{"id":75416,"date":"2025-08-29T09:10:34","date_gmt":"2025-08-29T16:10:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/?p=75416"},"modified":"2025-08-29T09:10:34","modified_gmt":"2025-08-29T16:10:34","slug":"wall-aquatic-center-refresh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wall-aquatic-center-refresh\/","title":{"rendered":"Start the semester with a splash at the Wall Aquatic Center"},"content":{"rendered":"

Summer may be over, but that doesn\u2019t mean your swimming and diving days have to be.<\/span><\/p>\n

In August, NAU\u2019s Wall Aquatic Center (WAC) got a complete refresh of its 50-meter Olympic pool just in time to invite incoming and returning Lumberjacks to explore its crystal-clear depths with WAC\u2019s numerous aquatics programs.<\/span><\/p>\n

The process included draining about 650,000 gallons of water and acid-washing every plastered surface to a shine. Cleaning technicians repainted and powder-coated the center\u2019s diving platforms and replaced its indoor lighting to keep the pool pristine for the new school year.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Two<\/a>Whether you want to dip a toe in with a daily pass or take the plunge with a yearlong membership, assistant director of campus operations <\/span>Kristopher Walsh <\/span><\/b>said there are multiple ways to take advantage of what the one-of-a-kind complex has to offer.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re not going to find a facility at this level anywhere else in northern Arizona,\u201d Walsh said. \u201cFor those wanting a spot for aquatic training, community pools like ours that sit at 7,000 feet are few and far between. We also have lots of opportunities for those looking for recreation, swimming lessons or regular workouts. We try to dabble in a little bit of everything and are always thinking of ways to continue growing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Admission costs for WAC\u2019s daily open swim hours are included in NAU\u2019s Health and Wellness Fee, meaning active Flagstaff-based students can access all open swim times with their student ID. School employees, affiliates and alumni can purchase discounted semester and annual <\/span>memberships<\/span><\/a> in person at the Aquatics and Tennis Complex.<\/span><\/p>\n

In addition to WAC\u2019s Olympic pool, diving tank and warm-up spa, members gain free admission to the facility\u2019s masters swimming workouts on Tuesday and Thursday nights. Designed for advanced swimmers who are familiar with freestyle and interested in competitive training, these can span up to 4,000 yards.<\/span><\/p>\n

Starting Sept. 15, WAC also will host NAU\u2019s group swim lesson program, AquaJacks. Through the program, participants ages 3 and older progress through the American Red Cross swimming levels with the help of certified instructors who tailor the curriculum to their needs. They begin by learning to feel comfortable in the water and gradually develop their strokes until they can swim with ease.<\/span><\/p>\n

More than 200 children participate in AquaJacks throughout the school year at various ability levels, attending up to four lessons a week depending on preference and program availability.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the benefits of AquaJacks is that it\u2019s a move-at-your-own-pace program,\u201d Walsh said. \u201cWhen the end of the month comes around and we start doing evaluations for the next month, it\u2019s OK if an individual isn\u2019t ready to move on. We\u2019ll keep them right where they are. If we do feel that they\u2019re ready to move on, we\u2019ll have a space ready for them at the next level.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

If the idea of committing to a membership or swimming lesson program leaves you feeling like a fish out of water, Walsh encourages locals to visit the facility for free during public events like swim meets and diving invitationals. WAC will also be hosting SUN Entertainment\u2019s annual free dive-in movie on Aug. 30 at 7 p.m., giving students their first taste of the facility\u2019s freshly updated features.<\/span><\/p>\n

Find additional updates regarding WAC programs, open swim times, membership costs, closures and policy changes by following @nauwac on Instagram or visiting the WAC <\/span>webpage<\/span><\/a>. Those interested in AquaJacks can add their name to the program\u2019s waitlist by emailing <\/span>NAUswimschool@nau.edu<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Overview<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Summer may be over, but that doesn\u2019t mean your swimming and diving days have to be. In August, NAU\u2019s Wall Aquatic Center (WAC) got a complete refresh of its 50-meter Olympic pool just in time to invite incoming and returning Lumberjacks to explore its crystal-clear depths with WAC\u2019s numerous aquatics programs. The process included draining…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":96,"featured_media":75534,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-75416","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-campus-community"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75416","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/96"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=75416"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75416\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/75534"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=75416"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=75416"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=75416"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}