Recommendations

With respect to our findings, the following are potential solutions we recommend the city of Hartford implement:

To create and improve recruitment pipelines we recommend:

• Re-invest in school and recreation swim teams, focusing on after-school program partnerships (e.g. Boys and Girls Club)
• Work to bring back the popularity of swimming in Hartford such as swim teams, water sports, and swimming as a PE requirement to expand and refurbish old pipelines
• New pipelines utilizing after-school programs (Boys and Girls Club) and other non-profits (Our Piece of the Pie)
• Bring back summer camps to the pools, youth swimming lessons, and rec leagues
• Significantly more advertising for pool staffing/training and hours of operation – news stations and media
•  Invest in a marketing campaign to inform Hartford population about a potential job opportunity, promote training covered by the city, new benefits, etc
• Recruit retirees and visit high schools, not limit the potential pipelines to colleges and high schools, since adults and retired people might also be interested

To keep and retain lifeguards we recommend:

• Higher hourly rates, and/or bonuses for working full seasons and/or returning for the upcoming season, benefits
• Compensation for certification. Currently, the city can cover lifeguard training for Hartford residents, which can be extended to non-residents as long as they intend to lifeguard in Hartford since it will still benefit the city.
• Pay for recertification
• Consistent higher pay 
• Retention bonuses

Better pool management:

• Better management and support from the city who are familiar with aquatics to increase pool support. 
• Incorporating interns/community service students to help with pool management
• Mitigate issues at pools by focusing on better management and more on-site support, e.g. security guards, since lifeguards tend to have more responsibilities than just guarding the pools (e.g. stopping fights, cleaning trash)

To make the lifeguard position more enticing we recommend lightening job responsibilities:

• Consistent support at pools – bathrooms, crowd control/security, check-in
• Consistent hours
• Benefits/advancement opportunities

Additional recommendations:

• Partner with Larger Organizations: e.g. DEEP, American Lifeguard Association, Red Cross, and YMCA – public/private partnerships
• Community involvement and having them influence programming
• Collaborate with local schools and colleges to establish wellness or physical education credit for lifeguard certification at the high school and college level
• Form a task force to focus on the issue in Hartford, consisting of stakeholders in Hartford Public Schools, Boys and Girls Club, PRAC, City (Families, Children, Youth and Rec Department), area colleges/universities
• Collaborate with surrounding towns to share recruiting costs and ideas, develop lists of candidates, advocate for policy change, and provide ongoing support and year-round job opportunities for lifeguards in central CT