ATA FEATURED ON YAHOO!FINANCE
The vision, practices and results for junior players attending Austin Tennis Academy and ATA College Prep are discussed in an online article published today, December 15, on Yahoo!Finance.
Coach Newman Gives Update Concerning COVID-19
Dear ATA Community,
I am sure you are concerned about the COVID 19 virus pandemic which is now in it’s infant stage in the United States. Italy is a few weeks ahead of the United States in the virus spread. Here is an article from The Lancet. And here’s another article regarding COVID 19 that has some really good information as well as links to other articles which you should read.
Over the past two weeks, I have been in regular communication with Dr Daniel Roe, who is an Austin ER doc and on the front line of this pandemic.
His advice is to create as much social distancing as possible. We are in a position to alter the impact of the COVID 19 virus on our health system by social distancing.
Everything I am reading says we are in a cusp moment over the next two weeks that could make or break our health care system’s ability to handle the people who are hit hardest by getting the virus. I think about my two older brothers who have health issues and I think of Hayden Hobbick who has a compromised immune system because of losing his spleen in his recent automobile accident. I feel a strong level of responsibility to make decisions that insure our health care system can adequately manage the Tsunami of sick people that is headed it’s way.
Here are our initial responses:
– We are cancelling our morning camp and afternoon Academy practice for the following week. The weather forecast is for wet weather and that would mean having kids inside which is a good environment to have an asymptomatic kid with COVID 19 infect quite a few others. We must do things to flatten the curve.
– We will take this week to see how much spread of the virus there is then make a decision on the following week.
– We are working on private lesson protocols which would include keeping 10-12 feet apart and no handling of tennis balls. We encourage kids to contact their primary coaches to do private lessons. We encourage families to play tennis together and our facility will be open for your use.
– We will continue with aggressive, multiple times per day cleaning of surfaces.
We encourage each of you to educate yourself concerning the following, all of which are explained in the article above: what it means that COVID 19 is a novel virus, understand the idea of exponential spread (click here for an explainer), understand the concept of personal risk vs. systemic risk, understand the idea of mitigation and how social isolation impacts the spread of the virus.
This is an unprecedented time. We are living through a moment in time that will be captured in the future history books. Let us all be aware of our responsibilities to the communities we serve.
Respectfully,
Jack Newman
CEO
Austin Tennis Academy
Official Statement on Suspension of Events
Due to the heightened concerns surrounding the COVID-19 virus, effective immediately the USTA will suspend all USTA sanctioned products and events, including Adult and Junior Tournaments, League Tennis, Junior Team Tennis, USTA Schools programs, Tennis on Campus, Wheelchair Events and USTA Pro Circuit Events. The health and safety of all players, staff, fans and volunteers are the foremost concern. This suspension is in effect through April 20. The USTA’s goal will be to reschedule events where possible following this suspension period. Additionally, recognizing the evolving and fast-changing nature of this situation, the USTA will continue to monitor and assess conditions to make future determinations about events and activities taking place after April 20.
The USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, N.Y., and the USTA National Campus, in the Lake Nona area of Orlando, Fla., will remain open to the general public for play and instructional opportunities. However, all group activities will be limited in the number of participants. Any patron who wishes to cancel participation in a scheduled activity should contact the specific location for refund information. Additionally, the fitness facilities, showers and food service at both facilities will be closed. These policies will be in effect pending additional guidance or directives from each local governmental agency and the CDC.
Click here for tips and recommendations for facilities and players, regarding COVID-19 from the USTA.
Coach Newman Addresses the novel Corona Virus, Covid-19
Dear parents, players and patrons,
Like you, I have been tracking and thinking about the novel Corona Virus COVID-19. We have been discussing our plan of action for the past few weeks, consulting local health professionals and our advisory team as well as seeking the input of parents.
I wanted to share with you our plan of action concerning the health and safety of our students, faculty and staff.
First of all, young people seem to be fairly safe from COVID-19. Those who get the virus recover from it without much difficulty. However, from the CDC, those with higher risk are: older adults, and people who have chronic medical conditions like Heart disease, Diabetes, or Lung disease.
We want to be responsible members of our community and help slow the spread and reduce the impact of this virus if we can. As of today we will be implementing the following measures:
- Any staff or student who is sick should stay home or will be asked to go home if showing symptoms of virus.
