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About Adaptive Tennis
Tennis can be adapted so that everyone can participate in the sport. People of any age, environment, social, intellectual or physical ability are invited to enjoy the game.
The USTA can lead you in the process to start a new program or to grow your current program. Several curricula for teaching adaptive tennis can be found here. Learn more about adaptive tennis cirricula.
In addition, each USTA section has a designated contact person to help you. They can effectively answer questions on a wide range of topics, including financing and procuring educational materials and equipment.
Click here to find your sectional contact to obtain more information.
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Register Your Program
Connecting players with programs to meet their needs is a top priority, and registering your program with the USTA will enable those with similar needs in your area to find you. It is easy to do and free of charge. To register, programs must have at least three athletes and be actively ongoing. Register here.
Benefits of being a USTA-registered program include:
- Listing, with link to your website or email, on the USTA National Adaptive Tennis webpage.
- Being a member of a larger tennis community.
- Opportunity to network with other programs.
- Opportunity to apply for national grants when available
- Access to Adaptive Tennis curricula.
- Receipt of quarterly Adapt It! newsletter highlighting upcoming events, interesting programs, educational materials and funding resources.
- Opportunity to have a story about your program featured in the newsletter.
- Opportunity to share stories for the newsletter about other adaptive programs.
- Access to other USTA newsletters.
- Opportunity to register with USTA Net Generation if your program serves youth (18 and under).
- Opportunity for consideration of the USTA National Adaptive Tennis Award.
Learn more about existing programs.
Grants
The USTA's Adaptive Tennis Grants are offered to USTA-registered programs to assist in the promotion, implementation and growth of adaptive tennis programs at the community level. Criteria for selection include: clear use of grant funds in an itemized budget; a plan for program sustainability, program growth and expansion, which can include the number of athletes and/or play opportunities; and success stories.
The 2022 grant cycle will open on Sept. 15. The deadline to apply is Nov. 6. Registered programs will receive notices by email, and announcements will be published in future issues of the Adapt It! Newsletter. Click here to apply for a grant.
Thirteen programs were approved for grants ranging from $1,000 to $4,000 in 2021.
National Adaptive Championship Tournament
The National Adaptive Championship tournament, canceled in 2021, will return in 2022. This Unified Doubles event will once again be held at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Florida from Nov. 4-6. Sectional adaptive contacts have been notified and are in the process of scheduling qualifier tournaments. Contact your section representative for more information. Click here to find your section contact.
Adaptive Tennis Award
The annual Adaptive Tennis Award recognizes a program that has demonstrated continued excellence, dedication and service in tennis for individuals with disabilities. The program must be USTA-registered and have had three years of active involvement providing tennis to this population. In addition, programs who have won the award in any of the last three years are ineligible in that timeframe. (For example, 2023 applicants cannot have won the award in 2020, 2021 or 2022.)
As we continue to recover from the COVID-19 years, the USTA National Adaptive Tennis Committee is encouraged and amazed at the wonderful work being done to support adaptive tennis athletes. We look forward to continuing the tradition in 2023. Keep checking your emails and the Adapt It! Newsletter for announcements of the dates that the committee will be accepting nominations.
A list of former recipients and additional information can also be found here.
Adaptive Engagement Guide
The USTA has created an Adaptive Engagement Guide, providing general examples of how to coach and teach different populations which can be modified to suit the user's situations and needs.
Newsletter
To keep up with news and notes from the USTA Adaptive Tennis Committee, subscribe to the adaptive newsletter and other email communications.
Read on to find adaptive tennis programs where you live and how you and your family can take part. Looking to learn more? Click here to find your home USTA section and then connect with your sectional contact for adaptive tennis, found in the list below.
