Loggerhead Aquatics - est.
2008
Vision Statement
Loggerhead
Aquatics is committed to excellence and dedicated to developing
world class citizens and world class athletes.
Mission Statement
The
Loggerhead Aquatics Swim Team is a competitive program with the
purpose and commitment to:
Advance the sport of swimming.
Recruit individuals who share our vision.
Provide swimmers with the highest quality coaching.
Create and maintain an enjoyable and productive swimming
environment.
Recognize each individual and value his or her role in the success
of our organization.
Encourage positive mental attitudes and mutual respect.
Teach and develop life skills through our swimming program.
Provide swimmers the opportunities to grow and succeed to their
highest level, including the Olympic Dream.
To preserve the quality of the Loggerhead experience through
appropriate growth and development.
Values
Excellence – reach maximum potential as
athletes and coaches.
Develop strong work/goal relationships…balanced and
realistic.
Develop an educationally sound and ethical program.
The Loggerhead program strives to instill in young swimmers an
understanding of and appreciation for such concepts as high
self-esteem, personal accountability, self-discipline, goal
setting, and goal achievement as these ideas relate to their
success in training and in competition. It is our belief that
the process of achieving is as significant as realizing the
achievement itself.
The Loggerhead coaching staff shall endeavor to teach, train, and
motivate young people to achieve their ultimate potential in
swimming in the belief that this experience will prove valuable to
them as they grow and develop.
At each level of the Loggerhead program, swimmers are instructed to
strive for excellence. Excellence represents achievements at
which you know that you have done our utmost to become the best you
are capable of becoming. This philosophy is consistent
throughout the program, and every Loggerhead, novice to Olympian,
is encouraged to “Be the Best You Can
Be”.
Team Philosophy is encompassed in the words COURAGE and
PERSEVERANCE
COURAGE is the willingness to accept risk(s) and endure failings.
Courage does not exist unless there is a situation that presents
the opportunity for success. We encourage our athletes to embrace
these opportunities and not fear the outcome.
PERSEVERANCE is the backbone of success in any endeavor in
life. One cannot succeed at the highest levels without enduring
some set-backs. These difficult times can create a lack of faith,
low self-esteem, and an obvious drop in enthusiasm. Perseverance is
the quality that transcends these difficult times. It allows
the individual to find the true strength of
character.
Loggerhead Aquatics believes that COURAGE and PERSEVERANCE
developed by swimming will prepare the individual for the
challenges they will face in life.
When a young person becomes a member of Loggerhead Aquatics he/she
learns the values of sportsmanship and team work. Swimming, through
LA, provides physical, emotional and intellectual skills that will
last a lifetime.
Loggerhead Aquatics is competitive program with the purpose and
commitment to: advance the sport of swimming, recruit individuals
who share our vision, provide swimmers with high quality coaching.
Convenience: The convenience of our whole facility
package, when matched with our club team. The team will be able to
use the main building for team meetings, stroke video viewing,
etc.
Coaching: Nothing has a greater influence on the quality
of children's sports than the excellence of the coach. The LA
coaching staff consists of professionally trained coaches. They, as
member coaches in the American Swimming Coaches Association, have
access to the most comprehensive training and certification program
for youth coaches of any sport in the United States. Certified
coaches in USA Swimming programs possess training and experience in
the physiology and psychology of adolescent development. Our
coaching staff provides the assurances that the time your children
spend in swimming will be quality time.
Electronic Communication
Policy of the Loggerhead Aquatics
PURPOSE
Loggerhead Aquatics (the
“Club”) recognizes the prevalence of electronic
communication and social media in today’s world. Many of our
swimmers use these means as their primary method of communication.
While the Club acknowledges the value of these methods of
communication, the Club also realizes that there are associated
risks that must be considered when adults use these methods to
communicate with minors.
GENERAL
CONTENT
All communications between a coach or
other adult and an athlete must be professional in nature and for
the purpose of communicating information about team activities. The
content and intent of all electronic communications must adhere to
the USA Swimming Code of Conduct regarding Athlete
Protection.
For example, as with any
communication with an athlete, electronic communication should not
contain or relate to any of the following:
- drugs or alcohol use;
- sexually oriented conversation;
sexually explicit language; sexual activity
- the adult’s personal life ,
social activities, relationship or family issues, or personal
problems; and
- inappropriate or sexually explicit
pictures
- Note: Any communication
concerning an athlete's personal life, social activities,
relationship or family issues or personal problems must be
transparent, accessible and professional.
Whether one is an athlete, coach, or
parent, the guiding principle to always use in communication is to
ask: “Is this communication something that someone else would
find appropriate or acceptable in a face-to-face meeting?” or
“Is this something you would becomfortable saying out loud to
the intended recipient of your communication in front of the
intended recipient’s parents, the coaching staff, the board,
or other athletes?”
