2009
SquashSmarts Class of 2016
10-2009
SquashSmarts welcomes 20 new 6th grade boys and girls to the SquashSmarts Class of 2016. Congratulations to all of our young student-athlete taking their first step toward the seven-year goal of high school and college graduation: Doris Perez, Ta'Quan Stanley, Jasmine Butler, Tyron Rivers, Hasheem Singletary, Allesha Outlaw, Jasmine Tyler, Zaquil Williams, Keir Thompson, Ta'Juan Dumas;Yamira Sachel, Myrlaine Rios, Jadzia Del Valle, Leonardo Savattiny, Tyzja Faison, Nizja Faison, Ameerah Alexander, Betsy Claudio, Joshua Londono, Louis Hernandez. Special thanks to the twenty-three volunteers who helped SquashSmarts put its best foot forward with all 64 students who came to SquashSmarts six try-out sessions: Natalie Chen, Wick Clothier, Rory Crowe, Mike Delonte, Jamie Frazier, Anne Hilton, Trevor McGuinness, Vince McGuinness, Ethan Moritz, Alex Nalle, Molly Pierce, Jenny Schulkin, Daniel Sneed, Christine Sunu, Andrew White, Julie Williams.
A New Plan for Hunting Park
10-2009
Civic leaders, community members and SquashSmarts team members gathered Saturday to unveil a new master plan for North Philadelphia’s Hunting Park situated two blocks from SquashSmarts’ Lenfest Center. Organizers from Fairmount Park, Citizens Bank, The Ryan Howard Family Foundation, The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, The Philadelphia Department of Recreation, Hunting Park United, The North Philadelphia Aztecs, SquashSmarts and local residents came together to celebrate a new chapter in the park’s history and to formally kick-start the redevelopment efforts with an invasive plant-removal and flower-planting project at the park’s recreation center. Special thanks to 8th graders Kassandra Gonzalez and Robert Rivers, Board Member Alex Mack and Citzen'Deborah Kahn for braving the rain and rallying the troops!
Students Stay On Track
10-2009
SquashSmarts is committed to staying in touch and providing support to all of high school graduate. As part of our fall “check-in” we are happy to report that our high school graduates are staying on track: including sophomores Rachel Edmonds (Haverford College),Marcedes Kennedy (Bloomsburg University), Amber Thomas (Bowie State University), Jasmin Wingate (Mt. Aloysius College) and freshman Quinetta Bowden (Merrimack College), Tempest Bowden (Mount Holyoke), Toni Glover (Penn State Abbington), Kareem Price (University of Wilmington).
Philly AIDS Walk
10-2009
SquashSmarts students braved the cold and damp morning on Sunday to participate in the 12k Philadelphia AIDS Walk, a nationwide event designed to increase AIDS awareness and raise funds for AIDS research. New friendships, big smiles, warm pretzels and a sense of pride and accomplishment kept the SquashSmarts students and staff motivate. Special Thanks to Tariem Burroughs and high school students Shenae Walters, Denise Roundtree and Devonte Harris for picking up the pace.
SquashSmarts Hosts National Conference
10-2009
Forty-five staff members from nine National Urban Squash and Education Association programs gathered in Philadelphia last week for a two day learning retreat at SquashSmarts. Break-out sessions helped facilitate meaningful dialogues on topics such as: academic tutoring, mentoring, high school and college placement, squash curriculum and instruction, summer programming, nutrition, sex education, fund raising and more. Special thanks to Greg Zaff, Executive Director of our National Urban Squash & Education Association; guest speaker Jason Wingard PhD and Senior Fellow of the Wharton’s Sports Business Initiative
New Partnership Brings New Hope
10-2009
SquashSmarts hosted an enthusiastic class of elementary school students Thursday from the Hope Partnership for Education charter school. The students were lead by the SquashSmarts staff through a morning of mentoring, fitness and academic games and fun. Special thanks to Steve Zipf, Jennifer Donahue and Helen Bamber for forging this new partnership.
