SWAM Ottawa Executive Team

Paige R. (she/her)

Paige has been SWAM’s Head Instructor since 2024 and is now taking on the role of Co-President for the 2026–2027 season. She has been working in the aquatic field since 2021, serving as a Head Lifeguard, Swim Instructor, and Advanced Aquatic Program Trainer for the City of Ottawa. Paige is entering her final year of Nursing School at the University of Ottawa and has a strong passion for paediatric nursing. She currently works at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) as a Nursing Extern on the Mental Health and Neurodevelopmental Unit. Paige chose to join SWAM because she believes every child should have equal access to swimming lessons and essential water safety knowledge. She is excited to bring her experience and dedication from both the aquatics field and paediatric healthcare to creating a safe, fun, and inclusive environment for all children. She looks forward to seeing the swimmers’ progress throughout the season and watching the meaningful bonds they develop with their instructors.

Scarlett R. (she/her)

Scarlett has been a dedicated volunteer with SWAM since 2023. She is a 4th year Health Sciences student who grew up taking swimming lessons and eventually worked up to a lifeguard/ swim instructor. Scarlett has always loved teaching lessons. When she came to university, she didn’t know anyone and found SWAM by chance on Instagram. Having grown up neurodivergent, and with a brother who has a disability, she thought it would be a great opportunity for her to use lived experiences to help others and now she is one of our presidents! Something she is looking foraward to is working with Paige as co-presidents to see how we can grow the program further! She joined us as a permanent instructor, and the rest is history!

Nicolas D. (he/him)

Nicolas has been volunteering with SWAM since Fall of 2025 as an instructor, and now has a role on our exec team! Nicolas grew up as an avid swimmer, which is what pushed him to join SWAM, he also loves teaching his passion to children through weekly lessons. Nicolas is really looking forward to interacting with SWAM as an executive member for the first time!

Adam F. (he/him)

Adam has been a part of SWAM since 2025 as one of our instructors, and now he is a head instructor! Adam joined SWAM because he values the opportunity to give everyone a chance to learn such a crucial life skill. He is looking forward to meeting all the new kiddos and seeing all the returning kiddos.

Jade F. (she/her)

Jade started volunteering with SWAM as an instructor in winter of 2026, and now she is a head instructor! Jade is excited for the upcoming year with SWAM. She is a 4th-year psychology student who loves to swim, and she currently works at a camp for children with special needs. Jade was inspired to be a part of SWAM because she believes that everyone should have the opportunity to swim! She is looking forward to seeing the progress of kids who return to the program and all of the fun they have.

Clarice D. (she/her)

Clarice has been volunteering with SWAM since winter 2025. She grew up as a competitive swimmer and the sport has always been a big part of her life which is why she knew SWAM would be a good fit for her. She is currently going into her 4th year studying human kinetics and health sciences and SWAM ties into her passion for helping children while giving back to her community. She is looking forward to seeing the progress the kids will make this semester and getting to know the new instructors and executives!

Ela D. (she/her)

Ela has been a volunteer with SWAM since 2024! She has taught inclusion swimming lessons at home for years and decided to continue that journey when she came to Ottawa, so naturally, SWAM was the perfect fit. She loves being apart of the organization because she believes that learning how to swim and having water education is a right and not a privilege. She is thrilled to be a VP lesson coordinator this year and pair up all the kiddos up with the right instructor for them and their needs so that everyone can enjoy aquatics in a way that is right for them!

Maxine L. (she/her)

Maxine has been with SWAM since the beginning of 2026! she is a second-year Health Sciences student, and has been a swim instructor for three years. During that time, she had the opportunity to teach and connect with many neurodivergent children. Those experiences really sparked my passion for working with these kiddos, which is why she chose SWAM. She wants to help make swimming a fun, positive, and inclusive experience for everyone and is looking forward to meeting all the swimmers and volunteers, building connections, and helping create a fun and welcoming environment where everyone can enjoy swimming and feel successful.

Brayden M. (he/him)

Brayden has been volunteering with SWAM since winter of 2024! He has vast experience in working with swimmers including being a lifeguard for 6 years! He chose to be apart of SWAM because he believes that everyone should have the opportunity to take swimming lessons and learn water safety skills. He is looking forward to creating an amazing atmosphere for all of the swimmers to enjoy!

Kiyana R. (she/her)

Kiyana started volunteering with SWAM at the beginning of 2026 as an instructor. She is a Translational and Molecular Medicine student at uOttawa currently. Swimming has always been a big part of her life, and she has so many great memories associated with it. she has always enjoyed teaching swimming and water safety skills to youth, which made SWAM a great fit for her. She believes swimming is an important skill that should be accessible to all families. she is excited to support swimmers and to see their confidence grow this year!

Jaida K. (she/her)

Jaida joined SWAM in 2024 as an instructor! She is currently studying Translational and Molecular Medicine at uOttawa. She joined SWAM because she loves teaching children new skills and being by their side as they learn and grow. She is really looking forward to connecting with new kids and team members who join SWAM this year!