Not every child can become a great swimmer or diver regardless of how deeply motivated he/she may be. However, individuals can gain from their experiences regardless if they win a single event. The process of striving for self-improvement is of primary importance because the results will prove priceless in helping each individual succeed and enjoy different situations later in life.

All students who register for Swimming MUST be able to swim continuously for one length of the pool (25 yards) freestyle and one length of one of the other competitive strokes.

Those wishing to participate in diving must be able to swim one length of the pool freestyle AND perform, with reasonable safety, as determined by the coach, a forward dive, back dive, inward dive, reverse dive, and a twisting dive. These dives must be performed by a set date.

Athletes will recieve grades based on several factors including attendance, participation, performance and class assignments.

1. Students are encouraged to support their teammates at practice as well as in competition. Working together as a unit for the benefit of all individuals and the good of the team is an important part of the program.

2. Students are expected at all times to follow the directions of the coaching staff and at no time will disrespectful attitudes or behaviors be tolerated.

3. Abusive language, fighting, lying, stealing, and/or vandalism are intolerable. These behaviors are directly opposed to the program's objectives and the policy of the school district. Violations will warrant strict disciplinary action by the coach and/or administrative staff. This may include dropping the athlete from the program.

4. Students are expected to stay in the confines of the pool area during designated times. The coach will not be responsible for the safety or welfare of students who "skip" practice, etc. STUDENTS NOT IN THE POOL AREA DURING THEIR ASSIGNED SWIMMING PERIOD WILL BE REPORTED TO THE OFFICE FOR DISCIPLINARY ACTION AND MAY BE DROPPED FROM THE TEAM.

5. Whenever and wherever an Andrews student represents their school, they are required to wear the team uniform. Students should remember that their words and actions leave lasting impressions of the school district, and coaches he/she represents. Polite, courteous manners and appropriate behavior are expected at all times.

6. At meets, respect for officials, meet hosts, and other visiting teams is imperative. All questions concerning results or official decisions should be brought to the coach's attention. The coach shall pursue the matter through proper channels.

7. Joining the Andrews Swimming and Diving team is a commitment to excellence. Being in possession of, or under the influence of alcohol, illegal drugs of any kind is directly against the program's commitment to excellence and warrants dismissal from the program and appropriate action by the administration. Smoking and tobacco use is not recommended by physicians and has been found injurious to health. These behaviors by our athletes are also prohibited.

8. It is the responsibility of each swimmer and parent to be aware of the times of scheduled workouts. Attendance is of the utmost importance. Swimmers and divers are expected to give their best effort at each workout. Please consult the schedule when planning events. Remember the success of the team depends on you.

During the pre-season and main-season, workouts are scheduled both in the morning and after school. The morning session will begin at 6:00am. It is a good idea to be at the pool by 5:45am to begin to prepare for the workout (stretch, get equipment, etc...). This will allow for the workout to be over at 7:00am. giving everyone ample time to get ready for school. In the afternoon workout will last until 5:45pm. (The athletic bus leaves at 6:00pm.) Once workout has begun, the restroom will be used for emergencies only.

A students absence from school and workout is , at times, unavoidable due to illness or family emergencies. However such absences must be excused and documented by the attendance office. If proper documentation is not available then the absence will be unexcused. For competition, if the student-athlete has missed two or more workouts between swim meets, the student will not be allowed to go to the meet unless PRIOR ARRANGEMENTS have been made with the coach. If the absence is unexcused or the student-athlete has "skipped" the workout then that student will not be allowed to go to the meet and must reimburse the school for any entry fees that have been paid.

If a student is ill or can not attend workout then it is the parents responsibility to inform the coach with a phone call prior to the workout. If the student is unable to do a workout because of illness for more than three days, then a note from a doctor is also necessary.

All equipment issued to students is the property of the AISD Athletic Department and MUST BE RETURNED AT THE END OF THE COMPETITIVE SEASON OR WHEN THE STUDENT DROPS THE COURSE. Lost, stolen, or vandalized equipment must be paid for by the student. Failure to do so results in "holding" report cards and/or graduation until the items are paid for.

All swimmers and divers are required to ride the bus to swim meets. This promotes team unity, allows the entire team to arrive on time for a proper warm-up and permits the coach to finalize the meet line-up. After the meet, students are expected to return on the bus provided. If there is a need for the student to travel home with their parent, the parent shall inform the coach before departure for the meet. The student may ride home only with their parent.

Meals will be provided at all out of town swim meets. Lodging will also be provided by the school if the team stays over-night.

Meets are usually timed finals held on Saturdays, however we do go to a few meets in which preliminaries are held on Friday and finals on Saturday (for 2 day meets qualifying times are required). All swimmers will be expected to attend all meets. Because of the cost of entry fees, those swimmers or divers who do not attend a meet that they have been entered in will be required to reimburse the school for the entry fees. Entries are sent in 1 1/2 weeks before the meet. If an athlete knows that he or she will not be attending the meet, it is their responsibility to discuss this with the coach.

Invitational swim meets are day long events. The pools are usually very hot and humid. Seating is often very limited and it is advisable for parents to bring a lawn chair. There are also opportunities for the parents to get involved with the meet. The best seats available are located right behind the starting blocks (timers).

Swimmers will eat after the meet is completed. However they may bring nutritious snacks (ex. fruit, juice, granola bars...).

