Squash Smarts


 

SQUASHMARTS NEWS

SquashSmarts Seniors Going To College!

 

Five out of five seniors received admission into the college, university or post-graduate program of their choice. 

 

        

 

Amber Thomas. Delaware State University, Albany State University

Jasmin Wingate. Mt. Aloysius College [also accepted: Coppin State University & Eastern University]

Marcedes Kennedy. Bloomsburg University

Rachel Edmonds. Haverford College [also accepted: American University, Howard University & Lincoln University]

Tempest Bowden. Mercersburg Academy, post-graduate high school program

 

Please Join us Saturday June 21, 2008  from 11:00am-1:00pm as SquashSmarts salutes Amber, Jasmine, Mercedes, Rachel and Tempest and all of its students grades 6th-11th at our 2008 Year-End Celebration. This year’s ceremony features keynote speaker Dr. Stephen Treat, CEO of the Philadelphia-based Council on Relationships.

 

 

SquashSmarts Hosts 2008 National Championship

04-11-2007

 

      

 

250 student-athletes from seven U.S. cities descended on SquashSmarts’ North Philadelphia program for The 2008 National Urban Squash & Education Team Championships. The competition marked the first national championship held outside of Boston, MA, the birthplace of urban squash and education. All matches took place at the new Lenfest Center, SquashSmarts multi-million dollar youth center located in North Philadelphia's Hunting Park. Students ranging in age from 10 to 19 traveled from Boston, Chicago, New Haven, New York and San Diego to compete for national age-group titles.

 

    

SquashSmarts gathers for a pre-match photo; SquashSmarts honors patron Leo Pierce Sr.; NUSEA welcomes San Diego and New Haven.

photos by Marvin Greenbaum

 

SquashSmarts Team Results

Girls Under 19 Team - 2nd place

Boys Under 19 Team - 3rd place

Boys Under 15 Team - 3rd place

Girls Under 13 Team - 3rd place

Boys Under 13 Team - 3rd place

 

- Philadelphia Inquirer Covers the Action! -

 

“ USING SQUASH TO GET ON THE BALL”

Children from Struggling Districts Learn a Sport of

Movers and Shakers, and a few Things About Life.

 

Text by Melissa Dribben, Inquirer Staff Writer; Photo by April Saul, Inquirer Staff Photographer; Posted on Sun, Apr. 13, 2008

 

This weekend, 260 kids from public schools in Harlem, the Bronx, Boston, Chicago, San Diego, New Haven, and some of Philadelphia's diciest neighborhoods descended on a state-of-the-art athletic center in Hunting Park. From 8 a.m. yesterday until past 7 p.m., they streamed in, climbed to the second story, and dumped their bags in a corner that began to look like the lost-baggage counter at American Airlines. Then they put on their goggles, picked up their rackets, and, two by two, entered through a glass wall to pitilessly bash a little black ball in a bright-white court in a game of squash.

 

Yes. Squash.

 

A game of the English gentry, it was developed in the 1800s at the elite Harrow School and long remained the nearly exclusive domain of white men in white shorts who picked up the sport at prep school, practiced it at an Ivy, and went on to play at private clubs with partners from the firm.

 

Not surprising, then, that most of the athletes at this weekend's National Urban Squash Tournament, who come from low-income families in school districts with little or no after-school athletics, never knew that squash was anything other than a vegetable. That is, until recruiters from one of the seven new urban squash programs showed up during gym with a video, a few rackets and balls, and a sign-up sheet.

 

"It was like the best hurricane that ever came through someone's life," says Quinetta Bowden, 16, a sophomore at the Philadelphia High School for Girls. She and her older sister, Tempest, have played since 2002, when the nonprofit SquashSmarts visited the city's Morton McMichael School to launch the program.

 

The program's energetic leaders, who introduced themselves as Miss Julie and Chase Lenfest, appeared like emissaries from Planet Happy-Ever-After, the sisters recall.

 

"They looked so different," Tempest, 18, says. "She was wearing tights and shorts and a fleece. He was in bombed-out sneaks."

