USTA Multicultural Participation Initiative
The USTA Multicultural Participation Initiative is made up of a national and sectional volunteer Multicultural Participation Committee and full-time staff members at the national and sectional level. The volunteer committees and the staff work in a coordinated effort to achieve greater multicultural participation all areas of the USTA.
The Multicultural Participation Committee is part of the United States Tennis Association (USTA), a volunteer-based, not-for profit membership organization that works year-round to promote and develop the growth of tennis. The Multicultural Participation Committee (MPC) was formed by the USTA to increase minority participation-particularly in the African-American, Asian, Latino, Hispanic, and Native American communities.
The goals of the Multicultural Participation Committee are:
- To identify major barriers which prohibit multicultural participation in the USTA.
- To develop promotional, program and leadership initiatives at the national and sectional levels that will substantially increase multicultural participation in the USTA.
- To promote inclusion of people from all backgrounds in all areas of the USTA.
- To build linkages to tennis organizations that serve multicultural communities to better promote tennis in their community.
- To identify methods to monitor and evaluate multicultural participation in USTA programs and on sectional and national committees.
The USTA Multicultural Participation Department is made up of a National Director of Multicultural Development and a staff person in each of the seventeen USTA Sectional Offices. The role of the staff is:
- To generate awareness of tennis programs and activities.
- To provide training opportunities for tennis coaches at local, regional, and national locations.
- To work closely with all USTA program coordinators to promote their programs to diverse communities.
- To identify possible funding sources to assist programs, players and coaches in their efforts.
- To work closely with the volunteer Multicultural Participation Committee in the recruitment of new volunteers.
- To work with established and new Community Tennis Associations to insure that the multicultural segment of the community is represented.
Who can participate in Multicultural Participation Programs and Activities?
Anyone and everyone in all minority groups can participate in multicultural participation sponsored programs and activities, including:
- Recreational players
- Volunteers
- Competitive players
- Tennis administrators
- Coaches
- Tennis industry professionals
What Are Some Multicultural Participation Achievements?
Recent multicultural participation achievements include:
- The establishment of a working relationship with the American Tennis Association and the North American Indian Tennis Association to assist in increasing the number of players in each community they service.
- Joint MPC/USA Tennis Player Development programs designed to provide financial assistance to junior development programs, players, and coaches striving to reach the sport's top competitive levels.
- Open forums held annually around the country to share tennis information and experiences among multicultural communities.
- Multicultural Outreach Programs to promote the increase of multicultural players, programs, and coaches participating in USA Tennis programs.
- Diversity training sessions held in each USTA section for board members, committee members, and staff members.
- Approval by USTA Board of Directors at its December 2003 meeting of the USTA Diversity Plan: Multicultural Focus (2003-2005) (click here to see the entire Plan)
For more information, please contact Jeff Waters .