MSU hosts fall Adapted Swim Camp for individuals with special needs
Contact: Bethany Shipp
STARKVILLE, Miss.—Mississippi State’s Department of Kinesiology offers the MSU Adapted Swim Camp this fall to teach children and teenagers with special needs the foundations of swimming and water safety.
Serving ages 3-14, the camp takes place Sept. 28-Oct. 2 in MSU’s Sanderson Center, 225 Bailey Howell Dr.
Under the direction of Professor of Kinesiology Gregg Twietmeyer, certified adapted swim instructors and MSU student volunteers help participants develop confidence in the water and learn basic swimming skills and water safety. The camp requires swimmers to attend one 45-minute or 60-minute session per day over a five-day period, depending on age.
“The MSU Adapted Swim Camp gives campers the skills necessary to be safe around water and to learn to swim. These skills are beneficial, useful and practical,” Twietmeyer said. “Physical activity is a central aspect of human health, culture and independence. More importantly, however, is that the skills create meaning and joy. Each smile on a camper’s face, as they overcome an old fear or build new skills, indicates the centrality of play to human flourishing. Our camp aims to make the water a playground for our campers, one student at a time.”
To be eligible for the camp, participants must be at least 3 years old and have a diagnosed disability. Participants with a tracheostomy or G-tube stoma for less than two months are not eligible. A parent or guardian must remain on site during the camp.
The registration fee is $100, with full scholarships available for those in need. Capacity is limited and will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis.
Volunteers are needed to assist and work with the campers for one session per day over the five-day period. All volunteers must be at least 15 years old and comfortable in the water.
For more information on registration or volunteering, visit www.kinesiology.msstate.edu/swimcamp.
For more information on the camp or scholarships, contact Twietmeyer at g.twietmeyer@msstate.edu.
MSU’s College of Education, home of the Department of Kinesiology, also includes four additional academic departments, a division of education, one research unit and numerous service units. Learn more at www.educ.msstate.edu.
This project was supported, in part by grant number 2601MSSCDD, from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects with government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official ACL policy.
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