A Launch Interrupted

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought suffering and loss to many. It has certainly challenged everyone’s patience and forced us to find creative ways to move forward on the work front from the confines of home. For some, that’s proven impossible and they are truly stuck at home with little or nothing to do. Others are luckier and can earn the daily bread in isolation, or quarantine. Many bravely soldier on in medical facilities, grocery stores, delivery services and other essential businesses. Like most everyone else on the planet, those of us at Watershape University are going a little stir crazy as we all continue to shelter in place. But we’re among the lucky ones because suffice it to say we are not sitting still behind closed doors. During this forced down time, we have been busy scheduling classes for later in the year, developing new courses, making some very interesting plans for upcoming trade shows, and reaching our audience through social media — and these twice-monthly editions of WaterShapes.

Back in early March, when we were first hearing news of the coronavirus arriving in the U.S., WU had just completed its first school, the debut of BUS 2611 Essential Business Workshop. The school was held in conjunction with an annual meeting of Carecraft dealers in Marco Island, Fla, March 1-3. The business school’s success led to an impromptu offering of BUS 3121 Essential Cost Estimating Workshop.

Watershape University was off and running and we couldn’t wait to get back in front of an audience. Little did we know as we were heading home from the Sunshine State, the brakes were about to be applied in a big way. A week later in Long Beach, Calif., at the Western Pool & Spa Show, we taught Cost Estimating to a packed house, but then the mayor of Long Beach – in concert with Governor Newsom – deemed it necessary to shut down the Western show at the last minute. Our face-to-face instruction has been sidelined ever since and several events were postponed until late summer and fall.

LOOKING AHEAD

We are confident that this unprecedented situation will soon resolve and we’ll be back on the road bringing top-shelf education to watershaping professionals coast to coast. Meanwhile we are using the downtime wisely to fine-tune the University’s digital infrastructure to help students plan their educational future and connect with fellow students, faculty, corporate partners and the greater professional community. Technology is our friend in keeping overhead in check so our schools are economically feasible to many as we emerge from the constraints of COVID-19.

We have many schools planned for the remainder of the year and into 2021. WU is blessed with Corporate and Tradeshow Partners who wish to help us help the industry. Multiple offerings of CON 2111 Essential Pool Construction are planned across the country along with other required courses for WU digital badging and membership within the prestigious International Watershape Institute.

We believe that a very busy and happy time lies just ahead. We’re driven knowing that when we can all be together again, there’s going to be much to talk about and much to do. WU will be there, leading the way with the very best educational programs the industry has to offer.

Stay tuned for this space for updates in the coming weeks.