 

"They made it seem so inviting," says Quinetta. "Like if you joined, you had instant success."

 

 

Quinetta Bowden (left), with Brittany Kennedy, wants to be a lawyer,

and SquashSmarts, she said, showed her "what I want is not far-fetched."

 

The third program of its kind in the country, SquashSmarts recruits sixth graders and commits to work with them for at least three years, teaching and coaching squash, but also providing academic tutoring, summer camps, Outward Bound experiences and travel, and high school and college placement.

 

Ten to 14 children are chosen from each sixth-grade class after tryouts, says Stephen Gregg, executive director, as he marks the results of the first round of this tournament's matches on giant easels. This is the first time the tournament is being held in Philadelphia.

 

Until last fall, SquashSmarts used courts at Drexel University. But in October, it expanded its program into a new, two-story, 57,000-square-foot facility in Hunting Park. The $9 million center was funded by Ana Maria and H. Chase Lenfest. The same Chase Lenfest who played squash at Yale and showed up at the McMichael School in the bombed-out sneaks.

 

SquashSmarts' objective is not to get its graduates into Ivy League schools, but to open up their world and let them dream big.

 

"We don't take the best and brightest or the athletically gifted," Gregg says. "What we're looking for is just commitment. How hard you try. Success, similarly, has less to do with winning matches than attendance, good conduct and teamwork."

 

Most of the students come from homes and neighborhoods bruised by urban poverty.

 

"They tend to be older than their years," Gregg says. "This allows them to be kids."

 

One of yesterday's competitors, Maria Perez, says she has been getting into a lot less trouble since she started playing squash in January.

 

"People used to get on my nerves," she explains, so she would get into fights. "I was kicked out of three schools."

 

Maria, 13, lives in Hunting Park with her mother, who is unemployed and disabled, and three siblings.

 

Through squash, she says, she is learning to deal with frustration.

 

"They started encouraging me. . . . On the court, it feels good. It's all right when you lose because winning isn't everything. That's what they tell you."

 

Six years after holding a squash racket for the first time, Quinetta Bowden has played on teams that twice came in second in national urban tournaments. She's good, she says, but sister Tempest is even better.

 

In 2006, while in 10th grade, Tempest qualified for the U.S. junior nationals and became the nation's highest-ranked African American squash player among girls under 17. (She's now ranked 42d in the under-19 group.) "People call us the Venus and Serena Williams of squash," Quinetta says.

 

At first, she says, "we played with used goggles and rackets."

 

"But we didn't care," says Tempest. "Because we didn't know what new looked like."

 

A year after they started playing, their parents went through a difficult divorce.

 

"It was like a twilight zone. You were in this whole bunch of mess," says Tempest. "But when you were in squash, you could leave that. Hit the ball. Take out some of that anger."

 

Their father, Kenneth, accompanied them to the tournament to help man the grill and serve several hundred hot dogs and burgers to the athletes. A former cook at Champps and a Sheraton hotel, he has been out of work since February 2006 and living on disability payments.

 

"You know you have great aspirations for your kids. But growing up in this area, even though they have big dreams, you don't know how they're going to get there."

 

With the help of SquashSmarts, Tempest will graduate from Gratz High School in June and attend Mercersburg Academy, a postgraduate boarding school; she plans eventually to teach kindergarten. Through the program, her sister spent her 16th birthday at a squash program in London.

 

"I want so much," says Quinetta, who is determined to become a lawyer. "And it showed me what I want is not far-fetched."

 

Adds her sister, "Because you've seen the world outside of Philly, you know there's so much more out there."

 

Yesterday, the sisters won their matches, both 3-0. Today, they're in the finals.

 

Philly Spring Clean Up

04-05-2007

 

 

Thousands of citizens, including 150 SquashSmarts students, staff and volunteers, joined together on Saturday, April 5 to clean up Philadelphia’ Mayor Nutter and his staff chose SquashSmarts and the Hunting Park neighborhood as one of 160 local community organizations.

