8/11/2023 0 Comments Todo today in pittsburgh![]() Kail Smith said last week that pools could be an “important,” deterrent, and that the city ought to “make sure people have a place to swim all summer long because we know how important this is to our community and to a thriving city.” City Council recently launched an advisory committee tasked with opening more youth and family resource centers in the city the committee believes that additional community centers can deter violent crime among youth. Doing so required reducing the hours at the nearby Riverview Park pool.īeyond youth summer employment, city leaders have stressed that community pools are a vital resource for kids in the summer. Last summer, the city originally intended not to open Sue Murray Pool in the North Side, but yielded to public pressure and eventually staffed the pool. “I know there's enough kids in the city of Pittsburgh that need jobs,” she said.ĭeciding which pools to keep closed for the summer has been a source of controversy over the last few years. But she added many teachers and school staff don’t qualify to be lifeguards because they don’t live within city limits.Īnd changing the city resident requirement is not something Kail Smith supports. Vargas said that in addition to teachers, the city has also recruited school crossing guards to work the front desk as cashiers. “And two of our core management staff are teachers help with swim team during the school year.” “We absolutely have teachers,” Vargas said. “It could be a grandparent, it could be a parent, it could be somebody who's off in the summer, a teacher, a school aide,” she said. She suggested that recruitment efforts could be improved among older residents interested in seasonal employment. “It doesn't necessarily have to be a teen,” argued City Council President Theresa Kail Smith last week. City Council to consider the expansion of an anti-violence program in Pittsburgh schools.Larry Scirotto sworn in as Pittsburgh's chief of police.Pennsylvania House OKs $100 million for adult mental health services.In Pittsburgh, some city leaders are urging the parks department to be similarly creative. Colorado Public Radio reported a group of retirees - an untraditional age group for a typical lifeguard - stepped up to get certified and keep their community pool running. It’s forced cities across the country to get creative with how they recruit and keep lifeguards. Last summer, NPR reported that thousands of public pools and beaches across the country had fewer lifeguards, leading some to reduce hours or close altogether. “We are kind of in a rebuilding phase for our aquatics team.”Ī shortage of lifeguards isn’t just a Pittsburgh problem. “You take two years off of having that summer job, you find other things to do,” Vargas said. As a result, certifications lapsed and kids found other jobs. In 2020, the city didn’t open any of its pools, in accordance with public health recommendations. The lifeguard staffing struggle is born out of a shortage that began during the pandemic, Vargas said. In 2021, the city was only able to open eight pools. ![]() If the current batch of lifeguards completes their certification requirements, Vargas said the city will have enough staff to run about 12 pools, the same number as in 2022. The city has also partnered with the Red Cross to add staff later in the season by taking on returning lifeguards who simply need to be recertified. "It might spark an interest in something like EMS work." “For a lot of people, could be the first exposure to a public safety kind of role," she said. She said some members of the city’s water rescue team started as city pool lifeguards. Vargas said the academy is designed for kids who are interested in becoming EMTs or other types of first responders after high school. The city began recruiting kids in the winter for classes that began in March. ![]() A “lifeguard academy” for students in the school’s Emergency Response Technology program was designed to increase the number of interested recruits, and to give students swimming experience. But Vargas added that the city has also tried more targeted recruitment strategies.Īmong them is a pilot program operated by the parks department and Westinghouse High School. Experienced lifeguards could make up to $19.05 per hour. To entice more people to apply, Pittsburgh leaders increased the pay for new lifeguards from $16 per hour to $16.48. “We are definitely still actively recruiting lifeguards because we definitely want … to be able to open as many pools as we can,” Vargas said. The parks department will begin training new lifeguards Tuesday, but it’s still crunch time for those trying to get more kids interested in the summer job.
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