March 17, 2008 - The Morning Swim Show: Bob Hubbard Talks About Present and Future State of Swim Schools in the USA and What to Learn From Other Countries
PHOENIX, Arizona, March 17. BOB Hubbard, co-founder of the Hubbard Swim School, stops by the Ready Room on The Morning Swim Show to discuss the present and future situation of learn-to-swim programs in the United States and around the world.

Hubbard, the former president of the United States Swim Schools Association, started a learn-to-swim program in the summer of 1993 as a way to supplement his work at the Phoenix Swim Club. About 10 years ago, Hubbard started his private school with his wife, Kathy, and they have expanded it to include multiple sites and more than 3,000 children as students each week.

One of the biggest challenges Hubbard sees in starting a swim school is dealing with financial institutions that provide startup capital. He said most banks are not fully aware of the purpose of private swim schools.

But those who do attend swim schools, especially very young children, build a knowledge base that will carry into their childhood and possibly adulthood, said Hubbard. Most of those kids might not transition to a full-time swim team, but they will be more aware of their surroundings in a pool, start physical development earlier and tighten the bonds with parents.

Swim schools in other parts of the world are more advanced than those in the United States, Hubbard said. In his interview with host Brent Rutemiller, Hubbard talks about the partnerships in Australia and New Zealand between the swim schools and those countries' competitive swimming governing bodies. He also talks about how USA Swimming is starting to foster a similar partnership.