Innercity Tennis Foundation
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
At InnerCity Tennis we address challenges for youth relating to health and education, and gaps in opportunities for participation in activities. With regard to health, 28% of Minnesota youth are overweight or obese (The Trust for America's Health, 2017). We strive to instill a love of physical activity and teach students about nutrition to build a foundation for health and wellness. According to the MN Report Card 2017, 2 in 5 Minneapolis students are not proficient in math or reading. That is why ICT supports students' education with customized lesson plans developed in conjunction with our schools and partners in the community. Furthermore, research shows that low income students in the Twin Cities are far less likely to be engaged in enrichment opportunities than higher income students (MN Dept. of Education 2016). For this reason, ICT aims to remove barriers to participation through no-charge programs and scholarships for our fee-based programs.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Super Saturdays Program
ICT’ is based at the Reed Sweatt Family Tennis Center, at 40th and Nicollet in South Minneapolis. For 24 Saturdays during the school year, ICT opens up our entire 12-court facility to deliver youth programming free of charge to the community. The program features a fast-paced afternoon of fun and tennis skills development for kids ages 3-18. Each session serves about 250 kids.
Starting at 4:00 pm our 3-10 year old kids, along with their families, fill the tennis center along with professional coaches and about 65 volunteers for an hour and a half of fun, tennis and life skill development.
As children move from station to station they play, learn and master a variety of physical and life skills. Parents are invited to watch, interact and encourage their children as they move through ICT’s Kidspeed(R) curriculum, a dynamic, fast-paced program developed in partnership with the Search Institute.
After the 3-10 year olds are finished, the older kids, ages 11-18, start their session. Youth ages 11-13 learn tennis fundamentals on full-sized courts through fun games and drills that focus on all the strokes and game strategy. Youth ages 14-18 participate in drills designed to be challenging but fun, and coaches focus on a specific shot or strategy, emphasizing consistency, footwork and fitness.
Summer Tennis in the Parks Program
Summer Tennis in the Parks is a 7 week summer program for youth held at 21 Minneapolis parks. It is one way ICT brings tennis directly into neighborhoods across the city, right where kids live. The program includes tennis and life skills development. Kids learn about healthy nutrition and developing character through daily challenges. Through scholarships, this fee-based program is made accessible to all who are in need.
Additionally, ICT employs dozens of youth coaches for this program each year, providing training, and for many coaches, a first time job experience.
This program attracts 1,000+ participants each year.
Schools Outreach
InnerCity Tennis delivers outreach programming in Minneapolis schools and partner locations, with an emphasis on locations where the vast majority of students are on free/reduced lunch. Some of our partners include: Bethune Community School, Bryn Mawr Elementary, Nellie Stone Johnson Elementary, Partnership Academy, Whittier Elementary, Fraser, Hospitality House Youth Development, Urban Ventures, and Youth and Families Determined to Succeed.
Cities Academy
Cities Academy is a year-round, out-of-school tennis and leadership program for committed youth players. It is delivered at our Reed Sweatt Family Tennis Center in South Minneapolis. The program is fee-based with scholarships available to all in need. Many Cities Academy kids, including all those receiving scholarships, serve as volunteers in ICT's free-of-charge programming.
Where we work
Awards
Minnesota Ethical Leadership Award 2018
Synergy & Leadership Exchange
Affiliations & memberships
USTA Foundation National Junior Tennis and Learning network - 4 Star Chapter 2018
USTA Foundation National Junior Tennis and Learning network - 4 Star Chapter 2019
External reviews
Photos
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of participants engaged in programs
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children and youth
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
We track youth served through programs like Super Saturdays, Summer Parks, Cities Academy, Schools & Partners Outreach, and other events.
Total dollar amount of scholarship awarded
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children and youth
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
ICT tracks the value of free-of-charge programs and scholarships for youth. Value from 2021 on includes Excellence Team, Cities Academy, Super Saturdays, and Summer Tennis in the Parks funding.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Our mission is to develop and unleash the potential of youth on and off the tennis court by engaging and serving a supportive community.
We believe that every kid needs and deserves a coach-mentor, the encouragement of a team and a welcoming community. For 70 years, we have offered programs that use tennis to tap into the deep potential within each child through no-fee and scholarship-eligible youth programs. Our coaches and volunteers engage kids in a fun, safe environment to instill mental, physical and values-based tools that serve them on and off the court. We teach essential life skills and promote healthy habits, growth in personal character, and a commitment to lifelong learning and community service. The skills and personal values that youth participants develop through our programs can serve them throughout their entire lives.
Our goal is to expand our reach into the most underserved communities in Minneapolis, especially the Northside.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
We offer programs to increase access to tennis in schools and neighborhood parks throughout Minneapolis, while our tennis center programs give underserved youth and families the chance to try tennis in a remarkable facility. Our programming ranges from no-fee, one-time drop in programs to intensive training for players with the talent and drive to become elite high school or college competitors. Each year we reach over 5,000 youth, ages 3 to 18, including at-risk kids, children of color, children from low-income families, and children diagnosed on the autism spectrum.
ICT offers:
Summer Tennis in the Parks- a 7-week program in parks across the city, including tennis, nutrition lessons & life skills development
ICT in the Schools- ICT delivers no-charge programs to schools and partners where the vast majority of kids are on free/reduced lunch
Super Saturdays- designed for fun and fitness for kids 3-18, offered 24 times/year
Cities Academy- year-round, intensive tennis training
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
ICT has been serving Minneapolis youth since 1952. In that time our organization has developed significant experience and expertise in youth development and programming. ICT is fortunate to have dedicated, professional coaches and staff, and a committed group of volunteers to achieve our goals. ICT is led by Executive Director, John Wheaton, who has dedicated his career to tennis coaching, management, and education. Our tennis staff are certified teaching pros, who instill our core values in everything we do. Those values are teamwork, responsibility, service, perseverance, integrity, respect and enthusiasm. Our outreach staff includes a licensed teacher, who works closely with schools and partners to developed customized curriculums to best serve our youth participants. Our Board of Directors includes legendary tennis coach, Nick Bollettieri, and leaders in their fields who provide strong financial oversight and leadership for the organization.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Since 1952 we have served more than 80,000 youth. In 2017, ICT served 5,400 youth, including: 1,600 through Schools & Partners; 1,000 through Summer Tennis in the Parks; 1,500 through Super Saturdays; 1,000 through Cities Academy; and 300 through one time camps and events. Through our outreach programs we reach a racially and ethnically diverse community as follows: 51% African American & Black; 29% Hispanic & Latino; 6% Caucasian; 3% Asian; 1% Native American; 9% other; and 1% unknown. In 2017 ICT provided $120,000+ in youth scholarships and 320 days of junior programming to ensure that our programs are broadly accessible.
Our results have earned InnerCity Tennis a 4-star rating through the USTA Foundation's National Junior Tennis and Learning (NJTL) network. Additionally, InnerCity Tennis is one of only 13 programs in the U.S. with an Excellence Team, which is supported by the USTA Foundation.
Our goals include further expansion into N. Minneapolis to reach more underserved kids.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We act on the feedback we receive, We share the feedback we received with the people we serve
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, Staff find it hard to prioritize feedback collection and review due to lack of time, It is difficult to identify actionable feedback
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Innercity Tennis Foundation
Board of directorsas of 02/06/2024
John Nealon
Jillian Stockmo Chapman
Chris Abbott
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 02/06/2024GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.