Midwest

Get to Know the District Presidents

August 12, 2022


Illinois

Chicago President, Jason Stanislaw

Jason Stanislaw currently serves as the President of USTA Chicago. Stanislaw first started playing tennis with a Dunlop Maxply racquet with a sawed-off grip when he was six with his father who was a strong player and school teacher in Libertyville. His childhood was divided between suburban Chicago winters and summers in the Adirondacks where he would play in tournaments. He went on to attend Michigan State University and walked onto the tennis team, earning Academic All Big Ten honors. Stanislaw's tennis career began with coaching before venturing into club management at Arlington Heights Park District’s Heritage Tennis Club. After taking a break to play French Federation tennis and spend time in Europe, he returned to the U.S. where he was a North Texas and Oklahoma Territory Manager for Prince during a time of significant growth in activity. Family brought Stanislaw back to Chicago where he assumed another public sector club management role at Forest View Racquet and Fitness Club in Arlington Heights. Stanislaw joined the Wilmette Park District in 2017 first as Racquet Sports Manager; within three years, he became General Manager of the three-sport Centennial Recreation Complex. He has served on the Board of the Chicago District Tennis Association since 2014. Stanislaw lives in Wilmette, Illinois with his wife and their six-year-old son. Stanislaw loves playing guitar and performs with a group of friends.


Mid-South Illinois President, Rob VanHootegem

Rob VanHootegem currently serves as the President of USTA Mid-South Illinois. He was born and raised in Canton, Illinois and has extensive sports history. VanHootegem was a high school and college athlete who went on to captain USTA Adult League teams. He served as VP for the Mid-South Illinois District for four years and Executive VP for two. This is his last term as President. In VanHootegem's own words: “I started playing tennis right out of college. Then as an adult, I helped form the McDonough County Tennis Association, eventually becoming the president of that board. I stopped playing tennis for about five years to focus on my career. I moved to Decatur and started to play again in 1999, getting involved with the USTA Adult Leagues in 2004. As Mid-South Illinois’s President, I hope to help with the NTRP Rating System.” Outside of tennis, VanHootegem enjoys exercising and socializing with his friends and family. He loves spending time with his wife, Linda, and their English Springer Spaniel named Raisen. The most influential people in VanHootegem’s life are his maternal grandparents, his mother and his wife; all of whom VanHootegem says molded him into the person he is today.


Northern Illinois President, Michael Lange

Michael Lange currently serves as President for USTA Northern Illinois. Lange has a tremendous amount of sports leadership experience. He's been the Manager of Tennis Services at the Rush-Copley Healthplex Fitness Center in Aurora, Illinois since 1997. In 2000, the center was awarded USTA Midwest Organization of the Year. Lange is also a part of MTL Tennis Management Group, which provides lectures to facilities and coaches. Lange has also worked for Butterfield Country Club, Hinsdale Racquet Club and East Bank Club. His certification titles include USPTA Elite Professional, USTA Verifier, USTA 10 & Under Faculty and USTA Sports Science Level 1. He's the winner of the 2004 USTA Midwest Cap Leighton Award, in recognition of his strong teaching abilities, among many other accolades, and he's served on several USTA and USPTA committees. Lange's objective is to utilize his tennis management and leadership abilities to contribute to the overall success, progress and growth of tennis.


Indiana

Central Indiana President, Tiffany Squires

Tiffany Squires currently serves as President of USTA Central Indiana. She was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, but grew up in Diamondhead, Mississippi. Squires served on the board of USTA Central Indiana for eight years, and chaired the district's Awards Committee. She has also been a member of its Management and Adult Tennis Committees, and been a Midwest Committee Member (social, Tennis On Campus, adult rec.) for 10 years. She has worked with USTA National to help design several adult programs. As a sports enthusiast, Squires has captained tennis teams for 11 years, been a Five Seasons board member, coached for the Special Olympics and facilitated the implementation of several USTA Adult Leagues in Central Indiana. She learned tennis from her husband and began playing in competitions in 2009 as a 2.5-ranked player. Squires is currently at a 4.5 ranking. In her own words: “As Central Indiana’s President, I hope more than anything to grow tennis. In order to achieve that goal, our district is focused on improving the parks and increasing programs available.” Squires loves to travel and exercise. The most important people in her life are her husband, family and friends, including the many lifelong friends she’s made through tennis.


