Owner
Coach Matt grew up in a large family with eight brothers and sisters and has been around kids his whole life. He has taught hundreds of children how to swim. His teaching background is extensive having taught infants, adults, and young children.Coach Matt started as a junior instructor at 15 and put himself through college teaching and coaching swimming. He has a strong competitive swimming background having coached two undefeated summer league teams in Colorado and was a captain on his high school swim team."I am very passionate about the sport of swimming and working with kids. I taught both of my kids to swim from the time they were infants. My son Michael, who now concentrates most of his time on baseball, was Ranked #1 in North Carolina as an 8 year old and finished 2nd in 3 events at the long course state championships as a 10 year old.
Customer Service Manager
Debbie is a native of Garner, North Carolina. She earned her degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in Communication with a concentration in Deaf Education. She has two teenage daughters that are avid dancers. She has always had a passion for helping others and working with children. She has been teaching preschoolers for 18 years. She also has many years of administrative/sales experience. She grew up with no fear of the ocean or the pool but that changed when she got caught up in the ocean current and had to be rescued. She has also lost 2 friends to drowning so safety around water is very important to her. She loves Triangle Swim School because they work with “Safer 3 Foundation” and the “National Drowning Prevention Alliance” teaching safety around water as well as teaching you or your children to swim.
Advanced Level 4 Coordinator
Coach Kevin was born and raised in Raleigh, NC. He grew up swimming for YOTA Swim Team and Broughton High School. He is a recent graduate from Florida State University where he majored in Applied Economics and Information Communication Technology (ICT). Kevin also swam 4 years at FSU and is the former school record holder (2014-2019) in the 200 Freestyle (1:34.52). He is now retired but his love of the sport continues through helping others learn to swim and improve their skills.
Customer Support
Tara was born and raised in the Triangle area and has always had a passion for organizing and teaching, as well as a huge heart for children. Prior to having children of her own, she had an administrative background in a dental office and loved the interaction with the patients. After having 4 children of her own, she decided to dedicate those years to home schooling. She also tutored several groups of home schooled children in English and Writing in the group which they were involved. Once her children were in high school and she had an "empty nest", she decided to welcome little ones into her home and babysat for a few years before deciding to enter the formal workplace. Tara loves being a part of the Triangle Swim School team where she is once again able to combine her love for children along with the ability to put her administrative skills to good use.
Facilities Manager
Scott was born and raised in Winston-Salem, NC, where he began to participate in swim team at the age of 6. He swam in a local city summer swim league until the age of 16. Scott then spent 5 and a half years as a lifeguard, before earning his national and local CPO certifications in 2014. In college, he earned science degrees at East Carolina University and NC State University, and currently works full time as an environmental chemist in Durham, North Carolina.
Lead Instructor
Khadijah was born and raised in North Carolina. She started swimming at the age of 3 and began swimming competitively with New Wave Swim Team from the ages of 7 to 12. As a young athlete, she was not only involved in swimming but also perfected the skills of dance, tennis, and figure skating. Her other skills include certification as a lifeguard, certified nurse aide 1, and swim coach for the Kildaire Farm Killer Whales Swim Team. She graduated from Athens Drive High School and swam on their Varsity Swim Team for 3 years and was also on their dance team. Ever since she was a young girl she has always had a passion for healthcare and bettering the lives of others. She aspires to become a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner and is currently attending Wake Tech for their Nursing Program and plans to transfer to Duke University to obtain her Masters in Science and Nursing. She wanted to become a swim instructor because she not only hopes children and adults will take their skills and utilize them throughout their lives but, she also believes it is important that everyone learns how to swim to ensure everyone is safe when in, near, and around bodies of water. She stated that her goals for all of her students at Triangle Swim School are, "to have/take away a safe, fun, and positive learning experience and develop a sense of bravery and confidence when in any body of water". She's excited to be with us and looks forward to teaching all students.