Season Kick Off & College Challenge
10-2009
150 friends and patrons cheered on SquashSmarts students and the Top College Squash Playurrs as part of SquashSmarts 9th season kick-off celebration. The event-filled weekend featured reigning men’s and women’s college squash champions Baset Chaudhry andNour Baghat, as well as a cocktail party, pl;ayer dinner, professional networking event and on-court practice time and mentoring with the SquashSmarts students. Special thanks to Lisa & David Stokes and Paige & Jeff Yager for hosting the college players; and our fantastic student-athletes: Britt Hebden (UPenn), Johanna Snyder (Harvard), Lexi Van Arkel (Yale), Logan Greer (Yale), Nour Bahgat (Trinity), Pamela Hathway (Trinity), Sydney Scott (UPenn), Tehani Guruge (Trinity); Gabriel DeMelo (F&M), Ben Mantica (Navy), Brett Camarda(Brown), Colin West (Harvard), Baset Chaudhry (Trinity), Supreet Singh (Trinity), Nils Mattsson (Navy), Nadav Tannen (F&M).
College Tour & Liberty Museum
09-2009
For some students the words “school’s closed” means a day spent at home. Not for SquashSmarts kids! On Monday, the 12th graders boarded the train with Tariem bound for Washington, DC and a tour of George Washington and Howard Universities while our 7th graders rode SEPTA downtown for a learning tour of the National Liberty Museum, lunch at the Bourse and a trip to Penn’s Landing.Special thanks to Wendy Lawrence, GW Squash Coach, for her warmth and hospitality.
SquashSmarts Seniors Go To College
Congratulations to following SquashSmarts seniors who, after seven years in the program, had received admission into the college, university or post-graduate program of their choice for the Fall of 2009!
Mr. Kareem Price. University of Wilmington
Ms. Quinetta Bowden. Merrimack College
Ms. Toni Glover. Penn State Abbington
Ms. Tempest Bowden. Mount Holyoke
6th Annual “Take Me Out To Ballpark!”
08-2009
SquashSmarts enjoyed its 6th Annual Student and Family Phillies outing to Citizens Bank Park last night. This year, the team cheered on their proud Phillies to a 12-3 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks! More than 70 students, family, friends, staff and volunteers turned out for the game. Special thanks to Dan Goroff for enabling this outing year after year. An equal note of thanks and appreciation to our four summer interns who organized the game and worked hard all summer long on our student’s behalf.
2009 Embrace Camp named NUSEA exchange program
07-2009
America’s oldest squash, community service and cultural enrichment summer camp – The Embrace Camp – was chosen as a 2009 NUSEA exchange camp by the National Urban Squash and Education Association.
The purpose is to bring together boys and girls from seven of programs and cities around the country. Student arrived at the LenfestCenter in North Philadelphia on Sunday from Boston, Harlem, Philadelphia, The Bronx, Chicago, New Haven and Baltimore for a week of intensive instruction and training.
Focus areas included squash, fitness, leadership, culture outings and service projects. Special camp partners this year include Philadelphia Outward Bound, The Philadelphia Phillies, Council for Relationships and the Philadelphia Squash Racquets Association.
One-on-one student-to-staff instruction provided by SquashSmarts four professional program staff, four fantastic summer interns, two student student-graduate leaders, and over twenty daily volunteers!
2009 Embrace Camp highlights:
- Private tour of the Citizen’s Bank Park
- Outward Bound Leadership Ropes Course
- Anger management & relaxation workshop
- Mental preparation workshop
- Individual and team squash tournaments
- Pro squash exhibition featureing Gilly Lane and Rich Repetto
- Squash, squash and more squash
- Running the Rocky Steps!
- Awards, BBQ, movies, games and more!
2009 National Urban Individual Championships Recap
06-2009
The 2009 National Urban Squash & Education Association Individuals Championships was held last weekend at the pristine and pastoral Williamstown, MA.
The event is without question the highlight of the SquashSmarts season and is the culmination of months of hard work and training. Each student who represents SquashSmarts has truly earned a spot on the bus.
The weekend began at 6am Friday with 33 SquashSmarts boys and girls and 7 staff and volunteers boarding the bus bound for Williams. On the other end, 243 student-athletes from nine rival programs awaited us at the Simon Squash Center.
Students hailed from Boston, Harlem, Philadelphia, The Bronx, Chicago, San Diego, New Haven, Baltimore and Denver.
