When the Canadian YMCA aquatics programs decided to restructure in 2005, they were already effectively building the Developmental Assets. They were doing things like encouraging leadership development in youth and giving positive reinforcement for good things done in the pool. But in 2005, their goals became explicit–the language, the actions, and the intentions behind the swim programs let parents, students and staff know that the YMCA was an organization that builds assets in the community.
Perhaps most importantly, the asset language is now embedded in the swim instructor trainings and job descriptions. When the instructors are trained, they know that building assets in six-year-old swimmers means catching them doing things right and celebrating every success. Now they consciously work to do these things in all of their programs.
The important thing for YMCA Canada was that they didn’t have to change the entire swim program to reflect their adoption of the asset framework. “We wanted to put the asset language in there so it was explicit,” says Carolyn Tyner, manager of YMCA aquatics in Toronto. “What the language actually does is enhance what we were already doing. The language has changed but our actions haven’t.”
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