D.C. United

Throughout November and December, we'll be highlighting the true heroes of tennis with our annual celebration of the gifted, the courageous, the inspired and the inspiring. You can read about heroes we've honored previously here.

Tennis is the hook, education is the key—that’s the motto of the Southeast Tennis and Learning Center in Washington, D.C., which re-opened its doors last fall to unveil $18 million in renovations. The face-lift included six indoor courts, six outdoor courts, an outdoor clay court, an indoor arena and a spectator mezzanine level.

The center is one of many top-level places to play tennis in the U.S. capital, but it stands out for its ability to use tennis as a tool for education.

“[Tennis] can change a child’s life; it’s not a leisure activity,” says Cora Masters Barry, the former first lady of D.C. “A child that gets involved in an organized sport is less likely to drop out of school, less likely to [get involved with drugs].”

The goal of the center is to give local children and adults free access to tennis while also boosting their education. It is the crown jewel of the combined efforts of the D.C. Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR), the Recreation Wish List Committee (RWLC) and Barry, who is the founder of the RWLC. What began as a barren field bloomed into something spectacular because of Barry’s vision, which DPR supported.

“You can say in a way that she’s a founder of the center even though that facility is a government facility that’s owned and operated by DPR,” says John Stokes, the deputy director of DPR. “It’s her vision of what tennis could be in an inner city that really brought that tennis center to life.”

The center first opened in 2001, but Barry soon realized that the children who came to it needed more than just tennis courts. “You have to have some guidance, some support,” Barry says. “These kids needed to be directed and needed to use the time in a positive and productive way. Some kids didn’t know the difference between a racquet and banjo.”

The center added volunteers and teachers to bolster its activities and make education a priority. It includes programs and classes in art, history, computer skills, drama, reading and math. Students can sew and put on fashion shows, turn history lessons into drama performances and join a step dancing team. Staff members at the center are aware of all the students’ grades, and anything below a C means less court time, and more studying time.

“I love that it’s an individual sport,” Barry says about tennis. “You’re

responsible and accountable for your own reactions. You can’t blame anybody but yourself and you can’t rely on anybody but yourself.”

The center is just the latest example of the game’s growth in D.C., which has become a bit of a tennis hotbed. The city boasts 14 after-school programs, 14 annual USTA-sanctioned tennis tournaments, 10 after-summer camp programs, a variety of adult, junior and special needs tennis programs, and 34 summer camp locations with tennis.

The city also hosts the ATP and WTA Citi Open and is home to Mylan World TeamTennis’ Washington Kastles. Children at the center can be ballkids at those events and take part in Arthur Ashe Kids’ Day at the US Open.

“We are really trying to also be creative about how to expand the game of tennis,” says Stokes. “How do you make sure that as many people as possible can not just get on the courts and play, but also learn? Each year we try to top ourselves with creative, fresh ideas.”

Both WTT and the Citi Open help DPR’s fund-raising efforts and improve community engagement; each year, Citi donates towards the renovation of one of the city’s 130 tennis courts. Last year, DPR earned the USTA Organization Member of the Year Award.

“We are really competitive here in D.C. with almost everything we do,” Stokes says. “It felt good to know that what we were taking for granted as just trying to do a good job, the USTA recognized as a job well done.”

That job isn’t over, even when it comes to the renovated Southeast Tennis and Learning Center. Barry, who admits to not being much of a player herself, wants to keep growing the facility with more staff members and coaches, and eventually turn it into a national training center.

“She is passionate about these kids and about tennis,” Stokes says. “She’s not going to back down. She will fight for these kids tooth and nail.”

Barry noticed that tennis enticed children, and that it could encourage them to do better in life. Her revelation, she hopes, results in something that goes well beyond the court.

“When they leave there, they’re well prepared,” she says. “When I’m dead and gone these kids will be benefiting from the programs at the Southeast Tennis and Learning Center for the rest of their lives.”