Northern Indiana President, Brent Wolff

Brent Wolff is currently serving as the President for USTA Northern Indiana. He was born and raised in Centralia, Illinois and has been captaining sports teams since high school, mainly softball, basketball and tennis. Wolff started playing tennis recreationally in high school and he walked onto his junior college tennis team. He hardly picked up a racquet again until he was recruited to play in a USTA Adult League the summer of 2009. The teams he captained won several league championships, a few district championships and one state championship. In 2013, he finished second in the Midwest Sectional at the 3.5 level. In his own words: “As Northern Indiana President, I hope to promote and grow the game of tennis.” Wolff’s hobbies include traveling and reading. The most important people in Wolff’s life are his wife, Deborah, his daughter, Elizabeth, his spiritual mentor, Paul Sigg, and his many friends and teammates he’s made through tennis over the years.


Michigan

Northeastern Michigan President, Mike Andrews

Mike Andrews, PTR/USPTA, is the current president of USTA Northeastern Michigan. He also serves as the Director of Tennis at Greater Midland Tennis Center. Andrews has more than 25 years of management and junior development experience. For eight years, Andrews was a USTA Midwest Junior Davis Cup coach and a USTA Midwest Baird Cup coach. Andrews previously served as a Director of Tennis in the Green Bay, Wisconsin-area, was a Tournament Director and a USTA 10U National Faculty Trainer. In 2010, Andrews received the USTA Midwest's Cap Leighton Award, and he's also been a USTA/USPTA Professional of the Year more than once. Andrews is the recipient of multiple National Community Service Awards as well.


Northern Michigan President, Sue Wadel Smith

Sue Wadel Smith is the President of USTA Northern Michigan. She was born and raised in Baldwin, Michigan, and was formerly the Vice President of the Alpine Regional Tennis Association. Wadel Smith has been an athlete her entire life. In her own words: “Tennis was a natural progression for me as other sports became unavailable. I started tennis in my mid-30s and took some lessons before quitting for 35 years to work. I returned to the game in my retirement. I love the competition of tennis – with others and with myself. As President of USTA Northern Michigan, I hope to keep competitive tennis alive in our district and to encourage others, particularly parents, to recognize that tennis is a sport all can play for a lifetime.” Wadel Smith believes tennis is a sport requiring strong focus awareness, and in doubles, teamwork. She believes in the solitary challenge of honing one's skills on the court as a great opportunity to set goals and to work methodically through them. Outside of physical fitness, Wadel Smith enjoys gardening and reading. She works for fun and is active in a number of non-profit organizations such as a homeless shelter, a children's literacy program, and her local United Way. Wadel Smith credits her parents, now deceased, as being enormous influences on her life, and her understanding that hard work is important. 


Southeastern Michigan President, Vanda Shadigian

Vanda Shadigian currently serves as President of USTA Southeastern Michigan. She grew up in Hudson Falls, New York and Indianapolis, Indiana, first becoming interested in tennis by watching Grand Slam matches on her TV. As a teenager, she decided to start playing and picked up a racquet from her local thrift store. There weren't any tennis courts in Shadigian's neighborhood, so she'd hit the ball in the streets with her friends. Without formal training, Shadigian would try to copy pro players she idolized. She went on to play #1 singles for her high school varsity team, and later, as a working professional, gained extensive sports leadership. Shadigian has worked with public schools systems, USTA Adult League teams and served as a Tennis Director and Lead Tennis Instructor among other roles. As Southeastern Michigan's President, Shadigian wants to, "Grow tennis in underserved areas, providing equal access to tennis." Her other goals include supporting District staff by developing an employee handbook and improving efficiency through digital tools. In her spare time, Shadgian enjoys spending time with her family, about whome she says, "My husband, daughter and sister have been rocks for me as I pursued my tennis career. My mother pulled herself up by her bootstraps through education and hard work, and my father and grandfather were immigrants. I learned a lot about discrimination and unequal access from their experiences."


