ZERO DROWNINGS PROGRAM: Miami-Dade follows state’s voucher plan with swimming lesson program for underprivileged kids. PHOTO COURTESY OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY

Miami – With Florida experiencing a higher rate of child drowning accidents than any other state since 2019, Miami-Dade County has launched a program designed to teach 4-year-old kids how to swim.

Miami-Dade officials, in collaboration with several partners including the Children’s Trust, Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) and the American Red Cross, unveiled the Zero Drownings program during a June 9 news conference at Marva Y. Bannerman Park in Brownsville, where children are spending their summer vacation cooling off in an Olympicstyle pool.

The park at 4830 N.W. 24th Ave. is adjacent to new residential apartments full of young kids. Children enrolled in public and private early learning centers can qualify for the program.

According to Miami-Dade, drownings have become the county’s leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 9, and studies show that participation in formal swim lessons can reduce that risk by 88 percent.

The Zero Drownings initiative is designed to prevent childhood drownings by offering free lessons for young children, water safety education for families, and a community wide water safety campaign.

The Miami Foundation, United Way Miami, Edu Foundation and Templeton Family Foundation are also fostering the program.

County Commissioner Keon Hardemon, whose district includes Brownsville, said the program is what the doctor ordered for kids in the area whose parents can’t afford swim lessons.

“I am extremely proud to be part of this initiative,” said Hardemon. “We as community leaders needed to come together to create a uniform program that would reach some of our youngest and most vulnerable children, who may not otherwise have the means, or the opportunity to attend a learn-toswim program. Zero Drownings Miami-Dade is that program.”

Participating children in the American Red Cross-certified curriculum, for cohorts of 4- and 5-year-olds at public or private water safety swim provider locations during the school day, will come from the County’s Head Start program, the Children’s Trust-funded Thrive by 5 private childcare centers in high-poverty neighborhoods, and Miami-Dade County Public Schools kindergarten classrooms.

Each participating program and classroom will be pre-selected by MDCPS, The Children’s Trust, and county staff. There is no general registration for the program, and children will be transported to the nearest participating swim provider as a daily field trip over the course of two weeks.

Providing free transportation and facilitating the free program during school hours ensures access to available facilities and increases the likelihood of children completing the program.

Under the initiative, an Office of Drowning Prevention was created housed at Miami-Dade Parks, Recreation, and Open Spaces Department, which will serve as a logistics hub.

The program is scaling up quickly over the next three years. A total of 4,000 children are expected to complete the program during the 2024-2025 school year, 10,000 children in 20252026, and 20,000 in 2026-2027. The goal is to reach a minimum of 20,000 children each following year, in perpetuity.

The initiative will also offer family engagement and community education components to ensure a broader understanding of swim safety within the children’s homes and in their communities.

The county effort comes on the heels of the state’s swimming lesson voucher program for underprivileged young kids, which Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law last month, with accidental drownings the second leading cause of death among kids.

The voucher program is offered at no cost to families with children 4 years of age or younger, and with income of no more than 200 percent of the federal poverty threshold, as in $60,000 for a family of four.

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, kid drownings have increased since 2020 among children between the ages of one and seven.

The Florida Department of Children and Families reported that 98 children died in drowning accidents in 2021, highest in the state since 2009. Most were African Americans, Hispanics and Asian Americans who the CDC suggested never learned how to swim because their parents couldn’t afford lessons.

“Through education, resources, and heightened awareness, drownings are preventable, and we know that teaching children at this young age is preparing them for life,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava. “Together, we can make our MiamiDade a place where families can enjoy our beautiful waters without fear, and make zero drownings not just a goal, but a reality.”

For more information visit zerodrowningsmiamidade.org, or Miami-Dade County at 305-310-8349, or Julienne.Gage@MiamiDade.gov; or Miami-Dade County Public Schools at 786-697-8659 or at erlugo@dadeschools.net; or The Children’s Trust at 786566-0920 or natalia@thechildrenstrust.