Santa Clara Aquatics Foundation

What Santa Clara Aquatics Foundation does

Santa Clara Aquatics Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit foundation founded on March 8, 2024 in Santa Clara, California, established in direct response to the closure of the George F. Haines International Swim Center. Its functional role is to coordinate fundraising, advocacy, and program support for competitive aquatic athletes in the Santa Clara community, serving as an umbrella entity for three partner clubs: Santa Clara Swim Club, Santa Clara Dive Club, and Santa Clara Artistic Swimming.

The foundation's core "products" are programmatic and capital in nature rather than commercial: community aquatic training programs spanning swimming, diving, and artistic swimming; advocacy and capital campaign execution for a replacement aquatic facility; and a tiered donor pledge program enabling recurring community financial support. Its operating model is pledge-based fundraising combined with public capital facilitation, and it leverages a 70-plus-year competitive heritage brand associated with Mark Spitz, Donna de Varona, and 24-plus Olympians. The foundation does not develop technology products; its underlying infrastructure is community relationships, public funding partnerships (notably the $45 million Measure I bond passed in November 2024), and real-estate expansion via the partner Swim Club's acquisition of the Killarney Farms property.

The foundation monetizes through donations and pledges rather than priced services or transactions, with no disclosed commercial revenue line. Its go-to-market is community-driven donor engagement in the Santa Clara, CA geography, and its customer base consists of individual donors, athlete families, and partner clubs rather than enterprise buyers. Headcount is small (1-10, board-level leadership), consistent with an early-stage non-profit coordinating activities across the three partner clubs.

Name

Santa Clara Aquatics Foundation

Legal name

Santa Clara Aquatics Foundation

Website

https://santaclaraaquatics.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2024

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Santa Clara Aquatics Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit founded in March 2024 that coordinates fundraising, advocacy, and program support for three partner aquatic clubs — swim, dive, and artistic swimming — serving youth and competitive athletes in Santa Clara, California, following the closure of the historic International Swim Center.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Non-profit Aquatic Facility Development & Community Programs

NAICS

Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers (713940)

SIC

Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997)

akta.pro primary industry

Aquatic Centers & Swimming Facilities (MPAKAEAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Aquatics Programs (Pools, Swim Lessons, Lifeguarding) (EDALAIAF)

Keywords

• Aquatic facility development
• Community swim programs
• Learn-to-swim education
• Water safety advocacy
• Non-profit aquatics foundation

Headquarters

HQ city

Santa Clara

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: As a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, Santa Clara Aquatics Foundation raises funds through donations, pledges, and fundraising campaigns. They are currently accepting pledges to support their mission of building a new International Swim Center.
2. Pledge Program: The foundation currently accepts pledges rather than direct donations. They plan to reach out to pledgers when ready to accept actual donations.
3. Public Bond Measures: Measure I bond allocates $45 million from Santa Clara voters toward rebuilding the International Swim Center, demonstrating public funding support for the foundation's mission.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Santa Clara Aquatics Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that serves as a dynamic alliance of three non-profit aquatic clubs and community advocates, supporting and advocating for water safety education, learn-to-swim programs, competitive swimming, diving, and artistic (synchronized) swimming in the Santa Clara community. Its flagship initiative is the $45 million rebuild of the George F. Haines International Swim Center (Measure I bond, passed November 2024), funded through tax-deductible donations, pledges, and voter-approved public funding.

Product overview

Santa Clara Aquatics Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that serves as a dynamic alliance of three nonprofit aquatic clubs working to ensure broad availability and access to pool space in the Santa Clara community. The foundation operates core programs in water safety, learn-to-swim, and competitive aquatics, while coordinating with partner organizations including Santa Clara Swim Club, Santa Clara Diving Club, and Santa Clara Artistic Swimming. The foundation's primary initiative is the International Swim Center (ISC) rebuild project, funded by a $45 million Measure I bond, with an online donation and pledge system to support these efforts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Learn-to-Swim Programs Swimming lessons and water safety education programs for children and adults, designed to reduce drowning risk (88% reduction through formal lessons for children ages 1-4) and promote aquatic skills, delivered via the foundation's partner clubs and swim schools.
• Water Safety Education Community outreach and education focused on drowning prevention, supervision practices, and safe aquatic activities, addressing the CDC finding that drowning is the leading cause of death for children ages 1-4.
• International Swim Center Rebuild Project A major infrastructure capital project led by the foundation in partnership with the City of Santa Clara to rebuild the George F. Haines International Swim Center, which was closed indefinitely in January 2024 due to structural integrity concerns. Funded by up to $45 million from the voter-approved Measure I bond in November 2024.
• Donation and Pledge System Online donation and pledge platform for tax-deductible contributions to support the foundation's mission and the construction of the new International Swim Center. The foundation currently accepts pledges rather than direct donations.