With respect to electronic
communications, a simple test that can be used in most cases is
whether the electronic communication with swimmers is
Transparent, Accessible and
Professional.
Transparent:
All electronic communication between coaches and athletes should be
transparent. Your communication should not only be clear and
direct, but also free of hidden meanings, innuendo and
expectations.
Accessible: All
electronic communication between coaches and athletes should be
considered a matter of record and part of the Club’s
records. Whenever possible, include another coach or parent
in the communication so that there is no question regarding
accessibility.
Professional:
All electronic communication between a coach and an athlete should
be conducted professionally as a representative of the Club.
This includes word choices, tone, grammar, and subject matter that
model the standards and integrity of a staff
member.
If your communication meets all three
of the T.A.P. criteria, then it is likely your
method of communication with athletes will be
appropriate.
FACEBOOK, MYSPACE, BLOGS,
TWITTER, AND SIMILAR SITES
Communication between coaches and
athletes should adhere to the above T.A.P. criteria. Coaches
and athletes are not permitted to “private message”
each other through Facebook. Coaches and athletes are not
permitted to “instant message” each other through
Facebook chat or other IM method. Coaches and athletes are
not permitted to “direct message” each other through
Twitter.
The Club has an official Facebook
page and Twitter account that athletes and their parents can
“friend” for information and updates on team-related
matters.
TEXTING
Subject to the general guidelines
mentioned above, texting is allowed between coaches and athletes
during the hours from 7am until 9pm (on rare cases such as meets
and travel trips this may vary). Texting only shall be used
for the purpose of communicating information directly related to
team activities.
EMAIL
Email communication between coaches
and athletes should adhere to the above T.A.P.
guidelines.
REQUEST TO DISCONTINUE ALL
ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS
The parents or guardians of an
athlete may request in writing that their child not be contacted by
coaches through any form of electronic communication.
Action Plan of
Loggerhead Aquatics to Address
Bullying
PURPOSE
Bullying of any kind is unacceptable
at Loggerhead Aquatics (the “Club”) and will not
be tolerated. Bullying is counterproductive to team spirit and can
be devastating to a victim. The Club is committed to
providing a safe, caring and friendly environment for all of our
members. If bullying does occur, all athletes and parents
should know that incidents will be dealt with promptly and
effectively. Anyone who knows that bullying is happening is
expected to tell a coach, board member or
athlete/mentor.
Objectives of the Club’s
Bullying Policy and Action Plan:
- To make it clear that the Club will
not tolerate bullying in any form.
- To define bullying and give all
coaches, parents and swimmers a good understanding of what bullying
is.
- To make it known to all parents,
swimmers and coaching staff that there is a policy and protocol
should any bullying issues arise.
- To make how to report bullying clear
and understandable.
- To spread the word that Loggerhead
Aquaticstakes bullying seriously and that all swimmers and parents
can be assured that they will be supported when bullying is
reported.
WHAT IS
BULLYING?
The USA Swimming Code of Conduct
prohibits bullying. Generally, bullying is the use of aggression,
whether intentional or not, which hurts another person.
Bullying results in pain and distress.
The USA Swimming Code of Conduct
defines bullying in 304.3.7. Bullying is the severe or
repeated use by one or more USA Swimming members of oral, written,
electronic or other technological expression, image, sound, data or
intelligence of any nature (regardless of the method of
transmission), or a physical act or gesture, or any combination
thereof, directed at any other member that to a reasonably
objective person has the effect of:
- causing physical or emotional harm to
the other member or damage to the other member’s
property;
- placing the other member in
reasonable fear of harm to himself/herself or of damage to his/her
property;
- creating a hostile environment for
the other member at any USA Swimming activity;
- infringing on the rights of the other
member at any USA Swimming activity; or
- materially and substantially
disrupting the training process or the orderly operation of any USA
Swimming activity (which for the purposes of this section shall
include, without limitation, practices, workouts and other events
of a member club or LSC).
REPORTING
PROCEDURE
An athlete who feels that he or she
has been bullied is asked to do one or more of the following
things:
- Talk to your parents;
- Talk to a Club Coach;
- Write a letter or email to the Club
Coach;
- Make a report to the USA Swimming
Safe Sport staff.
There is no express time limit for
initiating a complaint under this procedure, but every effort
should be made to bring the complaint to the attention of the
appropriate club leadership as soon as possible to make sure that
memories are fresh and behavior can be accurately recalled and the
bullying behavior can be stopped as soon as
possible.
HOW WE HANDLE
BULLYING
If bullying is occurring during
team-related activities, we STOP BULLYING ON THE
SPOT using the following steps:
- Intervene immediately. It is ok to
get another adult to help.
