ST. LOUIS — A staggering statistic from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveals that Black children ages 10 to 14 drown nearly eight times more often than their white peers in swimming pools. Now, Confluence Academies and the O’Fallon Park YMCA are partnering to change that.
This summer, dozens of students — primarily Black and children of color— are learning to swim, stay safe in the water and even perform life-saving skills.
“We’re working on saving people from drowning,” Dillon Smith, a student at Confluence Academies, told 5 On Your Side…