ACCESS (partnering ACEing Autism) - Little Rock
ACE Tennis (Amazing Children Empowered Through Tennis) - Conway
Arkansas Cup Tennis Foundation - Little Rock
Center Court Tennis – Springdale
Love All Tennis - Jonesboro
ACEing Autism - Phoenix, Tucson
El Conquistador Tennis Saturday Special - Oro Valley
Buddy Up Tennis - Phoenix
Phoenix Adaptive Standing/Wheelchair Tennis - Phoenix
Special Olympics Tennis Fun Day - Scottsdale
ACEing Autism – Burbank, Burlingame, Carlsbad, Culver City, Downey, Elk Grove, Inglewood, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Mission Viejo, Mountain View, Newport Beach, Pacific Palisades, Palm Springs, Pasadena, Rancho Mirage, Santa Barbara, San Diego, Sherman Oaks, Solana Beach, Yorba Linda
All Abilities Tennis - Pittsburg
Badon Tennis Academy - Altadena
Beach City Tennis Academy - Manhattan Beach
Biola University Challenger Tennis – La Mirada
ICA Cristo Rey Academy – San Francisco
Long Beach Wounded Warrior Tennis Program - Long Beach
Marin County Special Olympics Tennis Program - Marin County
OPAF First Volley Tennis - Fresno
Operation Pride - Berkeley
Pete Brown, Jr. Tennis Program - Los Angeles
San Diego Wounded Warrior Tennis Program - San Diego
Semurana Tennis Association - Carson
Serving Advantage – Orange
Sloane Stephens Foundation - Love, Love Compton - Compton
SMP Junior Tennis - Santa Monica
SoCal Adaptive Sports/Desert Recreation District Community Tennis Program-- Palm Desert
Special Need Group (SNG) - San Diego
Special Needs - Let's Teach - South Pasadena
Special Olympics - Orange County
ACEing Autism - Parker
Special Olympics - Centennial
Dare to Play Tennis – Denver
Highlands Ranch Therapeutic REC - Highlands Ranch
Steamboat Tennis Association – Steamboat Springs
ACEing Autism - Farmington Valley, North Haven
Adapted Physical Education - Danbury
Chapel Haven Adaptive Tennis Program - New Haven
Greater Middletown Special Olympics – Middletown
Ivan Lendl Adapative Sports Camp - Hospital for Special Care - Berlin
Special Olympics Connecticut - Hamden
Tennis Pals – Old Lyme
Delaware Special Olympics Tennis Program – Bethany Beach, Dover, Newark, Wilmington
ACEing Autism - Washington, D.C.
ThanksUSA Veterans Adaptive Tennis Clinic – Washington, D.C.
ACE Program - Atlantic Beach
ACEing Autism – Coral Gables, Fort Myers, Fort Walkton Beach, Miami, Naples, Orlando, Stuart, Weston
Buddy Up Tennis - Lake Nona, Sarasota, Tampa
Ernie Els: #GameONAustism - Jupiter
Love Serving Autism - Boca, Boynton Beach, Clearwater, Greenacres, Jupiter, Lake Worth, North Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Plantation, Sunrise, Wellington, West Palm Beach
Military Program (USTA Nat'l Campus) - Orlando
Miracle Sports Tennis - Tallahassee
North Miami Sr. High Special Olympics - North Miami
Racquet Club of Cocoa Beach Adaptive Tennis – Cocoa Beach
Speak Through Sports Adaptive Tennis Clinics - West Melbourne
Special Olympics - Palm Beach
Tennis for Fun - Brandon, Fish Hawk, Tampa
ACEing Autism – Norcross, Powder Springs
Ad In Special Needs Tennis - Columbus
Net Therapy for Children on the Autism Spectrum - Macon
Rockdale Special Olympics – Conyers
South Atlanta CTA – College Park
Southeast Clarke Park Tennis Center Adaptive Tennis Program - Athens
Special Olympics Georgia - Norcross
Special Populations Tennis - Atlanta, Savannah
Tennis People, Inc. - McDonough
TVI Atlanta - Atlanta
Adaptive Tennis 4 All - Maui
ACEing Autism – Moline
Adaptive Beginner's Tennis Program - Homewood
Adaptive Fun Play Day - Homewood
Buddy Up Tennis – Naperville, NW Chicago
iCan Dream After-School Beginners Program – Homewood
Lincoln Way Area Tennis - Mokena
Special Olympics Illinois Tennis – Normal
Tennis Buddies at Evergreen – Bloomington
