By Kirsten Barnes
We all know that aquatic professionals never stop learning. Beyond on-the-job learning, continuing education should be a crucial part of professional and personal development for both you and your team.
- Understanding the most recent safety standards, legal considerations and risk management protocols helps operators keep their communities safe.
- Staying up-to-date on technological advancements, eco-friendly practices and operational best practices can lead to improved efficiency and sustainability.
- Ongoing education around the latest information on water quality and recreational water illness prevention is essential for public health.
- Adding leadership, management, crisis response, marketing and customer service skills to our professional toolbox simply makes us better leaders!
There are a variety of continuing education opportunities for aquatic professionals:
- Formal education such as seminars and workshops, degree and certificate programs are great opportunities to improve your knowledge base. Professional designations such as CPRP, CPRE and the Association of Aquatic Professionals (AOAP) Aquatic Professional Designation (AqP) are great programs with meaningful content.
- Online learning is becoming increasingly accessible. Live webinars are offered by a variety of industry vendors and associations, and they are often free or offered as a free membership benefit. Here at the AOAP, we include three to six free webinars every year with content customized to our members and to the aquatic industry as a whole.
- E-learning platforms offer a wide range of courses. LinkedIn, Udemy and Coursera offer a variety of courses on leadership and “soft skills,” and many associations offer their own learning platforms. AOAP’s Splash-EDU, powered by Starfish Aquatic Institute, is home to more than 50 on-demand webinar courses focused on operations, drowning prevention, programming and staff training, risk management, diversity and inclusion, and executive development.
- Don’t underestimate the value of experiential learning for you and your team! Take advantage of special projects going on in your agency, volunteer for events happening in another community like swim meets, special events or large-scale races. One of the best learning experiences I had was sitting on my local parks and recreation advisory board—it gave me insight in new ways and a better understanding of the challenges of some of my peers and partner departments!
- Networking is also a great way to learn—everything from Facebook’s Aquatic Directors and Managers or Women in Parks and Recreation groups to association platforms like AOAP’s Member Forum. Ask questions, read responses and think about how you can apply discussion items to your own organization.
It would be a complete miss if we didn’t include in-person conferences. From national shows that focus specifically on aquatics like AOAP’s Annual Conference and Exposition to state shows that give you opportunities to connect with more local peers, conferences hit the mark of formal education, covering CEUs for professional certifications and giving you opportunities to network (or commiserate) with other professionals.
Think about three things as you head off to a conference:
- Are there any pain points in your operations or programming for which you need a solution? Let this guide the sessions that you choose.
- Are there any products or services that you want to learn more about? Scope out the exhibitor list and make sure you visit those vendors.
- Make a goal to meet other professionals! My mom used to say, “meet three new people every day,” and that has served me well at conferences and in my community!
When the conference is done, make a plan to implement the things you learned, a timeline to follow up with vendors and a way to keep in touch with the new professionals you met.
It’s easy to get lost in the day-to-day of what’s needed in our roles. Don’t lose sight of the opportunities that continuing education can offer to you and your team to grow personally and professionally, provide better programs and safer facilities, and connect with other professionals. You never know when a conversation over lunch or something you learned on a webinar might turn into your next big opportunity! RM