County program teaches water safety to kindergarteners through school‑day swim lessons
Zero Drownings Miami‑Dade Wins National Honor
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact:
Dave Martin
646-483-5898
dave.goodgovpodcast@gmail.com
Miami, FL — 04/22/2026 — Miami‑Dade County’s “Zero Drownings” initiative, led by Jim O’Connor, chief of the county’s Office of Drowning Prevention, has received national recognition for its effort to stop the leading cause of accidental death for children ages 1–14 in the county: drowning.
Launched formally in August with support from the County, Miami‑Dade County Public Schools and The Children’s Trust, the program brings free, school‑day swim and water‑safety lessons to kindergarten and Head Start students. Using municipal and private pools during daytime hours, students receive two consecutive weeks of 30‑minute lessons focused on water competency — the skills to recover to a place of safety if they fall into water — combined with caregiver education in English, Spanish and Haitian Creole.
“The goal is simple: prevent drownings,” O’Connor said on the Good Government Show. “Drownings are preventable. If a program like this can save one child, it’s a success — but our aim is zero.” The county partners with the American Red Cross for curriculum and testing standards, and uses pre‑ and post‑testing to measure outcomes.
In its pilot year the program reached roughly 2,000 children. With logistics and data‑sharing agreements now in place with schools, municipalities and transportation providers, officials are targeting 10,000 children next year and 20,000 as the program scales. Scholarships cover lessons and transportation for eligible students; initial funding came from The Children’s Trust with additional support from United Way, the Red Cross and private donors. As the program phases in, the county will assume core staff positions to sustain operations.
Local leaders say the approach addresses common barriers — cost, transportation, language and awareness — by bringing lessons to students during the school day and coupling instruction with parent and caregiver outreach. Miami‑Dade’s residential pool density and extensive shoreline make water safety especially urgent: Florida has roughly one residential pool for every 14 people statewide, and many families in South Florida lack formal swim training.
The program is being promoted as a model for other counties. O’Connor said he’s already fielded interest from cities across the country and welcomes others to adopt the approach. “We’d love for them to steal our ideas,” he said.
Pull quotes:
- “Drownings are preventable. If a program like this can save one child, it’s a success — but our aim is zero.” — Jim O’Connor, Chief, Office of Drowning Prevention
- “We teach water competency, not Olympic strokes — the skills to get back to safety if a child falls in.” — Jim O’Connor
- “Bringing lessons during the school day removes barriers like cost, transportation and language.” — David Martin, host, Good Government Show
- “This public‑private partnership is scalable — other counties are already asking how to replicate it.” — Jim O’Connor