Western Michigan President, Erik Anderson

Erik Anderson is currently serving as President of USTA Western Michigan. He was born in Detroit and grew up in Troy, Michigan, later gaining leadership experience by receiving USPTA and First Responder Certifications. Anderson has held various positions in Sports Management for 18+ years, specifically Tennis Management for 10 years. He is the Association Tennis Director at the YMCA of Greater Kalamazoo and was awarded the 2017 USPTA Large Facility Manager of the Year. The YMCA was the recipient of the 2020 USTA Midwest Member Organization of the Year Award. In his own words: “After college, I worked in an athletic club that offered tennis as a Customer Service Manager. I grew up playing several sports but hadn’t learned tennis. I decided to learn it on my own and joined a USTA Adult League, playing as a 3.0-rated player. I developed into a 4.5-rated player and became a teaching professional. In my role at USTA Western Michigan, I hope to bring the district together, gaining involvement from all tennis facilities and directors. I want to grow opportunities to play tennis for all communities and players of all backgrounds.” As a tennis player, Anderson learned to be patient on the court and play fairly. He also enjoys ice hockey and golf, and says the most important people in his life are his family (his wife and two kids) and his past supervisors throughout his tennis career. Amongst his direct sports mentors are Sue Selke, Tom Walker, Peter Militzer and Oak Saad.


Ohio

Northeastern Ohio President, Greg Aten

Greg Aten currently serves as President of USTA Northeastern Ohio. He is the Managing Director of Racquet Sports, Chagrin Valley Athletic Club, in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, a USPTA Certified Elite Professional, and a member of the Wilson Premiere Advisory Staff. Aten attended the University of Akron where he played varsity tennis and captained the team his senior year and received All Conference All American honors. Aten has more than 40 years of teaching experience to his record. He has received numerous awards for his accomplishments, including the USTA Midwest Cap Leighton Award in 1992. Aten currently sits on the USTA Midwest Club task force committee. In 2012, Aten was inducted into the USPTA Midwest Divisions Hall. He served as President of the Midwest USPTA in 1998 and President of the Northeast Ohio Tennis Association (USTA) from 1993 to 1995 and 2021 to 2022. Greg has also been a high school tennis coach for 37 seasons with over 500 wins. Currently, Aten is the Girls' Varsity coach at Hathaway Brown high school, where they have won several consecutive state team championships. Aten lives in Akron with his wife Sharon. They have two boys, Austin (wife Kimmy) of Cincinnati, Ohio, and Gavin of Columbus, Ohio. 


Ohio Valley President, Darrin Heinz

Darrin Heinz currently serves as President of USTA Ohio Valley. He was born, raised and still lives in Dayton, Ohio where his sports leadership includes captaining several USTA teams. In his own words: “I started playing tennis when I was eight or nine years old. In the early ‘70s, my family joined a new, indoor club in town, which is now the club my family owns and operates. In my role as District President, I hope to maintain the same level of inclusion and professionalism Ohio Valley has had for so long." Heinz enjoys playing singles and doubles tennis with personal goals to stay fit and have a lot of fun! He also likes to ski and go hiking. His whole family is involved in tennis, and Heinz loves including them in daily work at the clubs, creating a fun atmosphere for all who play.


Wisconsin

Wisconsin President, Jeff Dittman

Jeff Dittman is the current President of USTA Wisconsin. He was born in Milwaukee and raised in Erin, Wisconsin. Dittman's sports leadership experience includes being president and founder of the club tennis team at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) and captaining many USTA Adult League teams. Dittman also runs a social league in the Milwaukee-area. In Dittman's own words, "I started playing tennis my junior year of high school and absolutely fell in love with it. I went from being a real novice to playing every day and being fortunate enough to play club tennis in college. It's been 15+ years and I am still in love with the game as much as I was when I first started playing. As President of USTA Wisconsin, I want to give back to tennis, which has given me so much. I want to be a leader in the tennis community and do my part to grow the game." Dittman's hobbies include playing volleyball, living an active lifestyle and playing pickelball with his wife. Dittman says, he's very fortunate to have such loving support from his wife and parents. He is grateful for his high school coach Steve Olderman for teaching him the game, and Steve Wise, formerly of the USTA, who approached Dittman about starting a club tennis team at UWM.

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