- Mandatory hand washing. We are asking coaches and players to wash their hands before and after practice. We will also be providing hand sanitizer wipes and gel.
- We will continue cleaning and disinfecting surfaces 2x per day.
- We will replace handshaking with elbow bumps or racquet touches.
We will continue to monitor state and local health departments for information regarding any COV-19 outbreaks in our local community.
Although we do not foresee this occurring at this time, the possibility of temporarily canceling school or tennis programing might become necessary to help curtail the spread of the virus. We also respect the decision parents need to make for the health and well-being of their children and extended families.
We will be looking to local health officials to determine if, when, and for how long to take any further steps.
Some common sense advice from Coach Dio:
1. Drink plenty of water. Half of your body weight in ounces
2. Go to bed on time. 1030 pm-2:30 am = immune system repairs. 2:30am-6:30 am = your physical body repairs.
3. Exercise, but don’t over exercise
4. Eat healthy foods. Choices!
5. Think positive
6. Practice breathing- calm down
7. WASH HANDS!!! For 20 seconds with SOAP
It’s not time to fear; it’s time to prepare our immune system! And that should be done everyday.
We will keep you advised as we know more about our local situation.
I have attached a PDF of LTISD Superintendent Brad Lancaster’s email to his community that I think makes good common sense.
Let me know if you have any questions or concern.
Sincerely,
Jack Newman
CEO
Austin Tennis Academy
Learn How To Respond Effectively
Some of the most important relationships in our lives can also produce
some of the most uncomfortable conversations and emotions. Why is that true? If you feel like a particular person brings out the worst in you, there’s probably a good reason.
Would you like to know how to handle these situations in a more productive manner? That’s the focus of this month’s Life-Skills Webinar on Thursday, December 19, hosted by David Benzel, Founder of Growing Champions for Life.
Join us for this session so you can teach your children how to handle their buttons. You will learn:
- How to separate the symptoms from the real issue
- What fears are compelling unhealthy words and behaviors
- How to keep it from happening in the future
- Specific agreements you must make with yourself
David will connect the key life skills of the lesson with winning on the court, and in life. The live webinar will begin at 8:00 pm CST on December 19; it will be 45 minutes in length plus Q&A. Plus, Power Point materials are loaded with practical information worth saving for future reference.
National Recognition for One of Coach Newman’s Former Students
Sports Business Journal named Carla Rosenberg one of its 2019 Game Changers. This annual honor is given to women setting the standard and leading the next generation in sports business. Rosenberg is among 40 women who make up this year’s Game Changers class.
Rosenberg is a pioneer in the business of creating nonprofit foundations and charity events for star athletes. She is Senior Vice President, Charity Events and Management at Lagardere Plus. Rosenberg remains an active member of the ATA community.
You’re Invited! ATA Walk For Water This Wednesday 5pm
As part of the 2017 Playing for Glimmer Campaign, players, coaches and families of ATA (Austin Tennis Academy) are participating in the annual ATA Walk for Water on Wednesday, Dec 6 at 5:00 p.m. We will meet at the creek behind ATA and kids and adults can take a turn carrying water in red Jerry cans.
The Walk for Water is a way to experience what life is like for women and girls in Ethiopia who fetch water daily for their village, oftentimes walking several hours with a jug or jerry can weighing close to 40 pounds!
The ATA has helped Glimmer of Hope for many years and several families have traveled to Ethiopia to see completed projects (water wells, schools and health posts) that were funded by ATA efforts.
Former ATA student Breck Spencer visited Ethiopia and took the actual walk; you can see his video here:
https://vimeo.com/38044208
In addition to raising awareness through the Walk for Water, several players are raising funds for this year’s Playing for Glimmer Campaign, click here to see them all.
https://glimmer.org/campaign/playing-glimmer-ata
We hope to see you on Wednesday!
ATA Adds Experience, Energy With Coach Shaimaa Elsisi
The Austin Tennis Academy has hired Coach Shaimaa Elsisi as the latest addition to its standout coaching staff, CEO Jack Newman announced recently.
“Shaimaa will be an excellent addition to the ATA coaching staff,” Newman said. “She brings college coaching experience and an incredibly positive, high energy level to practice.”
