The Louisiana Tennis Association is committed to equity, diversity, inclusion and pluralism as a strategic priority. We appreciate and welcome our differences and strive to create an environment that is inclusive, diverse, equally accessible and serves all members of the tennis community justly and with mutual respect and integrity. We commit ourselves to develop, promote and support efforts to grow the game of tennis within diverse communities throughout the State of Louisiana.
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USTAF LAUNCHES TIAFOE FUND
Victoria Chiesa | July 27, 2023
The Frances Tiafoe Fund will provide philanthropic support to the more than 270 chapters in the NJTL network across the United States.
JAMES B. EWERS, JR., ED.D. | August 26, 2023
The term “role model” has been around for a long time. We hear or use it almost daily. We have it as a permanent part of our lexicon.
It begs the question: How do we become what we want to be? How are we influenced by the people we see or hear about what they do. While there is great merit in hearing about it, it can be suggested that seeing someone doing it is a stronger influencer.
Each of us took a different route to the game of tennis. The common denominator is that we love the game. It has allowed us to make new friends and to renew old friendships. Tennis wasn’t popular in the neighborhood where I grew up as most boys were playing basketball and football. Some of us began playing tennis because it was a different sport and required a different type of athleticism and thinking.
Arthur Ashe, who I would later meet, was the only role model that I had as an African American male tennis player. During those early years, I was able to meet one of his tennis supporters, Dr. Robert Walter Johnson from Lynchburg, Va. Johnson was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
Opportunities were limited for African Americans playing tennis back in the day. Resources, instruction and the social climate of the day were all factors in our not gaining access to the game of tennis.
That was yesteryear and opportunities for African Americans have increased greatly. Coaching and sponsorships have increased dramatically, and the results have been outstanding. We know there have been tennis champions of color in our recent history and there will be more.
It was with pride and joy to watch Coco Gauff win the women’s singles title at this year’s Western & Southern Open. What was also joyous was two African American women with Atlanta roots — Taylor Townsend and Alycia Parks — won the women’s doubles title as well. This comes shortly after Clervie Ngounoue, a young African American girl from Washington D.C., winning the Wimbledon girls’ singles title. By winning the USTA Girls’ 18s National Championship, Ngounoue earned a wild card into the main draw of the 2023 US Open.
Opportunities only come through exposure. The tennis landscape is changing and becoming more inclusive. Most of us have been around tennis for a long time and to see how the sport has evolved is gratifying.
Diversity, equity and inclusion are working within the USTA community. The programs and initiatives are more intentional and will become more sustainable. Partnerships and alliances with organizations like the ATA and Historically Black Colleges and Universities will pay dividends in years to come. Additional partnerships with city recreation centers and public parks have the potential of identifying players who can gain access to training and resources.
Increasing the diverse pool of talent is a goal for all of us interested in diversity, equity and inclusion. Community tennis organizations and National Junior Tennis Leagues can serve as vehicles for this realistic and attainable goal.
As important is the opportunity to increase the number of diverse volunteers within our sport. As our memberships in state associations continue to grow, we must recruit, train and retain tennis ambassadors and officials. Umpires and linespersons will be needed.
Having different voices at the leadership table will enhance the collective voice of the USTA. DE&I efforts by USTA Southern continue to be recognized nationally and emulated by other sections.
Our signature event, the US Open, will begin on Monday. The diversity of players, coaches and volunteers will be exciting to see. We have come a long way and the future is bright.
Tennis for life is more than just an expression as it takes us on a journey filled with hope and opportunity.
James B. Ewers, Jr., Ed.D. is member of the Black Tennis Hall of Fame.
A’s & Aces Selects Two Scholar-Athletes as the Inaugural Dr. James B. Ewers Jr. ‘Junior Fellows’
Two scholar-athletes have been selected for the Dr. James B. Ewers Jr. Junior Fellowship Program. This Program is an A’s & Aces Career Development Initiative developed to prepare exceptional participants of early high school status (ages 14-16) for the leadership and responsibility of being a tennis coach/mentor while training to improve their own tennis game. These Junior Fellows were selected based on several criteria, including leadership potential, academic performance, tennis interest, exceptional character, sportsmanship, and teamwork skills.
