ALTS Lead Instructors
Dave Burgess Dave Burgess is a lead USMS-certified Adult Learn to Swim instructor. He is the head coach of the Podium Swim Club, a U.S. Masters Swimming group based in Colorado Springs. Dave caters to swimmers who are looking to improve performance, as well as those that are relatively new to swimming. He is also the head coach of the Discovery Canyon High School swim team, as well as an assistant coach with Colorado Springs Aquatics. He is a USMS Level 3 certified coach, and teaches the USMS Masters Coach certification classes. He is also a USA Triathlon level 2 certified coach, and a USA Swimming/ASCA Level 3 coach. Dave also holds a certificate in sports and performance nutrition.

Dominic Latella Dominic Latella is a lead USMS-certified Adult Learn to Swim instructor. He also teaches U.S. Masters Swimming coach certification classes. He has been appointed twice -- the max amount -- as a coach for USMS High Performance Camp. He also works with wounded servicemen and women, providing swimming rehabilitation and adaptive swimming instruction at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. He is an adjunct professor of Health and Fitness at American University and is the owner of SwimBox, a swimming-lesson company that utilizes the technology of an Endless Pool to give swimmers of all levels an advantage in learning proper swimming technique.

Gloria Waggoner Gloria Waggoner is a lead USMS-certified Adult Learn to Swim instructor, USMS level 3 Coach, and an ARC water safety instructor. She has taught and coached people of all ages and ability levels to swim. In her teens, Gloria swam for the Los Angeles Athletic Club and was coached by Olympic Coach Peter Daland. She rekindled her passion for competition in 2001 as a triathlete. In 2004, Gloria joined a community effort to build the Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, that houses both a competition and a leisure pool. As the Kroc program director, Gloria guided development of innovative aquatic, fitness and community education programs. Gloria retired in 2014, and was honored as the first member of the Kroc Aquatic Hall of Fame. Gloria is an accomplished USMS national open water and pool swimmer. She swims with Kroc Masters and helps coordinate the Kroc ALTS community swim program. 

Lisa L. Brown Lisa L. Brown is a lead USMS-certified Adult Learn to Swim instructor and USMS level 3 certified coach. She is founder and head coach of Zionsville Aquatic Masters and aquatics director of Zionsville Aquatic Center in Indiana. Lisa is an accomplished and experienced competitive swimmer, including in open water events. She has multiple Big Shoulders and Manhattan Pier-to-Pier swims to her credit, as well as 25K and 10K USMS National Championship swims. Lisa’s professional background includes several certifications in training and development. Now she applies that corporate experience to helping fellow swimmers achieve their fitness and competitive goals.

Mike Hamm Mike Hamm is a lead USMS-certified Adult Learn to Swim instructor and USMS-certified level 4 coach. He has coached swimming for 46 years, including more than 20 years at the Masters level. He is currently the head Masters coach at the Kroc Center in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. He also owns the Hamm Swim School in Coeur d’Alene, where they specialize in individual instruction for all levels of swimmers. He is an Olympic Trials qualifier, USA All-American and USMS All-American and set several NCAA Div. II national records while in college.

Wendy Neely Wendy Neely is a lead USMS-certified Adult Learn to Swim instructor and USMS-certified level 3 coach. She has more than 20 years of coaching experience and is head coach of Blue Wave Aquatics in Federal Way, Wash. She is a 2010 recipient of the USMS Kerry O’Brien Coaches Award, which is awarded for grassroots coaching accomplishment. In 2013, Blue Wave Aquatics was honored as Local Club of the Year, and also received a Swimming Saves Lives Foundation grant to provide swim lessons for adults.

Bill Meier Bill Meier is a lead USMS-certified Adult Learn to Swim instructor. He is the aquatics director for Bard College at Simon’s Rock in Great Barrington, Mass., and the head coach of the PaceMakers swim team. As the chairman of the New England LMSC, he directed an effort to teach adults to swim, and that program has grown into USMS’s national April is Adult Learn to Swim Month campaign. Bill has run a successful SwimAmerica program for almost 20 years and has coached age-group, high school, college and Masters programs. Bill is a Level 4 USMS-certified Masters coach. He was the captain of his college team and, as an ocean lifeguard on the south shore of Long Island, competed in the Ironman and ocean dory races.

Morgan Latimore Morgon Latimore is a lead USMS-certified Adult Learn to Swim instructor and Level 3 USMS-certified Masters coach. He has more than 15 years of coaching experience and is head coach and owner of Latitude Pure Coaching, an organization that focuses on triathlon and endurance sports. He has been training and teaching U.S. Marines about swimming for more than 10 years. In 2016, he was featured in The San Diego Union-Tribune for his work teaching adults to swim in the San Diego area. His passion for swimming is what drove him to becoming a U.S. Masters coach and ALTS instructor.

Megan Lassen Megan Lassen is a lead USMS-certified ALTS Instructor and Level 3 USMS-certified Masters coach at Swim Ft. Lauderdale. She teaches swim lessons to adults and special-needs clients as part of her daily work at the International Swimming Hall of Fame pool. Her interests and expertise span all sorts of water sports and adventures, from competitive swimming (she holds more than 35 individual USMS top-10 awards), to river rescue and water skiiing. Megan has coached swimming since 2008 and started Masters programs in Michigan and Wisconsin, prior to arriving in Florida.

Paula Smith Paula Smith is a lead USMS-certified Adult Learn to Swim instructor, a USMS level 3 certified USMS coach and a USA Swimming certified coach.  She has coached master’s swimming for more than 10 years and coached the largest Masters group in Alaska before starting a new program affiliated with Northern Lights Swim Club in Anchorage. She also is the head coach of the East Anchorage High School swim team. She also competes and has earned USMS top-10 rankings