Highlights on the squash court were numerous but the one take-away was that SquashSmarts boasts the two most talented non-boarding school urban squash players in the nation.
Kareem Price, SquashSmarts #1 men’s player, finished a career-high 2nd after a tremendous 5-game semi-final victory in the Boy’s Under 19 Championship. [The eventual champion attends boarding school].
Not to be outdone, Sakora Miller, SquashSmarts’ #1 women’s player, fought her way to an impressive 5th place finish in the Girls Under 19 consolation. [The top 4 female finishers all attend boarding school].
Meanwhile, high school teammates Yawa Adjesson and Junaid Bin Mukhtar each finished 9th in their respective Under 17 and Under 19 age divisions while our promising new middle school player, Justin Garland, placed 6th in his debut NUSEA event!
Heading to the dorms Saturday night, 11 of SquashSmarts 33 players – a full one third of the team – was still alive and would still be competing on day three of the championships.
Among them were all of SquashSmarts seven-year graduating seniors – Kareem Price, Toni Glover and Quinetta Bowden – each of whom was competing in his/her final urban squash championship.
The weekend also featured competitive non-squash activities with national contests in both writing and art. SquashSmarts was well-represented in each with our own Phech Kong Loa winning the Art Competition and Kalik Stanley, Kimora Wilson and John Garlandearning finalist honors in the Writing Competition.
The success of the weekend was due in every way to the organization, coaching and energy of our staff. In particular, an indelible mark has been made by Peter Stokes, our interim high school squash director, and Alex Buxbaum, our former and first-rate squash coach
SquashSmarts could not find two finer citizens or people to lead our students. Their nurturing wisdom combined with the leadership and teamwork that Jake, Tariem, Katie and Guillermo bring to the program is what truly separates SquashSmarts from our peers.
A final and heart felt thanks to Chase Lenfest who made the long journey up to Williams. His cheers in victory and hugs in defeat are what competition is all about.
Student-Athlete Award Winners
Quinetta Bowden, 12th grade Finalist (NUSEA Student-Athlete of the Year Award)
Oscar Merano, 8th grade Finalist (NUSEA Future Star of Year Award Nominee)
Squash Award Wineers
Kareem Price, 2nd place (Boys U19)
Sakora Miller 5th place (Girls U19)
Justin Garland 6th place (Boys U15)
Junaid Bin Mukhtar 9th place (Boys U19)
Yawa Adjesson 9th place (Girls U17)
Academic Award Winners
Phech Kong Loa, winner (U13 art contest)
Kalik Stanley, finalist (U19 writing contest)
John Garland, finalist (U15 writing contest)
Kimora Wilson, finalist (U13 writing contest)
SquashSmarts Selects Summer Interns
06-2009
Each season, the SquashSmarts staff selects four summer leadership interns including two high school and two college students. Interns are paired with a SquashSmarts staff mentor in either squash or academics at our West and North Philadelphia program sites. Interns work directly with our students and are responsible for managing our summer practices as well as assisting our staff with the student’s summer enrichment activities. SquashSmarts 2009 summer leaderships interns are:
Chris Wert. Kenyon College
Tyler Stout. St. Lawrence University
Andrew White. The Shipley School
Brandon Goodman. Upper Dublin High School
SquashSmarts Helps Clean Up Hunting Park
04-2009
SquashSmarts students and staff answered two calls this spring: one from Mayor Nutter’s “Philly Clean Up” organizers on April 4th and the other from “Comcast Cares Day” organizers on April 25. Students from both West and North Philly came together with alumni fromTrinity College and with citizens of local neighborhoods to help make our city shine.