Tennis for All - Flossmoor
Tiebreaks – Park Forest
Training for Special Olympics Competition - Homewood
Unified Doubles Play - Homewood
Buddy Up Tennis - South Bend
RHI Adaptive Sports Program/Wheelchair Tennis of Indiana - Indianapolis
Special Olympics Indiana – Boone County, Hamilton County, Washington Township, Zionsville
Stand Up Tennis for Amputees - Muncie
Turnstone Center - Tennis – Fort Wayne
ACEing Autism – Des Moines
Independent North, Algona-Dyson Special Olympics Tennis - Algona
Iowa City Recreation - Iowa City
Nancy's Stars - Bluegrass
North Dodge Athletic Club - Iowa City
Smart DMS - Des Moines
Special Olympics Iowa - Grimes
Special Olympics Tennis Program - Cedar Rapids
West Enders and Scott County Adults - Davenport, Moline
All Abilities Tennis Program - Kansas City
Blue Valley Special Olympics – Overland Park
Blue Valley Recreation Commission – Overland Park
CBTP Adaptive Tennis Club of Topeka - Topeka
Special Olympics Kansas - Mission
Johnson County Park & Rec Special Olympics Program - Merriam
Tennis For All – Fort Riley
Warriors in Transition – Fort Riley
YMCA of Greater Kansas City Adaptive Challenger – Kansas City, Prairie Village
ACEing Autism – Lexington
Binet Special Populations Tennis Team - Louisville
Buddy Up Tennis - Louisville
FEAT: Autism Camp - Louisville
FEST: Fun Easter Seal Tennis - Paducah
Special Populations, FEAT - Louisville
Acadiana Junior Tennis League - Lafayette
ACEing Autism - New Orleans
Special Olympics Iberia Parish – New Iberia
Special Olympics Louisiana - Hammond
Special Olympics Louisiana, Inc., Tennis Program - Hammond
Special Olympics Play Day - Lafayette
ACEing Autism – Damariscotta
Maine Adaptive Sports & Recreation - New Gloucester
Special Olympics Maine - South Portland
ACEing Autism - Baltimore
Adaptive Tennis US - Gaithersburg
Bennett Institute/KKI – Baltimore
Bennett Institute Physically Challenged Tennis – Baltimore
Calvert County Tennis Association, Inc. – Lusby
Green Spring Tennis and Educational Foundation - Lutherville
Special Olympics, Anne Arundel County - Annapolis
Special Olympics Maryland - Unified Tennis – Baltimore
Special Olympics - College Park
Tennis Corps – College Park
ThanksUSA Veterans Adaptive Tennis Clinic – College Park
Wounded Warrior Tennis – Gaithersburg
ACEing Autism – Boston, Charlestown, Martha's Vineyard, Sandwich, Wayland, Worcester
Adaptive Tennis Lessons - Lexington
EMARC Adaptive Tennis – Wakefield
Handi-Racket Tennis - Wayland
Harvard Recreation - Tennis - Boston
Lobstars Inclusive Tennis - Hanover
Love Serving Autism – Cambridge
Special Olympics Massachusetts - Marlborough
ACEing Autism – Ann Arbor, Bloomfield, Northville, Novi
Adaptive Tennis Camp – Mt. Pleasant
Adaptive Play Day - Holland
Bay City Unified Adaptive Tennis - Bay City
Buddy Up Tennis – Grand Rapids
Dearborn Public Schools – Dearborn
Got Ability Sports Tennis – Brighton
Mary Free Bed Adaptive Tennis – Grand Rapids
Michigan Victory Games (One-Day Try-It Clinic) - East Lansing
Michigan Wheelchair and Adaptive Tennis – Brighton
Thunder in the Valley Games (One-Day Try-It Clinic) - Saginaw
Adaptive Tennis - Golden Valley
Hibbing Chisholm Rangers S.O. Tennis - Hibbing
InnerCity Tennis' Kidspeed Stations for Children with ASD – Minneapolis
ACEing Autism – Ladue
All Abilities Tennis Program – Kansas City
Buddy Up Tennis – St. Louis
Goals Adaptive Tennis - Joplin
One Love Tennis – Behavioral Health Pilot Program – Kansas City
Special Olympics Missouri – Cape, Columbia, Fulton, Jefferson City, Kansas City, St. Joe, St. Louis, Sikeston
Fremont Tennis Buddies - Fremont
Lincoln Tennis Buddies - Lincoln
Omaha Tennis Buddies - Omaha
Woods Tennis Center – Lincoln