- Separate the kids
involved.
- Make sure everyone is
safe.
- Meet any immediate medical or mental
health needs.
- Stay calm. Reassure the kids
involved, including bystanders.
- Model respectful behavior when you
intervene.
If bullying is occurring at our club
or it is reported to be occurring at our club, we address the
bullying by FINDING OUT WHAT HAPPENED and
SUPPORTING THE KIDS INVOLVED using the following
approach:
FINDING OUT WHAT
HAPPENED
- First, we get the
facts.
- Keep all the involved children
separate.
- Get the story from several sources,
both adults and kids.
- Listen without blaming.
- Don’t call the act
“bullying” while you are trying to understand what
happened.
- It may be difficult to get the whole
story, especially if multiple athletes are involved or the bullying
involves
social bullyingor cyber
bullying. Collect all available information.
- Then, we determine if it's
bullying.There are
many behaviors that look like bullyingbut require different
approaches. It is important to determine whether the situation is
bullying or something else.
- Review the USA Swimming definition of
bullying;
- To determine if the behavior is
bullying or something else, consider the following
questions:
- What is the history between the kids
involved?
- Have there been past
conflicts?
- Is there a power imbalance? Remember
that a power imbalance is not limited to physical strength. It is
sometimes not easily recognized. If the targeted child feels like
there is a power imbalance, there probably is.
- Has this happened before? Is the
child worried it will happen again?
- Remember that it may not matter
“who started it.” Some kids who are bullied may be seen
as annoying or provoking, but this does not excuse the bullying
behavior.
- Once you have determined if the
situation is bullying, support all of the kids
involved.
SUPPORTING THE KIDS
INVOLVED
- Support the kids who are
being bullied
- Listen and focus on the child. Learn
what’s been going on and show you want to help. Assure the
child that bullying is not their fault.
- Work together to resolve the
situation and protect the bullied child. The child, parents, and
fellow team members and coaches may all have valuable input. It may
help to:
- Ask the child being bullied what can
be done to make him or her feel safe. Remember that changes to
routine should be minimized. He or she is not at fault and should
not be singled out. For example, consider rearranging lane
assignments for everyone. If bigger moves are necessary, such as
switching practice groups, the child who is bullied should not be
forced to change.
- Develop a game plan. Maintain open
communication between the Club and parents. Discuss the steps that
will be taken and how bullying will be addressed going
forward.
- Be persistent.Bullying may not end
overnight. Commit to making it stop and consistently support the
bullied child.
- Address bullying
behavior
- Make sure the child knows what the
problem behavior is.Young people who bully must learn their
behavior is wrong and harms others.
- Show kids that bullying is taken
seriously.Calmly tell the child that bullying will not be
tolerated. Model respectful behavior when addressing the
problem.
- Work with the child to understand
some of the reasons he or she bullied.For example:
- Sometimes children bully to fit in or
just to make fun of someone is a little different from them.
In other words, there may be some insecurity
involved.
- Other times kids act out because
something else—issues at home, abuse, stress—is going
on in their lives. They also may have been bullied. These kids may
be in need of additional support.
- Involve the kid who bullied in making
amends or repairing the situation.The goal is to help them see how
their actions affect others. For example, the child
can:
- Write a letter apologizing to the
athlete who was bullied.
- Do a good deed for the person who was
bullied, for the Club, or for others in your
community.
- Clean up, repair, or pay for any
property they damaged.
- Avoid strategies that don’t
work or have negative consequences:
- Zero tolerance or “three
strikes, you’re out” strategies don’t work.
Suspending or removing from the team swimmers who bully does not
reduce bullying behavior. Swimmers may be less likely to report and
address bullying if suspension or getting kicked off the team is
the consequence.
- Conflict resolution and peer
mediation don’t work for bullying. Bullying is not a conflict
between people of equal power who share equal blame. Facing those
who have bullied may further upset kids who have been
bullied.
- Follow-up.After the bullying issue is
resolved, continue finding ways to help the child who bullied to
understand how what they do affects other people. For example,
praise acts of kindness or talk about what it means to be a good
teammate.
- Support bystanders who
witness bullying. Every day, kids witness bullying.
They want to help, but don’t know how. Fortunately, there are
a few simple, safe ways that athletes can help stop bullying when
they see it happening.
- Be a friend to the person being
bullied;
- Tell a trusted adult – your
parent, coach, or club board member;
- Help the kid being bullied get away
from the situation. Create a distraction, focus the attention
on something else, or offer a way for the target to get out of the
situation. “Let’s go, practice is about to
start.”
- Set a good example by not bullying
others.
- Don’t give the bully an
audience. Bullies are encouraged by the attention they get
from bystanders. If you do nothing else, just walk away.
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