USTA FOUNDATION launches 'serve & connect'

The USTA Foundation has launched "Serve & Connect," a new initiative that partners eight National Junior Tennis & Learning (NJTL) chapters across the country with local law enforcement to build positive police-youth relationships through tennis.

The program, which will kick off Feb. 23, will pair local police officers with kids to learn and play tennis. The goal of the initiative is to provide an opportunity for officers to engage in ongoing positive youth interaction and community tennis programming at their local NJTL chapter.

“Serve & Connect” is designed to expose hundreds of children from the NJTLs to important life lessons, including teamwork, communication, respect, healthy lifestyles and leadership, which can be used both on and off the court.  

It is also intended to help police officers identify and strengthen positive youth interaction strategies that are helpful in all aspects of law enforcement, as well as to improve perceptions and relationships between youth, police and community residents.

“The USTA Foundation is committed to the youth participants from our hundreds of NJTL programs throughout the country and teaching them the importance of developing into model citizens and is proud to launch the Serve & Connect initiative,” said Dan Faber, Executive Director, USTA Foundation. “It is important to us that they strive for greatness, whether it be on a tennis court or not, and we are glad that the local officers in these cities will help drive this message forward.”

The NJTL chapters selected to pilot the 2018 Serve & Connect program are:

• The ACE Project – Baltimore
  
• The ACE Project – Riverdale, Ill.
• Atlanta Youth Tennis and Education Foundation – Atlanta
  
• Gainesville Area Community Tennis Association, Inc. – Gainesville, Fla.
• New York Junior Tennis & Learning – New York
  
• Greater Pottstown Tennis & Learning – Pottstown, Pa.
• Sloane Stephens Foundation – Los Angeles
  
• Sportsmen’s Tennis & Enrichment Center – Boston