USTA FOUNDATION AWARDS $20,000 CAPACITY BUILDING GRANT TO ATLANTA YOUTH TENNIS & EDUCATION FOUNDATION

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y., Feb. 6, 2015 – USTA Foundation, the national charitable organization of the United States Tennis Association (USTA), today announced it has awarded Atlanta Youth Tennis & Education Foundation (AYTEF) in Atlanta a $20,000 capacity building grant. The foundation concluded its 2014 grant funding cycle by awarding $741,500 in grants to 44 organizations that provide tennis and education to under-resourced youth and people with disabilities, as well those organizations with a need for program infrastructure support.

The AYTEF’s mission is to promote the physical and mental development of underserved youth through tennis and education. The goals are to provide a safe, healthy, and structured environment for children during the non-school hours with a caring adult and deliver tennis and learning opportunities that meet the needs of youth from varied backgrounds. The AYTEF provides youth with opportunities to develop healthy and active lifestyles and learn individual skills on the tennis court while gaining leadership and academic support off the court. The program was selected as the 2010 USTA Georgia and Southern NJTL Chapter of the Year and the 2013 USTA Georgia NJTL Chapter of the Year.

For more information, please visit www.aytef.org.

The capacity building grant is a newly established grant that helps strengthen the management infrastructure of small to medium-sized National Junior Tennis and Learning (NJTL) network chapters, helping them to grow, thrive and, ultimately, to impact more kids in need. Last year, the USTA Foundation combined with USTA NJTL, a nationwide network of 500 community-based tennis and education programs serving more than 225,000 youth, to become a fully operational foundation.

“The USTA Foundation is honored to recognize such outstanding organizations around this country, which greatly impact so many deserving students, children in need and the communities in which they live,” said Dan Faber, Executive Director, USTA Foundation. “Their amazing work makes a difference in thousands of lives across the country and truly inspires us all.”

To date, USTA Foundation has awarded more than $19 million in grants and scholarships to hundreds of programs benefitting thousands of children and adults through tennis, education and health programming, primarily through the NJTL network and also through efforts to assist Military Personnel, Veterans, and individuals with disabilities.

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USTA Foundation, the national charitable organization of the USTA, helps serve up dreams for under-resourced youth; individuals with disabilities; and wounded, ill and injured service members, veterans and their families. The foundation supports programs nationwide that leverage tennis and education to help those in need, primarily through the National Junior Tennis & Learning (NJTL) network, and other efforts to assist military personnel, veterans and individuals with disabilities. To date, it has awarded more than $19 million in grants and scholarships to hundreds of programs, benefitting thousands of children and adults through a tennis, education and health curricula. For more information on USTA Foundation, visit www.ustafoundation.com. Or stay connected through Facebook at www.facebook.com/USTAFoundation, and on Twitter at @USTA_Foundation.