 

 

New Partner: St. Ignatius Nursing Home

01-31-2007

 

SquashSmarts and St. Ignatius Nursing Home at 44th and Haverford forged a new relationship that will bring both groups together each month. Regular activities will include bingo, art classes, physical therapy and maybe even a little tai chi! To get involved, please contact Jake at 215-895-4963 or jake@squashsmarts.org.

 

 

New 6th Graders Join The Team!

01-31-2007

 

Twenty new 6th grade students joined the team this month, including twelve boys and girls from Robert Clemente Elementary and eight girls and boys from Drew Elementary.

 

SquashSmarts Observes Veterans Day

11-12-2007

 

This Veterans Day, SquashSmarts reached out to the men and women of our armed forces overseas during the 2nd annual “Letter's to Soldiers” writing project. Students listened to board member Andre Stephano, former enlisted marine and current lieutenant in the US Naval Reserve, then created beautiful heart-felt letters to our soldiers. "I am honored you are reading my letters and grateful for what you are doing for our country”…… “I play and love to do things my way in my free time but if it weren't for you I couldn't do that… so when you sign that paper to fight for us I understand what you give up and I appreciate it.”

 

Katie Bicknese joins Academic Program Staff

11-12-2007

 

Katie Bicknese joins SquashSmarts after two years with City Year Greater Philadelphia where she served as a corps member in West Philadelphia’s Overbrook High School as well as in their Development Department.  Katie discovered her passion for community involvement at Penn State where she served hundreds of hours with Alpha Phi Omega, a national co-educational service fraternity.  Of all the community work she's done, Katie is most thrilled when she sees a student's face light up after learning something challenging.  "After-school programming is what made me enjoy my childhood and find a place for myself.  Nothing makes me happier than being able to give such an incredible opportunity to today's youth." 

Katie’s complete bio

 

Jeff Coursen joins Board of Directors

11-2007

 

Mr. Coursen joins SquashSmarts after serving as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at ATX Communications, where he held various executive management positions for thirteen years.  Mr. Coursen is currently active in several professional boards and non-profit associations and was appointed in March 2007 as Executive in Residence by the Drexel Lebow College of Business where he will work closely with the Graduate School of Business and Krall Center for Corporate Education as well as serve as Adjunct Professor. Mr. Coursen received his B.A. from Ohio Wesleyan University 1985, graduated from The Georgetown University Business School Professional Development Program in 1992, the Drexel University Executive M.B.A. program in 1999 and continues to participate in the Wharton School Executive Management Development Program.

 

StreetSquash Helps Christens New Facility

11-06-2007

 

Two rival programs met for an eagerly anticipated match at the new SquashSmarts center in North Philadelphia. The outing was a great success with hard fought matches, terrific sportsmanship and an opportunity for students from the two cities to bond. Our middle school team took down StreetSquash's 9th grade team by a score of 6-2; Our High School Girls Team tied StreetSquash 3-3 with wins by Tempest Bowden, Sakora Miller and Brittany Kennedy; our High School Boys team fell to their NY rivals 5-3 with Demonte Harris, Devonte Harris and Lamin Conteh earning victories.  Special thanks to Molly Pierce and Bob Bitterman for their support and coaching!

 

SquashSmarts welcome StreetSquash to the Lenfest Center

 

SquashSmarts Grand Opening a Grand Success

10-20-2007

 

On October 20th, SquashSmarts unveiled its new 50,000 sq ft athletic-academic center in North Philadelphia with the celebration of the Best Shot Ball, a spectacular evening that drew 375 friends and patrons and raised over $81,000 in support the SquashSmarts students. Special guests included Governor Edward Rendell, Fox Sport’s Don Tollefson, Phillie Phanatic, Eagles Swoop and World Squash Champions Jon Power and John White. Our thanks to all who attended this wonderful night.

 

 

Governor Rendell and Phillie Phanatic rally around the SquashSmarts kids.

