Montana Swimming Reach Out Grant Program
Educate. Initiate. Celebrate!
Big Sky. Big Dreams. Big Success!
2024 Fall Reach Out Grant Application Form: Word PDF
Reach Out Grant Application Deadline: October 9, 2024.
2025 Spring Reach Out Grant Application Form: Word PDF
Reach Out Grant Application Deadline: March 26, 2025.
Grant Reports:
Fall 2022 and Spring 2023 Grant Programming Report: PDF
2021-2022 BMA Final Grant Programming Report: PDF
2020-2021 BMA Final Grant Programming Report: PDF
2020 BOZ Spring Grant Programming Report: PDF
2023 Fall and 2024 Spring Reach Out Grant Award Recipients:
The Hardin Otters were awarded $1050 for the fal 2023 grant period. The funds were used to purchase new swm caps for the team and team t-shirts for their Otter Pups beginner swimmers. The remaining funds were designated for the 2024 WZ DEI camp and summit in Indianapolis, IN.
The Hardin Otters were awarded $1000 for the spring 2024 grant period. The funds will be used for advanced training in coaching stroke technique to improve the quality of swimming instruction in their program. The remaining funds were designated for the 2024 WZ DEI camp and summit in Indianapolis, IN.
2022 Fall and 2023 Spring Reach Out Grant Award Recipients:
The Montana Swimming Board of Directors voted to use the funds for the 2022 fall and 2023 spring Reach Out grant to purchase external strobes for member Montana Swimming teams. The strobes are used when starting hearing impaired athletes at swim meets.
Montana Swimming purchased external strobes from Colorado Time Systems at a cost of $325 each for the following teams: HOT, MAC, BAC, BOZ, MYST, GAC/KATS along with a starting cable only for BYSC. Montana Swimming purchased an external strobe from Omega/Swiss Timing at a cost of $458.80 for BAC. Montana Swimming also purchased an external strobe from Daktronics and a starting cable for $1112.07 for HLST. The total cost of the strobes and cables was $3570.87
In addition, Montana Swimming voted to award Sy Pizzolato, BAC, $1000 to fund his expenses as a member of Team USA to attend the 6th Annual World Deaf Swimming Championships in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in August 2023.
The total funds spent were $4570.87.
Spring 2022 Reach Out Grant Recipient:
Montana Swimming is pleased to announce that the LAKE Monsters Swim Team in Polson has been awarded the $2500 Spring Reach Out grant.
LAKE intends to offer learn to swim lessons to area youth in the Mission Valley as well as scholarships and help offset meet fees for low-income athletes over the summer. Lake County has a 21.5% poverty rate according to the US Department of Health and Human Services and over 6,100 children are designated as living in poverty in the county. It these children LAKE would like to be able to offer swimming to. Flathead Lake is filled with children in the summer, but most of those children do not know how to safely swim. The few that do aren't able to continue swimming once fall hits because they cannot afford to. LAKE hopes to fill the need for affordable, proper and safe swim lessons and provide opportunities for affordable competitive swimming.
The LAKE Monsters target is to help 15-20 children with little to no swimming experience between the ages of 5-15 each lesson season. They also would like to be able to offer reduced fees and offset meet entry costs to 90% their of underrepresented children currently wanting to be on swimming team or ones that are on swim team.
Fall 2021 Reach Out Grant Recipient:
The Montana Swimming Reach Out grant committee is pleased to announce BMA Bozeman Brookies has been awarded the amount of $2500 during the fall 2021 grant period. The committee was impressed with your continued success in reaching out to low income minority youth in the Bozeman area. We are excited to see your team use the grant to offer full and partial scholarships to minority and underfunded athletes as well as teach minority non-swimmers technique and water safety skills. We appreciate your desire to assist families affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.
Spring 2021 Reach Out Grant Recipient:
The BMA Bozeman Brookies were awarded $2500 through the Montana Swimming spring Reach Out grant program. The Brookies will use the funds to provide partial scholarships to minority and low-income youth to participate in swimming. The scholarships may be used to offset a portion of swimmer registration fees, monthly dues, and meet entry fees. The club will also host a diversity learn to swim splash camp to teach non-swimmer minority youth swim technique and water safety.
Fall 2020 Reach Out Grant Recipients:
Bozeman Barracudas: awarded $250 for coach training and assistance for disability athletes.
Hardin Otters: awarded $750 for a swim camp and to offset meet expenses for outreach and minority athletes.
Bozeman Brookies: awarded $1500 to provide full and partial scholarships and meet fee assistance for low income and minority athletes.
Spring 2020 Reach Out Grant Recipients:
Bozeman Barracudas: The Bozeman Barracudas were awarded $1000 during the spring 2020 reach out grant period. BOZ plans to use the funding for further training for their coaching staff in how to coach and develop disability swimmers and provide on deck assistants to help with disability swimmers.
