Community swimming program for Black youth boosts skills, sense of belonging, study finds
Peer-Reviewed Publication
Updates every hour. Last Updated: 15-Dec-2025 20:11 ET (16-Dec-2025 01:11 GMT/UTC)
Black youth in the United States disproportionately experience fatal drowning at rates up to five times higher than their White peers. These statistics relate to historical and structural barriers Black youth face in learning to swim. In efforts to overcome these inequities, an innovative summer swimming program in Evanston, IL, was offered to Black kids entering third through fifth grades. After the three-week program, participants demonstrated significant improvement in objective and parental-reported swim skills, according to an evaluation study published in the International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education.
A team of international researchers and educators created an educational framework called “River Literacy” to help communities better understand and protect their rivers. Inspired by the well-established framework of “Ocean Literacy,” this new approach highlights the vital roles rivers play in our daily lives, cultures, and ecosystems. Their study on this topic has just been published in the scientific journal Earth.
A three-year project, led by the University of Plymouth and funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), is exploring why some international medical graduates see their careers blossom once they start working in the NHS while others do not. The ‘SUP IMG’ project started this summer, building on research carried out for the General Medical Council which found that less than 5% of graduates who complete their training overseas join specialist or GP registers on arrival, and few – 11.6% within five years and 27.2% within 10 years – go on to become consultants or GPs. By contrast, around 75% of UK graduates become consultants or GPs over the same timeframe.
A new study published in Chinese Neurosurgical Journal by researchers in Nepal and Turkey reveals how social media has become a powerful force reshaping neurosurgical practice worldwide. Platforms like Neurosurgery Cocktail now facilitate real-time case consultation, global mentorship, academic collaboration, and rapid knowledge exchange. The findings highlight both the transformative potential and the challenges of digital engagement in modern neurosurgery.