 

Student Video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqbMLSs-RDY

Grand Opening Photos here: http://www.squashsmarts.org/BestShotBall.html

 

SquashSmarts Middle School Students Help Rebuild Homes
04-28-07

 

SquashSmarts students donned their hard hats and joined forces with "The Other Carpenter" to help two West Philadelphia families refurbish and repair their damaged homes. "The Other Carpenter" is an organization that assists homeowners in the East Parkside community of West Philadelphia with maintenance and home improvement.  The students split into two groups. Team 1 painted and provided support for structural repairs to a home occupied by a disabled senior citizen and her son with Down's Syndrome that could not perform repairs themselves. Students 7th graders Denise Roundtree and Shenae Walters were designated as "team painters," and while they seemed to get as much paint on their clothes and in their hair, the family was thrilled with the transformation of the bedroom from dingy, peeling painted walls to sparkling clean, bright walls.  Teamates Nathaniel Smith and volunteer Andrew McGuinness served as carpenters removing damaged walls, molding and window sills and replacing them with new wood and dry wall.

 

Team 2 was dispatched a few blocks away to help a senior citizen couple whose home also needed major structural repairs. Community Service Coordinator Trevor McGuinness led this group with the assistance from 12th grader Rachel Edmonds who also doubled as the projct photographer. Student workers included John Batista, Joe Johnson, Dewon Flythe and Justin Roebuck who worked as carpenters as they repaired damaged walls, ceilings and framing. The family was ecstatic with the results and expressed their gratitude that an organized group of students would spend a free Saturday helping strangers in need. 

 

After handshakes and hugs, the cheery group asked in unison "when can we do this again?!!" - a sign of a successful day of service.  Special thanks to Lisa Stokes, chair of the SquashSmarts Community Service Committee, who was far more successful putting paint on the walls than on her clothes and to Board Member Pete Prinsen who introduced SquashSmarts to this worthy organization.

 

SquashSmarts Student Shares Foreign Perspective
04-19-07

 

 

Congratulations to Lamin Conteh, 9th grader at National Constitution Center who was chosen among his peers to speak at an official swearing-in ceremony for recently approved U.S. Citizens at the National Constitution Center on Thursday, April 19, 2007.  Lamin is an inspiration for everyone who strives to achieve their dreams.  Here is an excerpt from his speech:

 

"Hello my name is Lamin Conteh. I was born in Sierra Leone.  Being an immigrant myself, I can tell how joyful you all are at this moment . Watching you now as you receive your citizenship today makes me proud and hopeful that if I work hard, some day I too will become a citizen."

 

On March 8th Lamin had the further opportunity to meet with author Ishmael Beah at the WHYY studio during a live broadcast of Radio Times with Marty Moss Cohen.  Ishmael, a fellow native of Sierra Leon was in Philadelphia on a media tour for his best-selling memoir A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier. The author took time after the show to speak with Lamin about school and squash and to reminisce about life in their homeland. The two exchanged email addresses and continue to keep in touch. The experience brought smiles to everyone in the studio. Special thanks to Marty Moss-Cohen, Susan Greenbaum and the entire Radio Times staff.

 

 

 

 

2007 National Urban Squash Team Championships

Sponsored by NUSEA

March 30-April 1, 2007

Boston, MA

 

 

 

     

 

Seven years ago, on May 13, 2000 to be exact, a team of eager junior squash players from New York's StreetSquash traveled to Boston to face SquashBusters at the elite and venerable Harvard University's Murr Center squash courts.

 

At that first urban squash match, the New York team captured the title over the then-four-year-old Boston-based SquashBusters. Players and spectators alike described the play and atmosphere as "unbelievable" and "incredible".

 

Seven years later, that same exuberance still resounds at the National Urban Squash Team Championships, held this year at Northeastern University's SquashBusters' facility and sponsored by the newly formed National Urban Squash & Education Association (NUSEA).

 

This year's tournament featured 240 students from all five NUSEA-member programs, including: Philadelphia's SquashSmarts, Chicago's MetroSquash, New York's City Squash and Harlem's StreetSquash and Boston's SquashBusters.