Elsisi joins the ATA community after spending the past year as the Volunteer Assistant Coach at Baylor University, where she landed after moving from Florida. While in the sunshine state, Shaimaa took the court for Troy University where she competed for the Trojans and earned both her bachelors and masters degrees.
A native of Cairo, Elsisi was one of the top ranked junior players in Egypt before moving to the United States to play college tennis. She helped the Trojans to a winning record each year that she played at Troy.
“Tennis has taught me everything,” Shaimaa said. “Matches have given me mental strength, practice has given me stamina, tournaments have given me social skills, team competition has given me spirit, traveling has given me experience, participation has given me the best friendship…. tennis has given me my soul!”
After serving as a graduate assistant coach for the men’s and women’s teams at Troy, Shaimaa moved on to a head coaching position at Hillsborough Community College where she stayed until relocating to Baylor.
“I am a coach because of my passion for tennis,” Shaimaa said. “I chose to become a coach to give back to the sport, to impact my student-athletes’ lives in a positive way, to help them succeed on and off the court, and to give them the opportunity that my own coaches gave me as a student-athlete.”
That passion she mentions stems from a family full of tennis players including her sister, who is the head coach at Troy, her brother, who coaches professionally back in Egypt, but all started with her father.
Shaimaa, center, pictured with her sister and brother.
“I learned how to walk on a tennis court,” Shaimaa said. “My late father (my favorite person in the whole world) was a tennis coach and he took me to his work every day and I fell in love with tennis because of him! It was our special place! I love tennis and it’s my happy place and every time I stepped on the court in my playing years it felt like it was my first time!”
In addition to being an accomplished tennis coach and player, Elsisi is an exceptional student, earning her bachelor’s degree in sport and fitness management with a minor in recreation and her master’s degree in sports and fitness management with a concentration in sports administration. She now applies this love of learning to her students.
“As a coach, I learn everything I can about every student-athlete—not every individual responds in the same way,” Shaimaa said. “My goal is to learn what motivates them and keeps them engaged to give them the opportunity to develop their skill level in a structured learning environment that constantly challenges them while providing them with both encouragement and support.”
Off the court, Shaimaa loves traveling and visiting family and friends. She enjoys playing golf, softball, watching Disney movies with friend’s kids, and reading about nutrition and health issues.
After her first few weeks around ATA, one thing has stuck out to her that distinguishes this place from the rest.
“It’s culture! I loved it right away and I felt home the minute I walked in and I loved how welcoming everyone was right away,” Shaimaa said. “Everyone is very professional and very friendly. Kids are respectful, and they work hard on and off the court. They have great attitudes and are very coachable. The staff is great and passionate about what they do and they care about the kids on and off the court. It’s definitely a place that I can call home and family! I feel very lucky to be part of the ATA family and I’m very grateful to Coach Newman for this wonderful opportunity.”
Welcome to the ATA community, Coach Shaimaa!!
The Trip to the Big Apple By ATA CP’s Harrison Chiu
The Trip to The Big Apple
By: Harrison Chiu
It is very challenging nowadays to succeed in a field which you have not had any exposure or experience in. Many recent graduates from college are currently struggling to find the jobs that they want because they don’t have any experience. What future employers really want to see in future employees is some sort of experience, record, or exposure so they can be adequately prepared to excel in that job.
Over Spring Break, Alejandro Rodriguez (another ATA College Prep Student) and I were fortunate enough to have a life-changing internship at Morgan Stanley in New York City. We were interning at the Morgan Stanley Wealth Management group called the Scotto-Sorenson Group.
We arrived on the evening of Monday, March 13th, and immediately went to dinner with our host, Mr. Trapness, father of ATA CP alum Camilla Trapness. We didn’t realize this before getting in, but there were serious warnings of an incoming blizzard that was supposed to hit Manhattan the following day. Sure enough, blizzard Stella did hit, which turned traveling to the office into a nightmare. Alejandro and I first took the subway for nine blocks of the trip, but we still had at least three more to make it. Walking in the huge blizzard and seeing everyone wearing at least five layers, some snow boots, and gloves, Alejandro and I were just a couple of freezing teenagers in suits and dress shoes trying to make it in the office by 8 AM.
