Men's Tennis Honored for Community Service Efforts

Men's Tennis Honored for Community Service Efforts

Dec. 5, 2003

SKILLMAN, N.J. - The Santa Clara men's tennis program, led by second-year head coach George Husack, received the United States Tennis Association and Intercollegiate Tennis Association Community Service Award for the Northern California Section.

The USTA/ITA Community Service Award honors an ITA coach for significant contributions in developing community-based tennis programs through community centers, schools, parks, community tennis associations, inner city, suburban or rural programs. This is the inaugural year for the award, and was open to more than 2,000 head and assistant coaches at the NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA and Junior/Community College levels.

"The ITA and USTA strongly believe that community service programs are extremely important for today's college coach to become involved in and these awards help highlight the efforts of those coaches who have," ITA Executive Director David A Benjamin said.

In June, the tennis program successfully completed the Pathways to Success Program through a partnership with Youth Tennis Advantage and local middle-school Peter Burnett Academy. An after-school pilot program designed to expose low-income students to the college environment, PSP kicked off last spring at Santa Clara with six weeks of tennis instruction and development, academic tutoring and personal mentoring. Coaches and players from both Bronco tennis teams welcomed up to 16 Peter Burnett Academy students twice a week to the SCU Tennis Center. The two-hour program was divided into a pair of educational segments. The first included participation in a variety of on-court tennis drills, games and match play, while the second half offered workshops on time management and goal setting, research and gathering information on colleges and universities and exploring a number of on-campus landmarks. Field trip favorites included visits to the residence and dining halls where the Burnett students discovered what it's like to be a Santa Clara student.

Santa Clara followed with a youth clinic last month, hosting a day of tennis, food and fun for boys and girls of Youth Tennis Advantage. Nearly 50 kids from Hunters Point, Mission Playground and Oakland traveled south with their parents for the field trip organized by YTA and Husack.

George Husack earned the 2003 USTA/ITA Community Service Award for the NorCal Section.


The event began with tennis instruction and point play with several members of both the men's and women's teams. Following the two-hour clinic and visit from mascot Bucky the Bronco, lunch was served in the Leavey Center. A campus tour was then given with questions answered relating to admissions, financial aid, housing and other general inquiries about life at the university.

The Broncos are also involved in numerous other events. For the past two years, the team has participated in the American Heart Association's HeartWalk, while also taking part in numerous Jingle Bell Runs organized by the American Arthritis Foundation. The team helped move in residents during the grand opening of HomeSafe, a local women's shelter, and has delivered holiday gifts the past three years. The student-athletes are also involved in the Read to Exceed program, where team members have been 'celebrity readers' at Emanuele Elementary School in Fremont for the past two years.

Additionally, the SCU Tennis Center is the home for the South Bay Smash, a wheelchair tennis organization.

"I'm really happy that Santa Clara was recognized for this award," Husack said. "Many thanks goes out to the tennis players and coaching staff for their time and dedication, to the athletic department and university administrators, who supported our efforts, and to Youth Tennis Advantage for giving us the opportunity to share their program with the South Bay.

"The goal of the university and our tennis program is to develop the whole person," he continued. "This is done in the classroom, on the courts and in day-to-day life. The partnerships that we have created with a variety of organizations have strengthened our role in the tennis community, as well as provided a critical educational experience for the student-athletes and coaches."

USTA/ITA Community Service Award Sectional Winners

Florida - Bruce Carrington, St. Thomas University
Intermountain - Greg Patton, Boise State University
Mid-Atlantic - David Detwiler, Washington & Lee University
Missouri Valley - Roger Follmer, Washington University (St. Louis)
Southern - Jeff Childress, Pfeiffer University
Southern California - Tina Karwasky, UCLA
North California - George Husack, Santa Clara University