 

Tournament Director Chris Smith, who coached last year's US Junior Men's team in New Zealand commented on the talent, commitment and camaraderie of the players over the weekend.

 

"The fact that this event in its 4th year has 240 kids representing 4 cities and 5 programs shows just how far Urban Squash has come."

 

 The NUSEA Team Championships is in fact the 3rd biggest tournament in the United States (250 played at the US Jr Closed and 280 played at the US Jr Open) and even with that many participants, the event went off without a hitch.

 The expert scheduling and tournament management by Smith and all the programs' staffers was evident as the tournament proceeded over three flawless days.

 

In the Girls Under 13 Round Robin, SquashBusters claimed a decisive victory, only losing one match out of 15 played. New York's City Squash, another juggernaut, claimed the Girls Under 15 draw, also losing only one match on the road to victory.

 

Harlem's powerhouse, StreetSquash flew through their draw, eagerly awaiting West Philadelphia's SquashSmarts in a painfully tight Girls Under 17/19 title match, with StreetSquash edging out SquashSmarts 3-2.

 

David Kay's prior experience as a teaching pro and coach at Rochester University was evident in the Boys U13 draw, as his enthusiastic MetroSquash team clinched the Boys U13 title in an intelligently fought battle. City Squash ruled the Boys U15 Draw, defeating SquashBusters 4-1.

 

A standing room only crowd packed Northeastern's facility to watch some of the best squash in the Boys U17/19 final. SquashBusters proved themselves to be the best, decisively picking apart StreetSquash 4-1 in a creative display of squash competition that left viewers in awe.

"It is unbeliveable how quickly many of these students pick up the game and develop," remarked SquashSmarts Steve Gregg. "They're tremendous athletes but they are also tremendous people. Each child here is proud to identify with his or her team. And we are just very honored to be a part of the whole culture. It's a special reunion - every year." 

 

 

SquashSmarts Team Results

 

The weekend would not have been possible with SquashSmats volunteers: Alison Hart, Mike Gale, parent Marylin Batista and the ever smiling Jean-Elise. Special thanks to friends and supporters Helen Bamber, Eric Tietz, Katie Greenbaum and Nicole Belanger. An extra thanks is also due to Squash Director Jacob Greenbaum for orchestrating the entire weekend. 

 

Under 19 Girls: 2nd Place

Amber Thomas (captain)

Tempest Bowden

Jasmine Wingate

Sakora Miller

Quinetta Bowden

Brittany Kennefy

 

Under 19 Boys: 3rd Place

Lamin Conteh (captain)

Junaid Bin Mukhtar

Kalik Stanley

Mithun Das

Devonte Harris

Demonte Harris

 

Under 15 Girls: 3rd Place

Yawa Adjesson (captain)

Denise Roundtree

Shanae Waters

 

Under 13 Boys: 4th Place

Dewon Flythe (co-captain)

Justin Roebuck (co-captain)

Joe Johnson

John Batista


SquashSmarts Plants Trees in University City
3-24-07

After a walk through the beautiful Locust Walk at 9:30am on Saturday, March 24 the SquashSmarts students were greeted by members from the UC Green organization. Not leaving a minute to waste, the middle school students took action and began digging. Their teamwork, camaraderie, and enthusiasm was certainly evident; there were over 30 volunteers fighting to plant 14 trees, and SquashSmarts planted four. While many groups struggled to work together, the SquashSmarts students embraced the challenge and repeted their efforts until the job was done. Their enthusiasm was so overwhelming that they had a race down Locust Walk the whole way home. They were even so excited about the project that they asked if they could do it again next weekend (even though they have Urban Teams)!!


Raffle Rally's Squash Community
3-23-07

 

SquashSmarts would like to thank the entire Philadelphia squash community for its tremendous support of the 4rth Annual SquashSmarts Charity Raffle and PSRA Awards Dinner! All told, more than 50 prizes were awarded and over $13,000 was raised during a night of incredible squash and festivities. 

