Disparity of African Americans in Navy EOD: Swimming as a Barrier

Diversity in the military is more than an altruistic objective; it is vital for growth. African Americans are underrepresented in the Navy explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) force in comparison with the Navy as a whole, and swimming is the largest barrier to closing the gap. A USA Swimming Foundation study found that nearly 70 percent of African American children have low or no swim ability. The Navy requires new recruits to complete a 50-yard swim successfully; however, this does not confer proficiency. As such, the Navy EOD force should make efforts to recruit African Americans that currently meet all entry requirements, except the ability to pass the swimming portion of the test, and later give them intensive swim training.  

African Americans account for 1 percent of the EOD warfare officer community and 2 percent of the enlisted EOD community. The EOD warfare community includes 454 officers and 1,030 enlisted; this represents less than 1 percent of the total Navy force, meaning there are limited opportunities to interact with other fleet units.¹ This can hinder education and interest in the EOD community, and those who may be attracted can be quickly discouraged by the swimming requirement. Unlike the other tested physical standards, swimming skill and development require greater resources. 

To provide perspective on how widespread and systemic swimming as a barrier is in the African American community, out of 105 historically black colleges and universities in the United States, Howard University is the only one with a swim team. In addition, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report the unintentional drowning rate for African Americans ages 5–19 years old was 5.5 times higher than that of Caucasians in the same age group. An effort should be made to recruit all interested personnel, but this cannot be done at the cost of lowering current requirements without risking lives. 

EOD is one of the most dangerous professions in the military. Currently, the number of African Americans applying and qualified is limited. Physical standards testing, dive physical, and aptitude entry requirements are the institutional benchmarks that eliminate the majority of the interested applicants. With the CDC report numbers taken into consideration along with USA Swimming Foundation’s study, it is evident that increasing diversity within Navy EOD will require a robust outreach within the Navy, focused on developing aquatic skills. One way to accomplish this is a pilot program that encourages African Americans to apply and provide them with swimming skills development without compromising standards. 

The program’s goal will be accomplished by first developing a standardized teaching technique. Total Immersion Swimming offers a concentrated three-day coach certification course. The course will provide a system for teaching to a core group of EOD technicians with a shared vision to foster an environment for success. The program will begin with outreach to major commands in San Diego and Norfolk through communication with command master chiefs. Command career counselors will verify the individuals meet administrative requirements and motivated and qualified persons will begin development training in the swimming program. The program will collect data such as length and frequency of training, training plans used, the number of applicants that enter the program, and the number of candidates that enter the pipeline to establish an objective decision on its effectiveness. A program lead (E-7 or above) will be designated to govern structure, communicate with commands, and sustain momentum. Increasing efforts to broaden the scope of applicants to the EOD community affords the ability to more closely reflect the diversity of the Navy and the nation.