for the pool for the semester and pay the lifeguards. We don’t have enough to have essential stuff,” said Reed.
Reed and the other staff members are asking for $10,000 for new winter blankets that help keep the pool clean.
“They last about 10-15 years, we’ve had these [blankets] since the 2000’s so they are too old, tattered up, and actually leaks like microplastics into the water” said Reed.
Reed uses his own money to help keep the pool in good condition, purchasing boric acid to kill any water bugs that enter the pool and other basic pool necessities. The pool shares funding with FAMU Aquatics Club; the two organizations are awarded funding when the pool staff meets with the Student Government Association once a year to present how much money they need to keep the pool functional for student use.
The pool staff have struggled to keep the pool clean in recent years due to lack of funds. The FAMU pool is free to all faculty and staff if they present their university Identification cards and sign in with an on-duty lifeguard. Despite the free pool services, few students take advantage of them. Akwele Kerr, a lifeguard for FAMU Pool, believes more advertisements would increase student interest.
“As of right now we need to get the word out there for students because its free you know, I even offer free swim lessons to students because that’s just an important life skill to have and its free and swim lessons aren’t cheap” said Kerr.
Kerr and other lifeguards create pool advertisements to share with students in hopes that the university will also advertise the pool.
“I will be putting flyers around campus to try to promote the pool on my behalf, but I definitely feel like the school should do its part as well,” said Kerr.
The FAMU Aquatics Club aims to teach the students and the community about the importance of water safety when swimming and participating in other water-related activities. Recent FAMU graduates like Justin Mathews take advantage of the pool services and think the university should place greater importance on student water safety.
“I think there should be some sort of event at the pool that is hosted by student organizations. I think FAMU Aquatics should collaborate with another organization on campus,” said Mathews.
In addition to teaching water safety the FAMU Aquatic Club also sponsors a trip to the Wakulla River where participants can borrow a canoe and life jacket from the FAMU Aquatics Club and learn safety precautions before canoeing.