 

Your support allows 22 students from West Philadelphia to compete this weekend at the US National Junior Bronze Championships in Berwyn, PA and also at the National Urban Teams Championship in Boston, MA . 

 

SquashSmarts would like to congratulate each of the Winners and Finalist who played brilliantly and provided wonderful entertainment.  

 

Special additinoal thanks to…

 

Molly Pierce & John Makransky, PSRA Tournament Co-Chairs and SquashSmarts Board members

Lisa Stokes, Caleb Tindall & Joanne Jackson, Merion Cricket Club Hosts

Jacob Greenbaum, Raffle "MC" by night, SquashSmarts Squash Director by day

Demer Holleran & Jamie Heldring, Tournament referees

Peter Prinsen, SquashSmarts raffle ticket winner (for the third year in a row) with over $7,000 in sales!

Kalik Stanley , Andrew McGuinness, Clare Kuensell, Rebecca Greenberg, Denise Roundtree, Brittany Kennedy, Yawa & Joe Johnson, Student & Volunteer

The SquashSmarts & PSRA Board of Directors for their continued support of our students

All of the wonderful fans, friends and raffle sponsors who rallied to support SquashSmarts & the PSRA

 

Raffle prizes generously donated by…

 

A GREEN THING, ANSILL RESTAURANT, BALA EYE CARE, BRYAN PATTERSON, CHLOE RESTAURANT, DARA BERGER, DREXEL CREW COACH TERAH SCHAMBERG, DREXEL UNIVERSITY ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT, GAVIN JONES, HOWARD ESKIN'S & 610 WIP, JEFFREY MILLER CATERING, JIMMY ROLLINS, JOE RUSSELL, JOSEPH EAGLE & EASE UP, THE PIERCE FAMILY,  MARIGOLD KITCHEN RESTAURANT, MARY CROUSE, MERION CRICKET CLUB, MIKE JEFFERYS, PHILADELPHIA 76ERS, PHILADELPHIA DOWNTOWN MARRIOTT, PHILADELPHIA EAGLES , PHILADELPHIA EAGLES BASKETBALL TEAM, PHILADELPHIA EAGLES YOUTH PARTNERSHIP CARNIVAL, PHILADELPHIA FLYERS, PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES, PHILADELPHIA SOUL, PHILADLEPHIA EAGLES TRAINING CAMP, PIF RESTAURANT, PRINCE SQUASH, STEVE VIRGONA, THE BELLWOOD CLUB, THE CYNWYD CLUB, THE MANN CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS, TINA RICKS, TINDERBOX, UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA MEN'S AND WOMEN'S SQUASH TEAMS.. Thank You!!!


Hard Work Earns Local Victory

01-21-07

 

Congratulations to SquashSmarts 5-year veteran Tempest Bowden who drove, boasted and dropped her way to the Girls Under 17 championship at “The Squash Club at CHA Tournament” this past weekend in Chestnut Hill, PA.  Tempest, who finished last season ranked 34th in the country and earned a coveted spot in U.S. Junior Nationals (Gold Level), became the first SquashSmarts student-athlete ever to win a USSRA sanctioned competition! Tempest defeated three very challenging opponents, including top-seeded Stephanie Jewitt 9-1, 9-7, 9-4, en route to the GU17 title. For those attending, it was tough to miss the calm yet ever-present smile on the impressive young athlete's face.

 

Competing alongside Tempest were teammates Mithun Das (BU15), Devonte Harris (BU15), Kalik Stanley (BU17) and Junaid Bin Muhktar (BU17). Junaid's heroic comeback from a two-game deficit turned many heads in the crowd. Overall, the team proved to be class acts on and off the court, showing sportsmanship, determination and fantastic teamwork in cheering on each other and having a great time. Special thanks to Bryan Patterson, Joe Russell and Mike Jefferys for running a fantastic event and Trevor McGuinness, Henry Miller and Quinetta Bowden for their expert coaching and support. 

