The North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University women’s swimming team has started a petition  to prevent the discontinuation of the team.

N.C. A&T will drop women’s swimming after the 2015-16 season because there aren’t enough teams in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference to compete for championships. Out of the 105 Historically Black Colleges in the country, N.C. A&T and Howard University are the only active swimming programs.

Due to the lack of swimming programs in the MEAC conference, the Aggies are forced to play in the Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association against very elite teams such as Liberty University and Florida Gulf Coast University

The petition started online last year, but recently the swim has started a campus petition. The determination to keep the program has earned them more 2,000 signatures to keep the Aggie women’s swim team from leaving.

“We want to eliminate the notion that “black people can’t swim” and that we work hard just like any other sport,” says junior Niya Ross. If reinstated, Ross and her teammates will keep their scholarships and be able to compete for the remainder of their college career.

As for the current freshman on the team, they will be in jeopardy of losing their scholarship if the team is discontinued.

Gia Wright, assistant coach and former swimmer said, “Drowning is the leading cause of death amongst youth, and we want to be the pioneers in our community.”

Swimming is not the most common sport in the MEAC conference, which is one of the reasons why the Aggies are fighting to keep this athletic program on campus.

Sign the petition to help the Lady Aggies save the swimming program.  

For more information, please contact Gia Wright at [email protected]

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• Janay Boone Sports Editor