The Southlake Tennis Center
Goal: Start an off-season middle and high school tennis league
Program Size (1st Year): 50 participants, with use of six courts once per week
Location: Cary, N.C. (outside Raleigh/Durham)
City/Community Size: 100,000
Lead Advocate Organization: Cary Community Tennis Association
Length of Program: 8 weeks, twice per year
Budget: $2,000
Funding Source: CTA fundraising, North Carolina Tennis Association grant, in-kind court donation, program fees
Introduction: Wake County high schools had neither a "no cut" policy for high school tennis teams nor a junior varsity program. In an attempt to provide middle school students with the opportunity to practice with their potential teammates, and to provide tennis to a larger section of the student population, the Cary Community Tennis Association decided to start an after-school, off-season league for boys and girls in grades 8 through 12.
History: The Wake County public school system plays boys tennis in the spring and girls tennis in the fall. To keep the kids interested in playing tennis throughout the year, as well as to promote socialization through the sport and provide kids a chance to play even if they weren’t on their high school team, the Cary CTA in 2004 decided to create an off-season league for students in western Wake County served by the local CTA. Most youth tennis play in western Wake County had previously come from private tennis clubs. The first steps for the Cary Community Tennis Association members were to come up with a budget, a publicity plan, a coordinator and a monetary donation from the CTA to get the league started. They approached Cary’s new public tennis facility, the Cary Tennis Park, which agreed to donate six courts for use every Thursday afternoon during each season, and selected a progressive doubles format that allowed the participants to move up and down the courts each week depending on their individual game scores (thus allowing the students to find their true competitive place). Up to 24 regular players per season, with about six substitutes, had the opportunity to sign up. The Cary Community Tennis Association targeted the seven high schools that serve western Wake County and reached out to private schools and the home school network as well. A flier was developed and sent to every tennis coach asking that he or she pass it on to players and post it in the gym locker rooms. The Cary Community Tennis Association also targeted the middle school physical education teachers and asked them to distribute and post fliers, sent mass e-mails to association members in hopes that they too would spread the word and put an ad in the local newspaper each season publicizing the league. The mission was a total success, and when the Cary Tennis Park opened in 2002, the opportunity for public school youth tennis play burst wide open!
Funding:
- Court time donated by the Cary Tennis Park (six courts once a week each season)
- Individual charge of $17 per participant to play in the league
- $500 grant from the North Carolina Tennis Association
- $500 donation by the local CTA to help pay additional expenses
Robin Jones, Passionate Tennis Advocate: "This was an especially rewarding league for public school youth tennis in Cary. It kept kids in the game during the off-season and brought kids who would otherwise not have had the opportunity to play tennis in high school out to the courts. They were challenged, they socialized and they gained confidence. We ended up the first season with participants of every grade and level, from four public, three private and one home school in the area."
Lesson: Seek help from other organizations. The Cary Community Tennis Association was able to institute the after-school program with very little upfront money due to the donation of courts and court time from the Cary Tennis Park. Having a place and time to play allowed the Cary CTA to spend money on fliers and advertisements to publicize and grow the program.
Contact Information:
Robin Jones, Volunteer
306 Joliesse Lane • Cary, NC 27519
Telephone: 919-622-7277