SquashSmarts Named 2009 Champion in Action®
01-2009
SquashSmarts is honored to have been named the 2009 Champion In Action® for youth programming! SquashSmarts receives a $25,000 award, underwritten by the Citizens Bank Foundation, along with media exposure and volunteer benefits. The Champion In Action® award is presented in partnership with NBC10, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Daily News, Philly.com & Greater Philadelphia Cares. “When it comes to community partnerships, The Champions In Action award is truly the complete package. From Citizens Bank Foundation's financial support to NBC10 and the Philadelphia Inquirer's exposure, SquashSmarts could not have asked for a more unique or rewarding joint venture. - Stephen Gregg, SquashSmarts Exective Director
10-2009
SquashSmarts welcomes 20 new 6th grade boys and girls to the SquashSmarts Class of 2016. Congratulations to all of our young student-athlete taking their first step toward the seven-year goal of high school and college graduation: Doris Perez, Ta'Quan Stanley, Jasmine Butler, Tyron Rivers, Hasheem Singletary, Allesha Outlaw, Jasmine Tyler, Zaquil Williams, Keir Thompson, Ta'Juan Dumas;Yamira Sachel, Myrlaine Rios, Jadzia Del Valle, Leonardo Savattiny, Tyzja Faison, Nizja Faison, Ameerah Alexander, Betsy Claudio, Joshua Londono, Louis Hernandez. Special thanks to the twenty-three volunteers who helped SquashSmarts put its best foot forward with all 64 students who came to SquashSmarts six try-out sessions: Natalie Chen, Wick Clothier, Rory Crowe, Mike Delonte, Jamie Frazier, Anne Hilton, Trevor McGuinness, Vince McGuinness, Ethan Moritz, Alex Nalle, Molly Pierce, Jenny Schulkin, Daniel Sneed, Christine Sunu, Andrew White, Julie Williams.
A New Plan for Hunting Park
10-2009
Civic leaders, community members and SquashSmarts team members gathered Saturday to unveil a new master plan for North Philadelphia’s Hunting Park situated two blocks from SquashSmarts’ Lenfest Center. Organizers from Fairmount Park, Citizens Bank, The Ryan Howard Family Foundation, The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, The Philadelphia Department of Recreation, Hunting Park United, The North Philadelphia Aztecs, SquashSmarts and local residents came together to celebrate a new chapter in the park’s history and to formally kick-start the redevelopment efforts with an invasive plant-removal and flower-planting project at the park’s recreation center. Special thanks to 8th graders Kassandra Gonzalez and Robert Rivers, Board Member Alex Mack and Citzen'Deborah Kahn for braving the rain and rallying the troops!
Students Stay On Track
10-2009
SquashSmarts is committed to staying in touch and providing support to all of high school graduate. As part of our fall “check-in” we are happy to report that our high school graduates are staying on track: including sophomores Rachel Edmonds (Haverford College),Marcedes Kennedy (Bloomsburg University), Amber Thomas (Bowie State University), Jasmin Wingate (Mt. Aloysius College) and freshman Quinetta Bowden (Merrimack College), Tempest Bowden (Mount Holyoke), Toni Glover (Penn State Abbington), Kareem Price (University of Wilmington).
Philly AIDS Walk
10-2009
SquashSmarts students braved the cold and damp morning on Sunday to participate in the 12k Philadelphia AIDS Walk, a nationwide event designed to increase AIDS awareness and raise funds for AIDS research. New friendships, big smiles, warm pretzels and a sense of pride and accomplishment kept the SquashSmarts students and staff motivate. Special Thanks to Tariem Burroughs and high school students Shenae Walters, Denise Roundtree and Devonte Harris for picking up the pace.
SquashSmarts Hosts National Conference
10-2009
Forty-five staff members from nine National Urban Squash and Education Association programs gathered in Philadelphia last week for a two day learning retreat at SquashSmarts. Break-out sessions helped facilitate meaningful dialogues on topics such as: academic tutoring, mentoring, high school and college placement, squash curriculum and instruction, summer programming, nutrition, sex education, fund raising and more. Special thanks to Greg Zaff, Executive Director of our National Urban Squash & Education Association; guest speaker Jason Wingard PhD and Senior Fellow of the Wharton’s Sports Business Initiative
New Partnership Brings New Hope
10-2009
SquashSmarts hosted an enthusiastic class of elementary school students Thursday from the Hope Partnership for Education charter school. The students were lead by the SquashSmarts staff through a morning of mentoring, fitness and academic games and fun. Special thanks to Steve Zipf, Jennifer Donahue and Helen Bamber for forging this new partnership.