ACEing Autism – Las Vegas, South Las Vegas
Inspiring Children Foundation - Las Vegas
Tennis Buddies of Reno - Reno
Buddy Up Tennis - Lebanon
Count Me In, Inc. – Exeter, Hampton
ACEing Autism – South Orange
Athletes with Disabilities Network Northeast – Cherry Hill
Barnegat High School Challenger Tennis Program – Barnegat
Future Foundations Academy APE – Piscataway
Love Serving Autism - West Orange
Police Athletic League - Atlantic City
Princeton Tennis Program - Princeton
Raritan Valley YMCA Special Needs Tennis – East Brunswick
RiverWinds - West Deptford
Tennis for Life – Ridgewood
15-Love – Albany, Rennsalaer, Schenectady, Troy
ACEing Autism – Cooperstown, Flushing, Great Neck, Ithaca, Port Washington, Syracuse
Adaptive Recreation – Hamburg
Backyard Sports Cares - Purchase
Backyard Sports Plus Tennis - White Plains
Batavia Challenger Tennis Program - Batavia
Cerebral Palsy Association – Rye Brook
EDD Memorial Fund Adaptive Tennis Clinics - Oneonta
Hero, Inc. - Scarsdale
Highland Park Tennis Association – Brooklyn
Jawonio - Adaptive Tennis - New Hempstead
Love Serving Autism - Farmingdale
Orange County Aces – Montgomery, Newburgh
RCTA Adaptive Tennis Programs - Riverside Park, New York City
Rockland Hospital Guild - Orangeburg
Serve and Return, Inc. – Farmingdale
Serving Heroes - Kings Park, Northport
Sound of Tennis - Brooklyn, Long Island City
SPARC, Inc. - Briarcliff Manor
Special Aces - Brooklyn
Special Olympics - New York – Schenectady, across the state
Special Olympics - Long Island (Tennis Program) - East Setauket
Special Olympics Broome Tioga Tennis – Binghamton
STRIDE Adaptive Sports - Schenectady
Tennis Serving Vets - Yonkers
Tennis for Life – Orangeburg
Westside Challenger Tennis - Brockport
Abilities Tennis Association of North Carolina – Albermarle, Apex, Asheville, Belmont, Brunswick County, Cary, Chapel Hill, Charlotte, Clayton, Concord, Dare County, Greensboro, Hendersonville, Hickory, Kinston, Monroe, Pinehurst, Raleigh, Rocky Mount,
Wake Forest, Wilmington, Winston-Salem
ACEing Autism – Asheville, Charlotte, Durham, Mooresville, Winston-Salem
CAST: Carolinas Adaptive Standing Tennis - Greensboro
Pegasus - Brunswick County
ACEing Autism – Akron, Columbus, Toledo
Buddy Up Tennis – Akron, Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton, Lorain, Youngstown
Cincinnati Tennis Foundation - Cincinnati
NLA Superstar Tennis - Lancaster
Thrive Through Tennis Foundation – Broadview Heights
Walnut Hills Outreach - Cincinnati
Bridge Creek Early Childhood - Blanchard
LaFortune Park Adaptive Tennis - Tulsa
Play It Forward Tennis Foundation – Edmond
Lake Oswego Tennis Center Special Olympics – Lake Oswego
ACEing Autism - Drexel Hill, Manheim, Pittsburgh, Radnor, Wallingford
Athletes with Disabilities Network Northeast – North Wales
All In-Adaptive Tennis! - Lititz
Buddy Up Tennis - Pittsburgh, Scranton
Cheltenham Youth Tennis - Wyncote
Fred Perrin's USA Tennis - Feasterville
Greater Pottstown Tennis & Learning - Pottstown
Highland Park Free Blind/VI Tennis - Pittsburgh
Lebanon County Special Olympics - Myerstown
Legacy Youth Tennis and Education - Philadelphia
Love Serving Autism – Allentown
Northampton County – Easton
Philadelphia Sunchasers - Philadelphia
Project Elijah Empowering Autism-PEEA – Philadelphia
Slippery Rock University Recreational Therapy Program - Slippery Rock
Special Olympics Pennsylvania Montgomery County Tennis Program – Gwynedd Valley
SportAbility Day – Philadelphia
Tennis Central - Lancaster
The Tennis Buddies Squad - Montgomery County
Arecibo Adaptive Tennis - Arecibo
Barceloneta Tennis Academy – Barceloneta
PRTA Tennis Initiative - San Juan
ACEing Autism - East Providence, Newport
Adaptive Tennis – Greenville
