Santorum honored to be inducted into Black Tennis Hall of Fame

As the USTA began making a bigger push to expand tennis to all communities in the 1990s, Dan Santorum read a report from the Police Activities League conveying that people of color often wanted to be coached by instructors who looked like them. Tennis lacked coaches of color, especially Black tennis coaches.

The disparity became the catalyst for Santorum to create the Advancing the Commitment to Education (ACE) Program, which resulted in the education and certification of thousands of Black coaches to teach tennis.

Santorum’s impact on diversifying the sport is being recognized this year with his induction into the Black Tennis Hall of Fame. He is part of the 2025 class, which also includes Junius Chatman, Jr., of North Carolina, E. Lilyan Spencer, Traci Green, Mashona Washington and Donald E. Widener.

Third non-Black inducted

Santorum is only the third non-Black individual to be inducted into the Black Tennis Hall of Fame, along with legendary coach Nick Bollettieri and Angela Buxton, who partnered with Althea Gibson to win two Grand Slam doubles titles.

“It’s humbling to be part of any Hall of Fame,” Santorum said. “I’ve been fortunate to be inducted into the Southern, Middle States and South Carolina Tennis Halls of Fame. But, being recognized by the Black Tennis Hall of Fame for my contributions to Black tennis in the United States is an especially profound honor.”

Santorum, who spent 38 years as CEO of Professional Tennis Registry (PTR), was appointed the first CEO of Racketpro in August 2024.

An International Master Tennis Professional, Santorum has received numerous honors and awards as well as has served on several boards in the tennis industry throughout his career. He received the prestigious ITF Service to the Game award, was honored with the International Tennis Hall of Fame Educational Merit Award and received the National Public Parks Hollis Smith Lifetime Achievement Award.

Santorum has been a Lifetime Member of the American Tennis Association (ATA) since the early 90s. A 35-year USTA national volunteer, he has served on dozens of USTA national, sectional and state committees, including as a national committee member on the inaugural USTA Minority Participation. He was the first person to chair the USTA Southern Minority Participation Committee, a committee that he still serves on today.

“Dan received a very special nomination for induction by the retired first Executive Director and President of the Black Tennis Hall of Fame, Robert ‘Bob’ Davis, within a few weeks prior to his passing away in January,” said Shelia Curry, President/CEO of the Black Tennis Hall of Fame. “Bob had known Dan for a long time, including the work that he had done, which was the reason that Bob submitted the nomination. When Dan originally created the PTR ACE Program, he worked with both Bob and the historic Arthur Ashe.”

Ashe: major influence

Ashe was a key figure in launching the ACE Program, serving as its first spokesperson. Working with Ashe was “one of the most impactful and rewarding experiences of my life,” Santorum said.

“I also connected with several Black PTR members to train as clinicians and lead ACE workshops nationwide. Joe Goldthreate, of Tennessee, and Lloyd Dillon, of Louisiana, were among the first and conducted workshops throughout the South and beyond. Later, Rodney Harmon, of Georgia, followed in Arthur’s footsteps as an ACE Program spokesperson.”

One memorable inspiration point came when Santorum met with Ashe to review the inaugural year of the ACE Program. Santorum proudly shared about the program hosting more than 40 workshops in 21 states with over 500 people in attendance.

Ashe asked how many people got certified.

“I replied, ‘We didn’t want people to think we were just using the ACE Program to boost PTR certifications.’ Arthur didn’t flinch. He said, ‘You didn’t answer my question—how many got certified? I swallowed hard and admitted, about 10 percent,” Santorum recalled. “Then, Arthur said something I’ll never forget: ‘Dan, Black people already have one strike against them because of the color of their skin. Don’t give employers a reason to give them another strike because they don’t have the same credentials.’”

From that moment forward, PTR certification became mandatory for ACE Program participants.

“That decision was pivotal in cementing the program’s credibility and impact,” Santorum said. “Many of the coaches who came through the ACE Program have gone on to become award-winning professionals and some are now members of various tennis halls of fame.”

The BTHOF induction ceremony is scheduled for September 20 at the Virginia Museum of History & Culture, which is located on North Arthur Ashe Boulevard in Richmond, Va. Santorum is looking forward to catching up with old friends and reflecting on the impact of the ACE Program.

“Many of the early members of that committee went on to become influential figures in Black tennis across the Southern section,” he said. “Like any new initiative, we faced some early challenges, but everyone involved was deeply committed to making tennis more accessible and inclusive.”