Where are the lifeguards? Applicants to work at some JoCo pools are dropping

Overland Park aquatics supervisor Renee Reis remembers when cities like hers had to turn down dozens of applicants for summer lifeguards.

It was the quintessential summer job — a way for teens and college students to earn cash, work experience and street cred in a position with both fun and responsibility.

Not so much anymore, said Reis and staffers from other cities who have watched applicants for such summer jobs dwindle.

“Our lifeguard positions have been getting harder and harder to fill over the years,” said Reis, who is responsible for hiring around 225 lifeguards to monitor Overland Park’s indoor and outdoor pools. Reis still needs roughly 40 employees before the city’s last training session in May. Though summer is around the corner, cities including Mission, Shawnee and Olathe still have open lifeguard positions.

Some city officials and aquatic supervisors in Johnson County attribute the problem to a shift in priorities for the young people who typically take on these summer positions.