A swimmer/diver may earn a varsity letter by maintaining all of the following standards:

1. Participating in all required competitions.

2. Meeting all practice attendance requirements.

3. Exhibiting a proper attitude toward the Athletic Program as determined by the coach.

4. scoring 10 or more points for the team during the regular meet schedule.

5. Qualifying for and participating in the Regional meet.

6. Seniors may be awarded a varsity letter for continuous participation.

TIME TRIAL- consists of a time standard test to allow an individual swimmer an opportunity to better his/her time. Times are unofficial for school record purposes but may be used as entry times to qualify for top-rated competition.

DUAL MEET- the primary type of high school competition. The dual meet involves one school competing against another.

DOUBLE DUAL MEET- competition between three teams. Each team keeps separate scores against its opponents. For example, Team A-Vs-Team B, Team B-Vs-Team C, and Team C-Vs-Team A.

RELAY MEET- a meet in which all events contested are relays. This gives the coach a chance to look at individuals strengths and weaknesses.

INVITATIONAL- occurs when a school is invited by the host
team to compete against four or more other schools.

DISTRICT CHAMPIONSHIPS- conducted the end of January and includes high school teams within one school district (Andrews, Big Spring,
Ft. Stockton, Monahans, Pecos, Abilene Wylie). Each team may enter four individuals per event and one relay. Team scores are kept and boys and girls team champions awarded. The first 6 places in each event qualify to advance to the Regional Championships.

REGION CHAMPIONSHIPS- held 2 weeks after the District Championships and includes high school teams from four western districts in Texas. Preliminaries and finals are held to determine the individual champions. First place winners in each event automatically qualify to advance to the State Championships, along with the next eight fastest times from the state’s eight regional championships. Team points are awarded and girls and boys champions are "crowned.

STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS- held 2 weeks after the Region meets at the University of Texas at Austin. Only 16 athletes from across the state compete in each event in preliminaries and the top 12 advance to finals. This determines individual and team state champions.

ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICAN- honor presented by Unites States Swimming to the top 50 in each high school even based on equally "weighted" grades and swimming times.

ALL-AMERICAN- annual honor presented by National Interscholastic Swimming Coaches Association (NISCA) for the top 30 times in each event. The next 15 times are awarded "honorable mention" status.

DECK SEEDDING- a procedure of assigning swimmers to appropriate lanes and heats immediately before each event at the ready bench on the pool deck.

DEGREE OF DIFFICULTY (DD)- value given to each dive available to competitors. The harder the dive, the higher the DD. The DD is multiplied by the sum of the judges scores to determine the diver’s points for a particular dive.

FALSE START- when a swimmer gets an unfair advantage by being in motion before the starting signal is given. If a swimmer commits a false start, they are disqualified from that event.

FINALS- the session during a meet following qualifying rounds conducted previously to determine the finalists (usually six or eight depending upon the number of available lanes). The finalists compete to determine the winner. Some meets will contest a second heat of finals to determine 7th-12th places often referred to the consolation heat.

HEAT SHEET- a listing of all swimmers by event number, heat, and lane assignment in the meet.

LONG COURSE- a type of competition pool course which measures 50 meters in length. The standard size for international meets including the Olympics and all world records is 50 meters.

NCAA- National Collegiate Association of Athletics- the governing body of all four-year collegiate athletic programs.

PRELIMINARIES (PRELIMS)- in certain meets, the qualifying rounds held for each event to determine the finalists.

PROOF OF TIME- a requirement at some meets by officials to make certain that all swimmers have met the qualifying standards for that meet.

PSYCHE SHEET- a ranking by entry or seeded times of all swimmers entered in a particular event of a meet.

REFEREE- the official who has authority over the other meet officials at a meet. He makes all final decisions and sees that the meet is conducted efficiently and fairly.

SEEDING TIMES- the time that a swimmer uses to enter an invitational or championship meet. This time determines the swimmer’s heat and lane for competition.

SHORT COURSE- a type of competitive pool which measures 25 yards or 25 meters. All high school competition is conducted in a short course pool (usually yards).

SPLIT- a per lap time that coaches often record for teaching the concept of pacing.

STARTER- the official at a meet responsible for giving the starting signal to each heat.

STROBE LIGHT- light used to signal the start of a race in conjunction with the horn start. Timers are instructed to start their watches when the light flashes to provide a more accurate time since light travels faster than sound. It is also used as a starting signal for those swimmers who are hearing impaired.

STROKE & TURN JUDGE- the official who determines the legality of swimmer’s strokes and turns. It is their duty to disqualify those who do not conform to the rules.

TEXAS INTERSCHOLASTIC SWIMMING COACHES ASSOCIATION (TISCA)- statewide coaches’ organization that lobbies for rule changes with the UIL and hosts several meets throughout the state.

TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY (TEA)- part of the Texas state government responsible for interpreting state law (i.e. House Bill 72) with regards to athletics.

TOUCH PAD- the part of the electronic timing system that rests in the water at the end of each lane. Swimmers times are electronically recorded to the hundredth of a second when the pad is touched.

UNIVERSITY INTERSCHOLASTIC LEAGUE (UIL)- the governing body for all high school competition in the state of Texas. Based at the University of Texas at Austin, the UIL is responsible for determining eligibility standards and hosting the state championship.

UNITED STATES SWIMMING (USS)- the governing body for amateur swimming in the Unites States. Responsibilities include providing the program to select our U.S. OLYMPIC SWIM TEAM.