 

Kids Giving Back
01-16-07

 

Martin Luther King Day 2007: SquashSmarts traveled to nearby Parkway West High School for a hectic yet rewarding day of cleaning, painting and restoration. The kids split into groups and cleaned closets, classrooms, storage areas and even two badly cluttered attics in order to make room for new materials and supplies. Finally, the students helped rearranged the school’s computer lab to allow Parkway students a cleaner place to use their new computers. The team then board the bus back to Drexel's Daskalaskis Athletic Center for an exciting afternoon of squash.  Special thanks to volunteers Anna Adler and Lara Stevenson; Parkway West organizer Paulette Christie; members of the DuPont Corporation; and the local residents and high school students who attend Parkway.

 

M.A.N.N.A.: Each Tuesday and Thursday (5:30-8:00pm) SquashSmarts kids visit the MANNA soup kitchen on 20th and Market Street to help prepare meals for nutritionally deficient residents living right here in Philadelphia, including those with HIV and terminal illnesses. If you ave a free evening and interested in lending a hand, contact Trevor McGuinness at 215-895-4964 and spend a memorable and meaningful evening with our students.

 

SquashSmarts wants YOUR ideas on meaningful Community activities appropraite for Middle School students for our March, April and May community projects. Please send your creative suggestions to Trevor McGuinness at trevormcg@gmail.com or call 215-895-4964.

 

Congratulations to New 6th Grade Team Members
01-09-2007

The following students from Drew and McMichael Elementary Schools have successfully completed the rigorous fall tryout session and will join SquashSmarts as full team members this January. Congratulations to John Batista, Joseph Johnson, Denise Roundtree, Nathaniel Smith, Shenae Walters and their families

SquashSmarts Welcomes New Board Members
10-23-2006

A warm welcome to Mrs. Jocelyn Jones Arnold and Mr. Aaron Walters III as the newest members of SquashSmarts Board of Directors. e are extremely grateful for their commitment and service to our mission.

 

Julie Williams Retires
08-30-2006

After five wonderful years with the SquashSmarts organization, Julie Williams has announced her retirement as Director of Academics effective October 2006.

Julie's service to the students began in 2001 and has been nothing short of remarkable.  As Executive Director (2002-2004) she shaped the mission and values of our young program at a critical phase in its development. Julie quite literally “pounded the pavement” and forged meaningful partnerships with Drew and McMichael school, with coaches and administrators at Drexel University, with principals, teachers and civic leaders in West Philadelphia, and with parents and families of our promising young students.

Most notably, Julie secured the program’s future in June 2004 by orchestrating a joint venture with Drexel that lead to our current headquarters in the Daskalakis Athletic Center -- all done while single-handedly administering the day-to-day planning, recruitment, fund raising and programming.

Julie set an equally high benchmark as our Academic Director (2004-2006) instilling the love of learning in each of our students. She surrounded herself at every session with a cadre of consistent and caring tutors, oversaw two successful 8th grade graduations, and guided our middle school graduates on to bright and promising high school careers.

Less tangible though equally critical is the overwhelming presence and personality of "Miss Julie". The energy and ethos that Julie brought to work each and every day will be hard to emulate, let alone replace. She will be dearly missed by the students and staff who leaned on her as a role-model and a friend.

 

Casino Night
10-03-06

On October 4th, 2006, close to 300 members of the Philadelphia squash community gathered at the Racquet Club of Philadelphia for SquashSmarts’ first ever Casino Night and Squash Challenge featuring PSA pro Jon White. 

 

Multi-faceted celebrities such as Billy Cunningham of the 76ers, John Spagnola of the Eagles, Joe Giles of the Phillies and Mike French of the Wings demonstrated their talent on the doubles court, while White dazzled spectators with his impeccable skills on the singles court. White, a former world #1 singles player competed with an eclectic group, including top collegiate athletes and SquashSmarts students in five-point “lightning round” matches. Paul Assaiante, current Trinity coach, who holds the record for longest winning streak in college squash history was the master of ceremonies.