BSA Aquatics Supervisor: Basic Paddlecraft Safety
Float trips are popular Boy Scout, Venturing, and Sea Scout activities. Safety Afloat awareness training provides guidelines for safe float trips and is required of unit leaders but does not provide the skill training mandated by those guidelines. BSA Paddle Craft Safety expands Safety Afloat training to include the skills, as well as the knowledge, needed for a unit leader to confidently supervise canoeing or kayaking excursions.
Participants completing the training should be better prepared to supervise paddle craft activities.
This training is open to any registered adult leader, Scout, Venturer, Sea Scout, or Explorer who is age 15 or older. Prior to the course, participants must complete Safety Afloat training online. Participants should have prior experience in both canoes and kayaks, as this is not an introductory course. Participants must be able to pass the BSA Swimmers Test.
Participants will arrive at Camp Wakpominee on Friday night after 7:00 PM for check-in. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner on Saturday, as well as breakfast on Sunday, will be provided. The program will end by 12:00 PM Sunday.
BSA Aquatics Supervisor: Swimming & Water Rescue
Training for BSA Swimming & Water Rescue provides leaders with information and skills to prevent, recognize, and respond to swimming emergencies during unit swimming activities. It expands the awareness instruction provided by Safe Swim Defense training. Persons completing the training should be better able to assess their preparation to supervise unit swimming events.
The BSA recommends that at least one person with this training is present to assist with supervision whenever a unit swims at a location that does not provide lifeguards.
This training is open to any registered adult leader, Scout, Venturer, or Explorer who is age 15 or older. Prior to the course, participants must complete Safe Swim Defense training online. Participants must be able to pass the BSA Swimmers Test and be able to complete a 25-yard swim, 10-lb object retrieval from the bottom (8 ft deep).
Participants will arrive at Camp Wakpominee on Friday night after 6:45 PM for check-in. Breakfast and lunch on Saturday will be provided. The program will end by 5:00 PM Saturday.
BSA Lifeguard Certification Course
The BSA Lifeguard course provides training for professional lifeguards, with a specific focus on the skills needed for BSA council and unit aquatic events. In this course, adult and youth participants (15 years of age or older) will learn the necessary skills to set up safe swim areas, provide supervision and surveillance, safely perform rescues on land and in water, and understand when it is best to utilize reaching and throwing assists, boat rescues, and “go” rescues in the water. The course will be an intense, fun, and rewarding experience over the course of two weekends.
BSA Lifeguard is a professional level certification, equivalent to Red Cross Lifeguarding with waterfront specialty, and is recognized by many organizations including the NY Department of Health. You can not only use this certification for your units and at Scouts BSA summer camps, but also for a great summer or after-school job!
This course will also include First Aid and Basic Life Support (CPR/AED for the Professional Rescuer) training. These courses are typically certifications that are offered separately from lifeguard courses for an additional fee.
Participants must have strong swimming abilities. Course pre-requisites are tested before any additional requirements may be completed. These are: (1) a 550-yard swim using front crawl and/or breaststroke (goggles allowed), followed 2 minutes treading water without using your arms, and (2) a separate timed event (goggles not allowed) consisting of a 25-yard swim, 10-lb object retrieval from the bottom (8 ft deep), and return in 1 min 40 sec or less.
Participants will arrive at Camp Wakpominee on Friday night at 7:00 PM of each weekend for check-in. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner on Saturday, as well as breakfast and lunch on Sunday, will be provided both weekends. Participants will be dismissed by 5:00 PM each Sunday. Participants MUST be able to fully participate in both weekends for completion, without exception.