Instructor
Coach Ashley was born and raised in Raleigh, NC. She grew up swimming for Marlins of Raleigh Swim Team as well as Millbrook High School. She graduated from Sweet Briar College where she majored in Psychology. Ashley swam all 4 years at SBC. Shortly after graduating, Ashley was the assistant coach for one year at Columbia College in Columbia, SC. She currently works full time with individuals with autism providing Applied Behavior Analysis services. She recently graduated from Florida Institute of Technology with a masters in Professional Behavioral Analysis. She has a passion for helping individuals grow in their skills in and out of the pool. Ashley thinks it is important for everyone to not only learn how to swim, but also learn how to be comfortable in the water.
Instructor
Coach Caroline was born in New Hampshire, quickly after moved to Massachusetts, and finally at 9 years old, moved to Raleigh North Carolina. She began swimming at 3 years old. Her grandfather was an Olympic swimmer for Cuba so she has been swimming since she can remember. From the ages of 10-16 she was on the competitive New Wave Swim Team and would compete on her neighbor swim team in the summer. Caroline graduated from Durham Academy Upper School in 2016 and is currently pursuing a Business degree at Wake Tech. Caroline is the eldest of four sibling as has extensive experience with kids. Caroline is passionate about helping children and adults progress in their swimming, along with building their confidence in the water. Caroline teaches ages 2-adult, special needs included.
Instructor
Cassidy grew up in Holly Springs, North Carolina and has practically grown up in the water. Her mother was a former Olympic swimmer and put her through swimming lessons at a very early age. Since then, she has loved swimming and finds it to be wonderful exercise. She has a BS in Exercise Science and is thinking about going to graduate school to get her masters in coaching. She is also certified in AED, CPR, and first aid. When she is not coaching, you can find her back in the water sporting a tail as she performs as a mermaid at children's birthday parties. She approaches lessons with enthusiasm and wants the children to appreciate the value of exercise and play.
Instructor
Challen started swimming when she was in first grade . Her love for swimming grew as she swam on the swim team for eight years. She has a passion for teaching children the valuable life skill of swimming correctly. Challen loves children and wants to continue to work with them by pursuing a Bachelors and Masters degree in Social work.
Instructor
David grew up in Arlington, Texas where he started swim lessons as a toddler. He joined the Marine Corps when he was 19 years old to become a Recon Marine, where much of the selection course is done in the water. After becoming a Recon Marine, he got certified as a combatant diver, diving supervisor, and instructor of water survival which allowed him to get a position as a pre-dive instructor, a mandatory course that all Raider and Recon Marines must pass before attending dive school. After leaving the Marine Corps, David moved to Raleigh where he has lived for the past two years. He is currently enrolled in school using his G.I. Bill benefits.
Instructor
Born in Wilson, NC and raised in Raleigh, Erika has 3 younger brothers and learned to swim at a local summer camp. The one thing that helped her not be afraid was someone saying the pool was just "one huge bathtub". After obtaining her Masters of Education, she has continued to teach preschool full time for over 10 years. She has a knack for helping others achieve their goals and is very passionate about helping others enjoy the water as much as she does. She LOVES the pool- it's her happy place! She became a swim instructor not only because of her love for the pool, but also because of her love of learning and making mistakes. If she had a slogan it would be "Practice makes it better". She was drawn to Triangle Swim School because of the relationships they build with families and the importance of water safety.
Instructor
Gabby is originally from Spokane, Washington, but was relocated to the coast of North Carolina when her dad joined the military. She moved to Raleigh after high school, where she is currently attending Wake Technical Community College. She was a member of her high school swim team each year, serving as a captain the final two years, and was also a lifeguard. After she graduates this spring with her Associates Degree, she will be pursuing a transfer to North Carolina State University, where she will be majoring in Interpersonal Communications and minoring in Leadership Studies. From there, her hope is to teach leadership development to high school and college students.
Instructor
Jesse was born in Fort Worth, TX and grew up in Raleigh, NC. She has been swimming since she was 3 and swam competitively on a summer swim team. She is currently a senior at Millbrook High School and has been a part of her school cheer team for 4 years. Jesse is passionate about helping kids learn and watching them grow, especially in the pool!
