For some Ohio State students learning how to swim is a priority, even if it means taking another class.
For others, it is not that simple - to them learning is not worth the risk of drowning.
Renae Cameron, a sophomore in social work, was determined to learn to swim even after many previous bad-water experiences.
"I almost drowned several times," she said. "Most of my friends know how to swim, so it's better than staying in the shallow end while the rest of them are in the deep end."
Cameron, raised in Cleveland's inner-city, had access to a pool growing up. However, safety was her mother's greatest concern.
"My mom tried to teach me but she didn't want me to go to the deep end," Cameron said. "I just didn't put effort into it."
Now Cameron is ready to put forth some effort and is enrolled in OSU's beginner swimming classes.
"I can swim, but I can't swim well enough to go all the way across the water because I'm not in shape," Cameron said. "My biggest problem is not knowing how to breathe properly."
She said she never learned how to swim because she preferred to play in the water and have fun.
"Swimming is more like exercising - your arms, your legs, your abs - just depending on what stroke you're doing," Cameron said.
Another student taking the class is John McCray, a junior in sports and leisure studies.
"I thought it would be interesting to learn how to swim; it's something I needed to know," McCray said.
He admits to being afraid at first, but then started relaxing.
"It's very hard to swim, it's very hard to float - well for me it is," McCray said. Although he is 6-foot-3, he almost drowned when his class was learning to tread water.
"I couldn't do it in the 4-foot water because I was too tall, so I went over to the 9-foot water and couldn't do it over there," McCray said.
Even though he can not float, McCray has learned basic swimming techniques such as the freestyle, breaststroke and backstroke.
"I know what they are, I know how to do them, it's just actually doing them," McCray said.
Many people who take this class have taught themselves how to swim and are comfortable in the water, said Marty Bailey, a scuba and swimming instructor. However, problems arise when many self-taught swimmers enroll in the class while only one or two non-swimmers enroll.
"If you're not afraid of the water you're light years ahead of someone who is afraid of the water," Bailey said.
Mike Norris, swimming instructor at OSU, said he thinks the university should offer a swimming class specifically for those who are afraid to swim for the fear of drowning.
"An 'I'm afraid to swim' swimming class," Norris said.
Natalie Flores has never taken a swimming class at OSU and does not plan to.
"I don't really want to learn how to swim," said Flores, a sophomore in sociology and criminology. "I'm just scared to even try - I'm scared of drowning."
At the age of 8, Flores almost drowned in a friend's pool and has since been afraid.
"I think it's dangerous that I don't know how to swim," Flores said.
She said she would probably panic if put into a situation where she might have to save herself or someone else.
"It's a huge fear - it'd take a lot to get me in some water," Flores said.
Shallow pools and lifeguards are offered for those who are afraid of water. Other swimming classes are offered by REC sports, a facility inside the Recreational Physical Activity Center.
These classes are open to anyone with a membership to the RPAC.
D'Andrea Kinley can be reached at kinley.8@osu.edu.
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