Bozeman Brookies: The BMA Brookies were awarded $1500 to provide full and partial scholarships to minority and underfunded athletes especially during the COVID-19 outbreak. The team also plans to hold a learn to swim splash camp for non-swimmer youth to teach technique and water safety skills.
Fall 2019 Reach Out Grant Recipient: Bozeman Brookies:
Montana Swimming is pleased to announce the Bozeman Brookies (BMA) Swim Team has been awarded $2500 through the fall 2019 Reach Out grant program. The team plans to use the funding to reach out to low income, minority, and disabled youths in the community by offering partial scholarships, assist with meet fee expenses, provide training equipment such as caps and goggles, and offer a diversify learn to swim clinic in the LatinX and Native American communities.
The Bozeman Brookies have a proven track record of providing opportunities to low income, minority, and disabled swimmers in the Bozeman area. The team's commitment to offering quality learn to swim lessons to low income and minority youth as a clear benefit by preventing drowning and making youth safer around pools, rivers, and lakes in Montana.
What is the Reach Out Grant Program?
The Reach Out Grant program is a grant program funded by Montana Swimming beginning in October 2017. The purpose of the Montana Swimming Reach Out Grant Program is to increase multicultural, socioeconomic, and ethnic diversity as well as encourage those who are disabled to participate in all levels of the sport of competitive swimming. Montana Swimming wants to encourage swimmers to achieve excellence in and out of the pool through this innovative grant program.
It is intended that this grant will be used to reach out to underrepresented groups - including ethnic minorities, low-income (outreach) persons, LGBTQ, and disabled persons - in the overall community.
Disability is defined by USA Swimming rules as a permanent physical or cognitive disability that substantially limits one or more major life activities. Application for disability grants should conform to disabilities as recognized under the USA Swimming rules article 105. Disabilities include legally blind or visually impaired (not simply needing glasses to see); deaf or hearing impaired; physical disabilities (such as dwarfism, cerebral palsy, spinal injuries, limb deficiencies, wheelchair bound with high functioning upper body, non-ambulatory (wheelchair bound), and limited use of extremities); and intellectual/ cognitive disabilities (such as severe learning disorders, Downs Syndrome, and autism spectrum disorder).
Grant program funding: $5000 per year -- awarded in two grant periods one in the fall and one in the spring, $2500 per period. The grant periods will be announced on the Montana Swimming website.
Overseen by: Montana Swimming Diversity, Disability, Equity, and Inclusion Chair (DDEI) who heads a committee who receives, reviews, and awards all grants. Committee membership includes the LSC Diversity, Disability, Equity, and Inclusion Chair, MT Swimming Finance Vice Chair, and one of the elected Montana Swimming Athlete Representatives.
Applications must be submitted by MT Swimming member clubs.
Grant program final reports and any photos submitted will be posted on the website.
Possible grant ideas could include learn to swim programs for low income or ethnic minorities or disabled children; meet fee assistance for low-income athletes; scholarships for outreach members; purchase training equipment for eligible athletes; provide team shirts, caps, goggles, and parkas for scholarship swimmers; low-cost swim lessons; low-cost team memberships; water safety programs, Make a Splash programs, and recruit and retain swimmers from minority groups in your area.
Clubs and organizations requesting support from Montana Swimming must submit a written program plan which includes a purpose, plan description, budget, schedule, funding requested from Montana Swimming, other sources of funding, and manpower expectations. The committee then evacuates the requests based on the following criteria:
- Fulfillment of the USA Swimming outreach program mission, which is to provide opportunities in swimming to the underrepresented and economically disadvantaged youth in the United States
- Fulfillment of the Montana Swimming mission, which is united in service, achieving excellence in and out of the pool.
- Benefit to the athletes and their families
- Innovation
- Likelihood of success including past successes
- Groups the grant will benefit
- Benefit to your team
- Benefit to your community
- Benefit to Montana Swimming
- Other sources of funding
- Other criteria as determined by the committee
Offering an LSC grant program to our member clubs is a great way to encourage clubs to think outside the box of ways to attract and retain swimmers on their clubs. Plus, it gives clubs some funding to reach out and try new ideas and make something happen in their community. If we believe in big dreams and excellence and we want our teams to grow, then we need to find ways to reach into the community and make a difference. The USA Swimming Foundation reaches out to ethnic minorities and low-income families teaching children how to swim to prevent drowning deaths. This program will encourage similar things in Montana Swimming. Big Sky! Big Dreams! Big Success!
2018 Spring Grant Check presentation to the Hardin Otters Swim Team
2018 BMA Splash Camp Swimmers
2018 BMA Reach Out - Learn to Swim Camp