Advantage Tennis Foundation – Columbia
Area 14, Anderson County Special Olympics – Anderson
Aunt Nettie’s Fault (Special Olympics Group) - Columbia
City of Charleston Therapeutic Recreation Unified Tennis - Charleston
Public Tennis Inc. Special Needs & Special Olympics Tennis – Beaufort, Bluffton, Hilton Head
Rockin’ Rackets Tennis – Daniel Island
Saluda Slammers – Columbia
ACEing Autism – Nashville
Buddy Up Tennis - Nashville
Cookeville Adaptive Tennis - Cookeville
Love Tennis – Nashville
Smashing Aces Tennis - Germantown
SPUD Tennis - Nashville
ACEing Autism – Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, McKinney
Boys and Girls Club of Mission Blind Tennis - Mission
Buddy Up Tennis - Dallas, Waco
Bynum School Physical Education – Midland
Camp Discovery Adaptive Tennis Program - Texas Lions Camp - San Antonio
DAB's Independents Tennis Aces Special Olympics - Region 20 – San Antonio
Dallas Tennis Assn. Adaptive Tennis – Dallas
DTEA Deaf Program - Dallas
Fabens Tennis – Fabens
Houston Stand Up Adaptive – Houston
Kinetic Kids - San Antonio
Laredo Tennis Association Stroke Survivor Tennis Club - Laredo
Little Elm ISD - Little Elm
Miradas de Esperanza – McAllen
Missouri City Adaptive Tennis - Missouri City
Special Friends Tennis – Richardson
Special Olympics Texas – Pflugerville
Special Strokes for Special Folks - Addison, Dallas
Summer All Stars (Texas Scottish Rite Hospital) - Dallas
Texas Lions Camp - Camp Discovery - Children with Cancer - Kerrville
The Christina Grillo Sullivan Foundation – Galveston
Travis – Port Iavaca
Waco Tennis Association - Waco
Adaptive Tennis for Youth with Developmental Disabilities – Park City
Utah Tennis Association – Salt Lake City
Bennington Aces - Bennington
ACEing Autism – Richmond, Williamsburg
Black Girls Tennis Club - Norfolk
First Volley, OPAF – Falls Church
Love Serving Autism - Richmond
Sportable - Richmond
Piedmont Area Tennis Association - Ivy
Adaptive Tennis Kick-Off Event - Blacksburg
Amy Yee Tennis Center Special Populations Tennis Camps - Seattle
Adaptive Tennis/Special Olympics – Kent
Tennis Outreach Programs – Kirkland
ACEing Autism - Huntington
Grayhound Youth Sports – Northfork
Jensen-Schmidt Tennis Academy - Wheeling
ACEing Autism – Milwaukee, Sussex
Buddy Up Tennis - Green Bay
First Service Doubles – Verona
Lakeland Area Special Olympics - Minocqua
Cheyenne Children's Therapy Group - Cheyenne
Contact Your Local Representative
If you're looking to create an adaptive tennis program in your neighborhood but don't know where to start, don't worry. Each USTA section has a representative dedicated to helping you start or grow your program, whether you're looking for advice with grants and scholarships or ways to connect players with local programming in your area.
USTA Caribbean - Monica Carrasquillo (787) 726-8782
USTA Eastern - David Williams (914) 697-2273
USTA Florida - Ron Lyons (407) 917-9826
USTA Hawaii - Madeleine Dreith (808) 585-9528
USTA Intermountain - Adele Sobieski (303) 695-4117 ext. 235
USTA Mid Atlantic - Tara Fitzpatrick Navarro (703) 556-6120 ext. 7001
USTA Middle States - Renee Bridges (484) 302-0752
USTA Midwest - Greg Boyd (317) 669-0448
USTA Missouri Valley - Jaren Glaser (913) 967-9929
USTA New England - Mavi Sanchez-Skakle (508) 366-3450 ext.115
USTA Northern California - Charrisha Watkins (301) 335-9870
USTA Northern - Mya Smith-Dennis (952) 358-3289
USTA Pacific Northwest - Valerie Weaks (503) 718-3334 ext.3334
USTA Southern California - Andy Schwich (310) 567-7531
USTA Southern - Cee Jai Jones (770) 368-8200 ext. 116
USTA Southwest - Kelsey Richman (602) 412-3618
USTA Texas - Cindy Benzon (832) 264-7773
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