Season Kick Off & College Challenge
10-2009
150 friends and patrons cheered on SquashSmarts students and the Top College Squash Playurrs as part of SquashSmarts 9th season kick-off celebration. The event-filled weekend featured reigning men’s and women’s college squash champions Baset Chaudhry andNour Baghat, as well as a cocktail party, pl;ayer dinner, professional networking event and on-court practice time and mentoring with the SquashSmarts students. Special thanks to Lisa & David Stokes and Paige & Jeff Yager for hosting the college players; and our fantastic student-athletes: Britt Hebden (UPenn), Johanna Snyder (Harvard), Lexi Van Arkel (Yale), Logan Greer (Yale), Nour Bahgat (Trinity), Pamela Hathway (Trinity), Sydney Scott (UPenn), Tehani Guruge (Trinity); Gabriel DeMelo (F&M), Ben Mantica (Navy), Brett Camarda(Brown), Colin West (Harvard), Baset Chaudhry (Trinity), Supreet Singh (Trinity), Nils Mattsson (Navy), Nadav Tannen (F&M).
College Tour & Liberty Museum
09-2009
For some students the words “school’s closed” means a day spent at home. Not for SquashSmarts kids! On Monday, the 12th graders boarded the train with Tariem bound for Washington, DC and a tour of George Washington and Howard Universities while our 7th graders rode SEPTA downtown for a learning tour of the National Liberty Museum, lunch at the Bourse and a trip to Penn’s Landing.Special thanks to Wendy Lawrence, GW Squash Coach, for her warmth and hospitality.
SquashSmarts Seniors Go To College
Congratulations to following SquashSmarts seniors who, after seven years in the program, had received admission into the college, university or post-graduate program of their choice for the Fall of 2009!
Mr. Kareem Price. University of Wilmington
Ms. Quinetta Bowden. Merrimack College
Ms. Toni Glover. Penn State Abbington
Ms. Tempest Bowden. Mount Holyoke
6th Annual “Take Me Out To Ballpark!”
08-2009
SquashSmarts enjoyed its 6th Annual Student and Family Phillies outing to Citizens Bank Park last night. This year, the team cheered on their proud Phillies to a 12-3 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks! More than 70 students, family, friends, staff and volunteers turned out for the game. Special thanks to Dan Goroff for enabling this outing year after year. An equal note of thanks and appreciation to our four summer interns who organized the game and worked hard all summer long on our student’s behalf.
2009 Embrace Camp named NUSEA exchange program
07-2009
America’s oldest squash, community service and cultural enrichment summer camp – The Embrace Camp – was chosen as a 2009 NUSEA exchange camp by the National Urban Squash and Education Association.
The purpose is to bring together boys and girls from seven of programs and cities around the country. Student arrived at the LenfestCenter in North Philadelphia on Sunday from Boston, Harlem, Philadelphia, The Bronx, Chicago, New Haven and Baltimore for a week of intensive instruction and training.
Focus areas included squash, fitness, leadership, culture outings and service projects. Special camp partners this year include Philadelphia Outward Bound, The Philadelphia Phillies, Council for Relationships and the Philadelphia Squash Racquets Association.
One-on-one student-to-staff instruction provided by SquashSmarts four professional program staff, four fantastic summer interns, two student student-graduate leaders, and over twenty daily volunteers!
2009 Embrace Camp highlights:
- Private tour of the Citizen’s Bank Park
- Outward Bound Leadership Ropes Course
- Anger management & relaxation workshop
- Mental preparation workshop
- Individual and team squash tournaments
- Pro squash exhibition featureing Gilly Lane and Rich Repetto
- Squash, squash and more squash
- Running the Rocky Steps!
- Awards, BBQ, movies, games and more!
2009 National Urban Individual Championships Recap
06-2009
The 2009 National Urban Squash & Education Association Individuals Championships was held last weekend at the pristine and pastoral Williamstown, MA.
The event is without question the highlight of the SquashSmarts season and is the culmination of months of hard work and training. Each student who represents SquashSmarts has truly earned a spot on the bus.
The weekend began at 6am Friday with 33 SquashSmarts boys and girls and 7 staff and volunteers boarding the bus bound for Williams. On the other end, 243 student-athletes from nine rival programs awaited us at the Simon Squash Center.
Students hailed from Boston, Harlem, Philadelphia, The Bronx, Chicago, San Diego, New Haven, Baltimore and Denver.
Highlights on the squash court were numerous but the one take-away was that SquashSmarts boasts the two most talented non-boarding school urban squash players in the nation.
