Franchising Gives Back Honors Goldfish Swim School with Gold Newcomer Award for Float It Forward Initiative

TROY, MI – Goldfish Swim School Franchising, LLC, the leading premier learn-to-swim franchise concept, was presented with the prestigious Franchising Gives Back Gold Newcomer Award on September 9 in Washington, D.C. for outstanding contributions to the community. The brand was recognized for its highly successful inaugural ‘Float It Forward’ fundraising initiative, which collected $163,773 to benefit the USA Swimming Foundation and its Make a Splash initiative.

Launched by the International Franchise Association (IFA) Educational Foundation, the Franchising Gives Back Awards program has a total of five awards categories and received hundreds of nominations from franchises across the country. Goldfish Swim School was presented the Gold honor in the Newcomer category, which only accepted qualified submissions from franchises that rolled out new charitable or community programs within the last year. The winner was determined by the amount of impact the program had on local communities.

As drowning remains the number one cause of unintentional injury-related death among children ages 1 to 4, taking the lives of three children in the United States every day, Goldfish Swim School is committed to making a positive impact to help lower these staggering statistics. The ‘Float It Forward’ campaign involved the support of the entire franchise network as Goldfish Swim School franchise owners executed several initiatives in their local communities – such as hosting donation-based family swims, raffles, competitions, donation drives and more. USA Swimming Foundation uses every dollar raised to create greater awareness about the importance of learning to swim, helping children build their knowledge, skills, and confidence while having fun and being safer in and around the water.

“We are incredibly humbled and honored to be recognized by the IFA as the Gold Newcomer Award winner of Franchising Gives Back,” said Chris McCuiston, CEO & Co-Founder of Goldfish Swim School. “The USA Swimming Foundation’s mission is parallel to ours, and we are grateful for the opportunity to provide support. We thank our entire franchise network for its commitment to truly making a difference by helping provide children across the country the opportunity to learn to swim. It was amazing to watch communities come together to provide support and bring awareness to this campaign. Float It Forward was just the beginning - we look forward to rolling out new, innovative campaigns for many years to come and continue to make strides toward our goal of raising $1 million for the Foundation by 2024.”

In 2018, Goldfish Swim School shared news of its partnership with the USA Swimming Foundation at its annual franchise convention alongside three-time Olympic gold medalist and world-record holder Ryan Murphy, who recently became an official Goldfish Swim School Brand Ambassador. The company is fully committed to spreading awareness on the importance of water safety with the support of Murphy, the recent launch of Goldfish RX - a program that provides resources to local pediatricians to support the updated American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines on drowning prevention, and providing free W.A.T.E.R Safety presentations to communities nationwide.

Goldfish Swim School provides swim lessons and water safety instruction to infants and children ages four months to 12 years, teaching more than 135,000 children how to be safer in and around the water. Each school offers swim lessons and programs using a proprietary philosophy, The Science of SwimPlay®, to build life skills both in and out of the water using play-based learning in a fun and safe environment. The franchise network spans more than 92 locations across North America, and each school’s number one focus and main priority is always the same – educating children on water safety while teaching them how to swim and respect the water.

About Goldfish Swim School

Founded by husband and wife team Chris and Jenny McCuiston, Goldfish Swim School provides swim lessons and water safety instruction to infants and children ages four months to 12 years. Classes are offered by specially trained instructors in a safe, child-friendly and fun environment using their research-based philosophy called The Science of SwimPlay®. Goldfish currently teaches more than 135,000 students per week to swim and be safer in and around the water. Headquartered in Troy, Michigan, Goldfish Swim School was established in Birmingham, Michigan in 2006, and opened its first franchise location in 2009. Recently, the brand was recognized by Entrepreneur in its 2019 Franchise 500 ranking and Inc. Magazine’s 2019 Top 5000. Goldfish Swim School is currently in the process of expanding franchise opportunities throughout North America, with 92 schools open, and an additional 100+ in development in more than 34 states and Canada.

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