Two weeks before the water polo season ended, the  school pool’s water heater broke. Leaving the water polo team pooless and having to practice in wetsuits. The school had people check the pool, to confirm that our pool was broken. This led to the finding of multiple problems to add onto that. So we wanted to do some research, and decided to interview our principal.  And looking up public pool requirements we found more things that are pool isn't up to code on.

One requirement is that our pool needs to be at a temperature of 75࿁ F, or higher. Our pool does not reach this requirement, due to our pool’s water heater being broken. It has been having problems for a while, but now it is severe. This means that none of the athletes in our swim or water polo program will be able to practice on campus. They have to take a bus to either Paso Robles Kennedy Fitness Club, or Atascadero Kennedy Fitness during study hall or late into the night. Having to travel to different places and be a big inconvenience for the athletes. There are many students who did not join the swim team this year because they don't want to have to go somewhere else to practice. This means that many students and athletes are missing out on amazing opportunities because they don’t have the resources they need to work to the best of their ability.

Another problem that are pool isn't up to code on is the pool’s coating and finish. When asking water polo players, they explained that the bottom of the pool is cracking and chipping off. This is a health hazard, caused by the pool being coated in fiberglass.   They also said that when they leaned against the sides of the pool, it caused their backs to itch, due to the fiberglass chipping off. This is unhealthy and not good for the aquatic sports teams. Fiberglass is terribly dangerous, but it does have some health hazards. Rashes, Eye irritation, soreness of nose and throat, and temporary stomach irritation if inhaled. This problem has been here for longer than just this year. And it effects are athletes, and their health. But their are other problems with our poll that we will not go  into in this presentation.

We have talked about the problems with our pool, and now we will talk about the fixes. When talking to our Principal, he stated, “Our short term goal: fix the pool. Our long term goal is to get a new aquatics center.” The short term was promised to us, by Mr. Neely, before the next water polo season. And the long term goal was promised to us by our senior year. He didn't say it would be done, but that it would be starting to be built. Another thing about the fixing of the pool, is the bidding. The board of our school said that they are going to start this process. When asking Mr. Neely he explained it as we put out a request for someone's services. They give us a price, say one hundred dollars. But then another company comes in and says they can fix it for fifty dollars, the school board will go with the cheapest cost. And the board JUST said this could happen, even though the pool has been broken for months! And who knows how long bidding will take. So when we do get the pool fixed, it will be with the cheapest company available, and it will take a while. Then when that company fixes the pool, it might be more prone to break.

This problem isn't as big as global warming or world hunger, but it is big for our school. We shouldn't have to wait months for the board to just approve that bidding can happen. We should have started fixing the pool in the winter season, when there was nobody swimming in it. We think it is unfair that this process is taking so long, so that our pool can have a temporary, minimal fix. We believe that our school should get a new pool sooner than 2022. We believe the board should not be the only ones to decide what is done, but the coaches and students as well. Thank you.