The inaugural Junior Fellows include Matison Williams and Zachary Maple. Matison is an incoming first-year student at Ben Franklin High School. Matison is an accomplished Louisiana tennis player who plans to play tennis in high school and college. She is ranked top 30 in the State in her age division. Matison had a 4.0 GPA throughout elementary and middle school, graduating as a salutarian. Zachary is a rising junior attending John Curtis High School. He is on the academic A/B honor roll with high college aspirations. He is a versatile athlete, engaged in tennis and track at his high school. One of his goals is to teach other children how to play tennis and enjoy the game for life.
Fellowship Background:
The Dr. Ewers Junior Fellowship Program is designed to provide youth with an opportunity to develop leadership and management skills, discover and build life skills, and improve their athletic and coaching capabilities. The Program is named after Dr. James B. Ewers Jr., a youth advocate, educator, coach, author, and social justice activist, who was inducted into the Black Tennis Hall of Fame in 2021. Dr. James B. Ewers, Jr. is a native of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and a product of the parochial and public schools there. He is an educator with over forty years of experience in working at the college and secondary school level. During this time, he has developed programs and activities for traditional and non-traditional students. He has also created partnerships with businesses that have resulted in the creation of jobs for many students.
A’s and Aces is an after-school program, a curriculum that uses the game of tennis to teach life skills and character development to New Orleans public school children. Students spend half of their time in the classroom and the other half on the tennis court with the coaches. In the classroom, kids learn the rules of tennis and score keeping as well as the overall discipline of being an athlete, including proper nutrition. Younger kids begin with red foam balls and the progress to the yellow tennis ball. Outside on the courts, 6 kids are assigned to each coach where they put their classroom knowledge into practice and practice applying the life skills in a competitive, athletic environment.
“Tennis is the hook,” explains co-founder David Schumacher. “We get them in through tennis because tennis is fun, but this is A’s and Aces; we’re working to promote literacy.”
The program has been extremely successful in helping the kids in New Orleans find a love of tennis and keep them disciplined in their school work.
The Louisiana Tennis Association Diversity Committee is proud to support this amazing initiative and program along with several others throughout the state!
Among over 600 NJTL chapter organizations across the country, the United States Tennis Association honored A's & Aces as the National Junior Tennis & Learning "Chapter of the Year" for 2012-13 and 2017! Tennis Industry magazine selected A's & Aces as NJTL "Chapter of the Year" again in 2017. For more information on this amazing organization please see below.
Anna Monhartova & David Schumacher
Gerald Williams
Eugene St. Martin
Rhonda Rubben
Ronnie Walters
Committee Co-Chairman
Committee Co-Chairman
staff liason
The USTA and Jack and Jill of America have partnered to provide youth and adult tennis programs, exclusively for Jack and Jill members.
Run by experienced tennis professionals (USTA trained and SafePlay approved), these clinics will teach participants the fundamentals of the game of tennis while building the skills they’ll need to continue to grow and have fun in the sport.
List of Events Coming soon!!
Two scholar-athletes have been selected for the Dr. James B. Ewers Jr. Junior Fellowship Program. This Program is an A’s & Aces Career Development Initiative developed to prepare exceptional participants of early high school status (ages 14-16) for the leadership and responsibility of being a tennis coach/mentor while training to improve their own tennis game. These Junior Fellows were selected based on several criteria, including leadership potential, academic performance, tennis interest, exceptional character, sportsmanship, and teamwork skills. The Dr. Ewers Junior Fellowship Program is designed to provide youth with an opportunity to develop leadership and management skills, discover and build life skills, and improve their athletic and coaching capabilities.
Matison is an incoming first-year student at Ben Franklin High School. Matison is an accomplished Louisiana tennis player who plans to play tennis in high school and college. She is ranked top 30 in the State in her age division. Matison had a 4.0 GPA throughout elementary and middle school, graduating as a salutarian.
Zachary is a rising junior attending John Curtis High School. He is on the academic A/B honor roll with high college aspirations. He is a versatile athlete, engaged in tennis and track at his high school. One of his goals is to teach other children how to play tennis and enjoy the game for life.
The USTA Southern Advocacy effort is aimed at connecting the passion of USTA members and the larger tennis community with the public policy needs of the communities in which they live. We know that tennis is a sport that can change lives and improve communities, and this website is just one of the tools USTA Southern has developed to help make that happen.
Keep in mind that these funds are available on a first-come, first-serve basis and there is a limited amount of dollars in this budget line item. Also, you will be required to submit an accountability report later this year showing how the funds were spent and the actual results achieved.
Please check this site regularly as grants are posted as they are available.
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