To reach out to underserved elementary and middle school youth by introducing the sport of tennis, teaching life skills, and exposing youth to the merits of higher education.
This is accomplished through after-school and summer enrichment programs at the Mary and Frances Youth Center on the campus of Virginia Commonwealth University. Lobs & Lessons is a member of the United States Tennis Association (USTA) and is a National Junior Tennis and Learning (NJTL) chapter. There are a total of 640 NJTL chapters in the nation. Lobs & Lessons is one of 56 NJTL chapters in the nation offering the First Serve Life Skills curriculum.
Lobs & Lessons began in the in the fall of 2004 with the mission of reaching out to underserved youth in the community. Lobs & Lessons began as a small pilot program with 40 children from the William Byrd Community House. Lobs & Lessons continues to work with the WBCH, as well as other community partners in the greater Richmond area. The program serves up to 50 youth a day, five days per week in afterschool programming. In addition, full-day summer camps are offered for 6-8 weeks and serve up to 40 youth per week. For the 2010-11 year, Lobs & Lessons served 117 youth through afterschool and spring break programming, and over 230 youth in summer programming. 120 volunteers provided 1,546 hours of service for the program. After-school snacks and summer lunches are generously provided by FeedMore through the Kids Cafe program.
Participants come to the Mary and Frances Youth Center on selected days during the week. Some community partners bring youth once a week, while others attend twice a week. Students in the program participate on and off the court during their time at Lobs & Lessons.
Five core values of the program
- Getting along with others
- Regulating emotion
- Being coachable
- Practicing healthy habits
- Learning the sport of tennis
