Community Program (Outreach)

The AAYTE Community Program offers a variety of opportunities to participants age six through 18. The Program serves more than 400 children from local schools and community groups, providing such services as 1.5 hours of weekly tennis instruction to meet the Commonwealth's physical education requirement in elementary and middle schools.

Local schools and groups that partner with AAYTE on a regular basis include the following:

• Canaan Baptist Church
• Gesu School
• Martin Luther King Community Center
• North Light Boys and Girls Club
• West Oak Lane Charter School
• The Great Wall Chinese School
• Universal Institute Charter School
• Kearney Elementary School
• Douglass Elementary School
• Hills-Freedom Middle School
• Gompers Elementary School

AAYTE Operations Director Tina Tharp leading "munchkins" in on-court activity with the emphasis on fun!

AAYTE programs have been very successful in teaching “life skills” through tennis. Tennis is used as the vehicle to teach honest play, sportsmanship, self-discipline, self-reliance, non-violent conflict resolution skills and self-esteem. Children learn how to succeed and gain self-confidence and the tools necessary to take on challenges more effectively.

Additionally, The Community Program reaches autistic children from the following Philadelphia public schools:

• Cook-Wissahickon Elementary School
• Dobson Elementary School
• Pepper Middle School
• Smedley Elementary School
• Roxborough High School

Our newest Community Program is the Adopt-a-School Pilot Initiative at Roxborough High School .

Impact of Activities

As with all activities at AAYTE, the mission of The Community Program is to develop the character of young people through tennis emphasizing the ideals and life of Arthur Ashe in the following ways:

• Reaching out to young people who might not otherwise have the opportunity to learn and play tennis;
• Instilling the values of humanitarianism, leadership and academic excellence;
• Providing a safe haven for children during the summer hours when they are most likely to be attracted to drugs, crime and violence;
• Introducing the opportunity to fully develop tennis skills with the potential for a lifetime of enjoyment.

Contact

J. Chapman