James Ellis (born 1948) is an American swim

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

who founded the PDR (Philadelphia Department of Recreation, or Pride, Determination, Resilience) swim team in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. He coached the team from 1971 to 2010. Ellis has been inducted to the International Swim Coaches Association Hall of Fame, and received the President's Award from the

International Swimming Hall of Fame The International Swimming Hall of Fame and Museum (ISHOF) is a history museum and hall of fame, located at One Hall of Fame Drive, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States, operated by private interests and serving as the central point for the s ...

. The 2007 feature film ''

Pride Pride is defined by Merriam-Webster as "reasonable self-esteem" or "confidence and satisfaction in oneself". A healthy amount of pride is good, however, pride sometimes is used interchangeably with "conceit" or "arrogance" (among other words) w ...

'' is based on his life story.

Background

Ellis grew up in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...

, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Westinghouse High School of

Pittsburgh Public Schools Pittsburgh Public Schools is the public school district serving the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (except for two small parts served by the Baldwin-Whitehall School District) and adjacent Mount Oliver. As of the 2021–2022 school year, the ...

. His name is on the Westinghouse High School Wall of Fame. He swam competitively in high school, and at the collegiate level for Cheney State, where he also studied mathematics.

Career

After graduating from Cheney State, Ellis wanted to get a job as a teacher, but was not able to secure a position. Having previously worked as a lifeguard, he became a water safety instructor at a local recreation center in West Philadelphia. He later became a math teacher at a high school in Philadelphia. In 1971, Ellis formed the PDR (Pride, Determination, Resilience or Philadelphia Department of Recreation) swim team at the

Marcus Foster Marcus Aurelius Foster (March 31, 1923 – November 6, 1973) was an American educator who gained a national reputation for educational excellence while serving as principal of Simon Gratz High School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1966–1969), ...

Recreation Center in Nicetown, a neighborhood in

. The team is recognized as being the first

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

swim team in the country, and Ellis is credited with helping break down stereotypes and diversifying the sport of swimming. His teams were highly competitive locally and nationally. They gained national recognition as a premier training program, sending team members to the swimming trials for every U.S. Olympic team from 1992 to 2007. Many talented swimmers, like Michael Norment, came to swim for Ellis' team because of his strong reputation as a coach. Norment became the first black swimmer on the U.S. national team, and later became a swimming coach himself. Ellis coached the PDR team from 1971 until 2010. Since 2010, Ellis has been the coach of the Salvation Army Kroc Aquatics (SAKA) program located in the Salvation Army's Philadelphia-based Kroc Center. He was influential in designing the pool at the center.

Awards and recognition

In May 2007, Ellis received the President's Award from the

. In 2015, he was named to the "List of the 30 Most Influential People In Swimming Over the Past 30 Years," selected by USA Swimming and Speedo. Ellis was inducted to the

American Swimming Coaches Association The American Swimming Coaches Association, or ASCA, is a professional organization for Swimming coaches in the USA. It was founded in 1958 and is based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. ASCA provides education opportunities for swimming coaches, includ ...

Hall of Fame in 2019. In 2007, the feature film ''Pride'' was released, which portrays Jim Ellis and his struggles to establish the PDR team.

External links

* Swim Swam podcast
Interview with Jim Ellis

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, Jim Living people American swimming coaches 1948 births 20th-century African-American people People from Pittsburgh

Background

Career

Awards and recognition

See also

External links

References