The grant was awarded to the university’s Aquatic and Recreation Center to improve the facility’s accessibility via the installation of an ADA-compliant chair lift.
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga’s Aquatic and Recreation Center has received a grant that has helped the facility become more accessible to the community. A grant in the amount of $10,000 was awarded to the center by the American Water Charitable Foundation and Tennessee American Water to facilitate the installation of an ADA-compliant chair lift that will give more individuals the opportunity to enjoy all the Aquatic and Recreation Center has to offer to the community.
According to an article on the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga's website, the university’s Interim Chancellor Robert Dooley was quoted as saying of the grant, “We are deeply grateful to Tennessee American Water and the American Water Charitable Foundation for their generous support in helping us improve accessibility at the Aquatic and Recreation Center. The new ADA-compliant chair lift will make it easier for individuals with mobility challenges to access the pool, ensuring they can fully participate in and enjoy all that our facility has to offer.”
The new ADA-compliant chair lift will assist individuals with mobility issues be able to enter the Aquatic and Recreation Center’s pool more safely and easily, thereby giving anyone and everyone the ability to participate in recreational swimming or participation in events or lessons. The grant for the purchasing and installation of the chair lift comes via the American Water Charitable Foundation’s State Strategic Impact grant program, which itself is part of the 2024 Keep Communities Flowing Grant Program.
Grant Evitts, who serves as the president of Tennessee American Water, said, “At Tennessee American Water, we believe in giving back to the communities we serve and are proud to announce a Foundation grant to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga to provide more accessibility for people with mobility issues to be able to enjoy the swimming pool at the campus Aquatic Center. Through the American Water Charitable Foundation, we are able to enhance our partnership with UTC that also includes improvements in the water infrastructure that services the campus.”
For more information about the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, visit the school’s website.