Hundreds of Tennis Coaches Turn to Professional Development During Quarantine

WESTBOROUGH, MA- From April through early June, more than 450 tennis providers throughout New England and beyond sought to improve their coaching through a series of educational webinars in anticipation of their return to the court following COVID-19 restrictions. These webinars were part of the 14-part Pro Power Series hosted by USTA New England in collaboration with USPTA New England and the PTR.

“The Pro Power Series was designed for our New England coaches to stay in touch during the quarantine. We felt that this was an opportunity to keep them engaged and bring them closer to topics that are important from a perspective of professional development,” said Shawna Fors, USTA New England Director of Player Development and series co-creator.

The series kicked off featuring USPTA New England President, Patricio Misitrano, who spoke on the best practices to ace an interview for a tennis professional position. In webinars following, presenters addressed popular topics such as the parent/coach relationship, Net Generation, branding your tennis business and more.

“There were so many diverse and interesting topics that anyone could find all sorts of information. They were offered on a consistent basis week after week so if you missed one, there were plenty of opportunities to join other webinars,” Misitrano said.

The Pro Power Series was the first all-virtual educational series of this magnitude and PTR’s Massachusetts State Representative, Lance Andersen, says pros were eager to learn online.

“It was exciting to see the number of New England tennis professionals who took advantage of this opportunity to increase their knowledge during this difficult time, especially seeing many were furloughed or laid off,” Andersen said. “It also showed that while in-person training provides networking opportunities, if you make education more readily accessible via technology, our members will take advantage of it.”

As tennis facilities have and continue to reopen, USPTA Executive Director Pam Dodman expects pros will return to the courts enthusiastic and ready to work.

“The tennis teaching professionals in New England are just that, professionals. They are committed to their profession and to making themselves become as knowledgeable as possible in order to help their students and the sport of tennis,” she said. “I'm confident the pros are returning to the court with the knowledge necessary to teach with greater knowledge and enthusiasm and to do this while adhering to the safety guidelines around the pandemic.”

For their commitment to the webinars, both USPTA and PTR pros earned continuing education credits.

In addition, USTA New England rewarded frequent webinar participants by entering them into raffles for prize packs that included Wilson equipment, a sponsor of the section.

The creation of the Pro Power Series was a team effort between Fors and her USTA New England colleagues, Christy Bennett, Tennis Service Representative and Alex Wesley, Director of Marketing.

In conjunction with the Pro Power Series, USTA New England put on a Junior Power Series that addressed mental training and college recruitment.

To view the entire set of webinars from the Pro Power Series, click here.

For the Junior Power Series archives, click here.