Kareem Price, SquashSmarts #1 men’s player, finished a career-high 2nd after a tremendous 5-game semi-final victory in the Boy’s Under 19 Championship. [The eventual champion attends boarding school].
Not to be outdone, Sakora Miller, SquashSmarts’ #1 women’s player, fought her way to an impressive 5th place finish in the Girls Under 19 consolation. [The top 4 female finishers all attend boarding school].
Meanwhile, high school teammates Yawa Adjesson and Junaid Bin Mukhtar each finished 9th in their respective Under 17 and Under 19 age divisions while our promising new middle school player, Justin Garland, placed 6th in his debut NUSEA event!
Heading to the dorms Saturday night, 11 of SquashSmarts 33 players – a full one third of the team – was still alive and would still be competing on day three of the championships.
Among them were all of SquashSmarts seven-year graduating seniors – Kareem Price, Toni Glover and Quinetta Bowden – each of whom was competing in his/her final urban squash championship.
The weekend also featured competitive non-squash activities with national contests in both writing and art. SquashSmarts was well-represented in each with our own Phech Kong Loa winning the Art Competition and Kalik Stanley, Kimora Wilson and John Garlandearning finalist honors in the Writing Competition.
The success of the weekend was due in every way to the organization, coaching and energy of our staff. In particular, an indelible mark has been made by Peter Stokes, our interim high school squash director, and Alex Buxbaum, our former and first-rate squash coach
SquashSmarts could not find two finer citizens or people to lead our students. Their nurturing wisdom combined with the leadership and teamwork that Jake, Tariem, Katie and Guillermo bring to the program is what truly separates SquashSmarts from our peers.
A final and heart felt thanks to Chase Lenfest who made the long journey up to Williams. His cheers in victory and hugs in defeat are what competition is all about.
Student-Athlete Award Winners
Quinetta Bowden, 12th grade Finalist (NUSEA Student-Athlete of the Year Award)
Oscar Merano, 8th grade Finalist (NUSEA Future Star of Year Award Nominee)
Squash Award Wineers
Kareem Price, 2nd place (Boys U19)
Sakora Miller 5th place (Girls U19)
Justin Garland 6th place (Boys U15)
Junaid Bin Mukhtar 9th place (Boys U19)
Yawa Adjesson 9th place (Girls U17)
Academic Award Winners
Phech Kong Loa, winner (U13 art contest)
Kalik Stanley, finalist (U19 writing contest)
John Garland, finalist (U15 writing contest)
Kimora Wilson, finalist (U13 writing contest)
SquashSmarts Selects Summer Interns
06-2009
Each season, the SquashSmarts staff selects four summer leadership interns including two high school and two college students. Interns are paired with a SquashSmarts staff mentor in either squash or academics at our West and North Philadelphia program sites. Interns work directly with our students and are responsible for managing our summer practices as well as assisting our staff with the student’s summer enrichment activities. SquashSmarts 2009 summer leaderships interns are:
Chris Wert. Kenyon College
Tyler Stout. St. Lawrence University
Andrew White. The Shipley School
Brandon Goodman. Upper Dublin High School
SquashSmarts Helps Clean Up Hunting Park
04-2009
SquashSmarts students and staff answered two calls this spring: one from Mayor Nutter’s “Philly Clean Up” organizers on April 4th and the other from “Comcast Cares Day” organizers on April 25. Students from both West and North Philly came together with alumni fromTrinity College and with citizens of local neighborhoods to help make our city shine.
SquashSmarts Named 2009 Champion in Action®
01-2009
SquashSmarts is honored to have been named the 2009 Champion In Action® for youth programming! SquashSmarts receives a $25,000 award, underwritten by the Citizens Bank Foundation, along with media exposure and volunteer benefits. The Champion In Action® award is presented in partnership with NBC10, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Daily News, Philly.com & Greater Philadelphia Cares. “When it comes to community partnerships, The Champions In Action award is truly the complete package. From Citizens Bank Foundation's financial support to NBC10 and the Philadelphia Inquirer's exposure, SquashSmarts could not have asked for a more unique or rewarding joint venture. - Stephen Gregg, SquashSmarts Exective Director