Quantifiable outcome

• Formal swimming lessons associated with 88% reduction in drowning risk for children ages 1-4
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Santa Clara Swim ClubcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 March 2024Santa Clara Swim Club is a founding partner of the foundation, established in 1951 by legendary coach George Haines. The club has produced Olympic champions including Mark Spitz and Donna de Varona. Founded with 13 swimmers at Santa Clara High School pool, the club moved to the ISC in 1966 and currently operates its Swim School at 575 Pomeroy Avenue following the ISC closure.
• Santa Clara Dive ClubcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSanta Clara Dive Club is a founding partner known for producing outstanding athletes who continue to collegiate diving at institutions including Stanford, Cal, Harvard, Yale, UNC, and Columbia. The club has built a reputation for excellence, sportsmanship, and community engagement in competitive diving.
• Santa Clara Artistic Swimming (formerly Santa Clara Aquamaids)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSanta Clara Artistic Swimming Club has produced world-class synchronized swimmers and Olympic athletes since 1964, generating 31 Olympians since 1996. The club employs 17 professional coaches including 8 Olympic athletes and/or coaches. Formerly known as Santa Clara Aquamaids, the club pioneered inclusion of male swimmers in the sport.
• City of Santa ClaracoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe City of Santa Clara is committed to preserving the aquatic facility legacy and working with the foundation on plans for renovations, repairs, or new construction at the ISC site. The city passed Measure I allocating $45 million for the new facility.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Direct peers

• Carmel Swim Club: Long-standing U.S. competitive swim club with deep Olympic heritage and a foundation-based fundraising model. Comparable as a community-driven aquatic organization with multi-generational competitive history and active fundraising for program and facility needs.
• North Baltimore Aquatic Club: Premier U.S. community swim club known for Olympic athlete development (e.g., Michael Phelps) and operated through a non-profit model with community and donor support. Comparable as a high-performance community aquatic club with similar funding mechanisms, though it operates its own facility rather than advocating for a public rebuild.
• Mission Viejo Nadadores: Elite Southern California community swim club with a long Olympic-development legacy and an associated Nadadores Foundation that supports facility and athlete development. Directly comparable as a community-rooted aquatic organization that produces Olympians and has faced similar facility stewardship challenges; SCAF's board member Todd Spohn previously headed the Nadadores.
• Swim Across America: Non-profit organization that uses organized open-water and pool swims to raise funds for cancer research and aquatic program access. Comparable as a charitable swimming-focused foundation that drives donor engagement through aquatic sport, though its primary beneficiary is oncology research rather than facility building.
• USA Swimming Foundation: National non-profit foundation supporting USA Swimming's mission of growing competitive swimming and learn-to-swim programs across the U.S. Directly comparable as a charitable fundraising and advocacy entity stewarding aquatic facility access and water safety, but at the national scale rather than the community scale SCAF operates.
• Long Island Aquatic Club: Community-driven non-profit swim club providing learn-to-swim, age-group, and senior competitive programming. Comparable as a community-rooted aquatic non-profit offering the same mix of competitive and learn-to-swim programs that SCAF's partner clubs deliver.
• Bolles School Sharks: Historic Florida-based swim program producing multiple Olympic athletes, structured as a non-profit with donor-supported facility operations. Comparable as a community/non-profit swim organization with elite athlete development and donor-funded infrastructure.
• Irvine Novaquatics: Southern California community swim club with a strong competitive and learn-to-swim program, operating through non-profit and community partnership structures. Comparable as a Southern California community aquatic organization with similar learn-to-swim and competitive swim offerings serving a regional catchment area.

Broad incumbents

• USA Swimming: National governing body for competitive swimming in the U.S., providing oversight, sanctioning, and resources for member clubs including SCSC. Comparable as the umbrella organization whose members and standards SCAF's partner clubs operate within, though USA Swimming is a broad incumbent and SCAF is a single community advocate.

Regional players

• YMCA of Silicon Valley: Regional non-profit providing aquatic programming (learn-to-swim, lap swim, family swim) across multiple facilities in Santa Clara County. Comparable as a regional provider of community aquatic programs competing for the same learn-to-swim and recreational swim demand, though the Y operates its own facilities rather than building a single flagship.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/santa-clara-aquatics-foundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Santa Clara Aquatics Foundation