TEAMFAME CARRIES SUCCESSFUL START INTO 401GIVES WEEKEND

Students who earn extra tennis time are invited to be part of the Hall of Fame Juniors Program and provided opportunities to play before school and participate in match play on the weekends. An increasing number of students have been attending these extra tennis opportunities, which shows their commitment and passion for our sport.

Students find the balance between on court and off court activities, making sure to set goals outside of tennis. Goals ranged from “improving my handwriting” and “memorizing my multiplication facts” to “raising my grade in math” and “getting on honor roll”. To help students reach their academic goals, our TeamFAME staff and student volunteers from Salve Regina University and St. George’s School along with support from the teachers at Newport's Thompson Middle School guide students to ensure progress is being made.

• Students participated in an “agenda scavenger hunt” that taught them how to use their agenda and had fun playing games to practice their math facts.
• To celebrate Black History Month, we explored the “Breaking Boundaries in Black Tennis” exhibit, every student chose from the many remarkable black tennis players featured in the exhibit to research. The students read the stories, shared with their teammates, and wrote about what they learned. After completing the project, we practiced our public speaking by sharing background on the player and three interesting facts with our teammates.

• Students became so passionate about composting that they presented the benefits to the Hall of Fame staff and took the initiative to get started and collect the compost bags every week. This experience has helped instill responsibility, teamwork, and leadership skills in our student-athletes. They are proud to take an active role in doing good for the environment and future generations.
• Continuing our community service efforts from Veteran’s Day and holiday ornaments, our TeamFAME students used their creative talents to make Valentine’s Day cards for residents at a local nursing home. 

• Writing curriculum included a pen pal project with students in Barbados. When we learned Coach Lisa from the Hall of Fame Tennis Club was heading to Barbados and had the possibility of seeing young students, TeamFAME took advantage of the opportunity to start a pen pal exchange program. Students were fascinated to learn about Barbados and were eager to share about their tennis experience and what life is like in Newport. This exchange gives our students the opportunity to expand their understanding of the world around them to help them become informed citizens and future leaders.
• Our inaugural TeamFAME class, who are now in their first year of high school, are playing on their high school teams including Rogers High School and St. George’s High School. 

• A few of our TeamFAME graduates have been involved in internships and volunteering as “junior coaches” in our after-school programming. Our high school leaders are inspiring positive role models for our middle schoolers on and off the court.
• This spring, we are looking forward to taking our TeamFAME middle schoolers to high school matches to cheer on the high school players and even play in some middle school matches and tennis tournaments themselves.
• Students have been introduced to college players and coaches who have shared their experiences from playing high school and college tennis. Listening to these coaches and players has really helped motivate our students to keep working hard on and off the court to reach their full potential.