Discover Boating hosts diversity event with US university

The fleet of electric and alternative-fuel demo boats available at the American Boating Congress (ABC) to show members of Congress and opinion leaders the latest efforts by the industry to reduce emissions from marine power was also used as a teaching tool to expose young African American students to both boating and career opportunities in the boating industry.

According to the US Coast Guard’s National Recreational Boating Safety Survey, of the 85 million Americans who go boating each year, just under 8% are Black, so Discover Boating hosted the Howard University Swim & Dive Team for an afternoon on the water.

Howard University, a private, historically Black school located in Washington, DC, had a record-breaking swim season highlighted by appearing on the cover of Sports Illustrated and Discover Boating saw the team as a natural fit to this first-of-its-kind event.

“This opportunity allowed students, who have a natural affinity for the water, to experience the boating lifestyle and connect with executives to explore potential career paths in the marine industry. Inviting this next generation of people to boating brings many exciting opportunities to them and helps us grow this great industry,” said Kevin Williams, marketing VP for the National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA).

A dozen students participated in the event with NMMA staff and industry executives which included basics on boat operations, the affordability and accessibility of boating in many forms and the array of professional careers in the recreational marine industry.

According to NMMA president Frank Hugelmeyer, to attract new and diverse people to the industry, the industry needs to change tactics and approach.

“The car industry gets this. They’ve done this diversity redistribution and they’ve done it in two ways. One is by hiring the consumer target. They brought the consumer target into their businesses and those folks helped them reach that market. You then have to market in culture and even in language. The car companies that have done this, there are some outstanding results.”

The consensus among the student participants was a lack of knowledge about boating generally and career opportunities specifically, and the majority seemed to enjoy a day on the water that did not involve practice or competition.