Instructor
Coach Kayla was born in Florida but quickly moved to Clayton, North Carolina. She began swimming at about three years old and began swimming competitively at age five. Though she gave up competitive swim when she was fifteen, she quickly took up teaching lessons and coaching the summer swim team at her local pool. She now attends North Carolina State University, where she is pursuing a degree in Psychology with the aspirations to attend graduate school for School Psychology. Kayla has always had a passion for kids and hopes to give them a space to learn and feel loved both through teaching lessons and through her future career.
Instructor
Coach Pranaya has lived in Cary, NC her entire life. She has been swimming since the age of 3 and really enjoys the sport. She is currently a senior at Enloe High School and has been a part of her school’s lacrosse and diving team. She loves working with children and is looking forward to seeing them grow into amazing swimmers!
Instructor
Laurie grew up in Raleigh. Her parents had her in the water before she could walk and she loved it. She started swimming competitively at the age of 5 for a local swim club and continued until the age of 12. At that point, summer camp had started to take up most of her summer, so she had to quit the swim team. In turn, she was a lifeguard for 3 summers at that camp while in she was in college. Laurie has always loved working with kids and always wanted to teach. She graduated from Greensboro College with a degree in Special Education and taught middle school for 5 years. No longer in the education field, she loves using her passion for teaching at Triangle Swim School.
Instructor
Mary grew up in Wake Forest where she spent her summers swimming at the town pool. She taught swim lessons and performed synchronized swimming at an early age. She was a lifeguard at age 16 and has always enjoyed watersports such as skiing and boating. As a senior at Enloe High School she swam competitively and continued to swim laps for exercise and to perfect her form through college. Mary has a degree in Psychology with an emphasis in child development from UNC at Chapel Hill. She was impressed that UNC requires all students to know how to swim in order to graduate. Mary made sure all of her kids (Roxanne, 28, Dylan, 22, and Layla, 15) learned to swim. She was drawn to Triangle Swim School because of its commitment to water safety and its unique and intuitive teaching method.
Instructor
Coach Mikayla was born in Philadelphia, PA and moved to North Carolina at a young age. She learned to swim at the age of three and has been swimming competitively since she was six. While being actively involved in her school’s arts department as well, she currently swims for the Franklin Academy High School Varsity swim team. Mikayla strives to have the same positive impact on her students that her instructors had on her from a young age. Her experiences with babysitting, camp counseling, and teaching, along with being the oldest of four siblings, have worked to instill in her a passion for working with children. She plans to pursue a career in pediatrics so she can continue to fulfill her passion of working with children.
Instructor
Coach Sierra has lived in Cary, NC her entire life and loves it here. She loves the water, especially the beach. Sierra swam on a summer swim team when she was a kid but has now moved on to competitive diving. Currently a Junior at Enloe High School, Sierra has also been teaching gymnastics since she was 14. She loves spending time with kids and is excited to help teach them the life-long skill that is swimming.
Instructor
Coach Syd grew up in Lincolnton, NC, a small town about an hour south west of Charlotte. She swam competitively from ages 11 to 15 on various school and summer league teams. Her last two years of high school she attended the North Carolina School of Science and Math in Durham, NC and spent her summers lifeguarding pools and teaching swim lessons in her hometown. Coach Syd is now majoring in Marine Science with a concentration in Biological Oceanography and is looking forward to being a part of Triangle Swim School.
Instructor
Coach Tess began taking swim lessons at Triangle Swim School at the young age of four and has been swimming ever since. While taking lessons for many years, Coach Tess began swimming on a summer swim team and joined the Raleigh Swimming Association and TAC Titans later in her life. Although she has stopped swimming year round, Coach Tess has done summer swim team for the past 14 years! Her favorite part about being a member of the TSS staff is sharing her love of the sport with children of all ages and getting to know each child's strengths and weaknesses. She recently graduated from Apex High School and will be attending Arizona State University.
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