We arrived at Morgan Stanley with only six other people in the office at 7:56 AM. A financial advisor from their group came to meet us in the main room, and he brought us into their office, where we met the rest of the team. Alejandro and I were asked to shadow a little bit of everyone’s job, as each person plays a different yet pivotal role on the team. We joined conference calls with hedge fund managers and people in the oil industry, and we also partook in a meeting with a smaller company presenting their business model to some of the analysts on the floor. Apart from doing usual intern things, such as going to get the team coffee and lunch, taking care of their printing and copying, and delivering checks next door, Alejandro and I got to experience the feel of a major workforce on Wall Street first hand. The experience of listening to the team deal with their clients and each other is something I would never be able to get in a classroom setting, just like Mike Scotto, leader of the team says.
The Scotto-Sorensen group is one of the biggest teams at Morgan Stanley, managing $2 billion of assets. In wealth management, their job is to take funds from clients and invest those to reach their client’s financial goals, for which they make a fee and a fraction of the returns on investment. Brokers need to know the market and have to excel at communicating with their clients. After talking with a few guys from the team like financial advisor Mark McCooey, he says that knowing how to invest for income, mastering salesmanship and having clear communication with your clients are just a few of the major skills required for the job. Alejandro and I agreed that, if we are going to work in finance, the investment side of the business seems more appealing than the brokerage side.
You never know where life may take you. Everyone in the office had a unique path that got them to where they are now. John Sorensen, the co-founder of the group, got a low-ranked job and made his way up, but it all started from his being a young intern at Morgan Stanley. Mark McCooey was working on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange for many years before the growth of technology drove his decision to go into Wealth Management. Jimmy Janecek, a younger financial advisor apart of the team, was a former basketball player for NYU, and he was extremely interested in sports journalism and broadcasting. After a long time of contemplation, he chose to go where he had previous experience because of an internship and started working for Morgan Stanley. Some always saw themselves working in finance, but for others, it came as a surprise.
What I take away most about the four-day internship was that no matter what, successful people surround themselves with people who can elevate their level as well as elevate the teams. A strong team camaraderie is essential. To be honest, a desk job doesn’t sound that appealing to me, but when you have a great team culture like they have, it makes the experience a much more enjoyable and efficient one. Also, as Alejandro says, he “got exposure of the inner working of the financial world and realized the social importance of the industry.” Going out for dinner together at Bobby Vans steakhouse was a tremendous experience. The atmosphere was hilarious and charismatic, but when they needed to get things done, they did. We got to meet many people, and knowing those people will “build a network which will help [us] a ton so [we] can call upon them in the future,” Alejandro says. Although they are widely known as the loudest room on the floor who break the most rules out of anyone, they define finance.
As Parents… What Can We Do? Try the 30-30-30 rule!
Parents often ask what they can do at home to help reinforce the ATA & CP messaging of ‘strive for the pursuit of excellence’ and ‘study for the love of learning’. I love this! It is truly the village that creates the community, and together we can make a bigger impact. One thought that comes to mind, is to encourage them to “Show up. Listen. Always do your best.” Another thought that comes to mind is to model what you wish for them to do: complete tasks joyfully; study diligently, practice what you love to do; and perform with dignity.
In relating specifically to building better study habits, some things that you can do at home are:
1) Ask the right questions. ie. Instead of asking “How was your day?”, which may result in a one word answer of “fine”, ask “What are you reading about in History?”, which requires thought and dialog. OR instead of “Do you have any homework?” which is task oriented, ask “What will you be studying tonight?” which is habit oriented. This develops a proactive mindset instead of a passive one.
2) Designate an evening ritual as ‘study time’ or ‘family time’. To optimize the effects, it should be repeated each night, at the same time, in the same location, and with minimal distraction. Establish 30 minutes (or longer) to gather at the dining table or in the living room, with no TV, computers or cellular devices. Read. Discuss. Play a game like Bananagrams, Boggle, Yahtzee, etc.
3) Practice this study habit with your child for the next 30 days. Review her day. Ask her to explain the topics she currently studying in each class. Help her locate the process to solve a problem. Show her how to learn.
4) Read aloud to your family or read silently as a family. 30 pages a day is one of the greatest gifts you can give to your child that will result in improved academic performance and character evolution. It is also a beautiful way for your family to connect each day. Suggested books that will spark discussion include: The Chosen, To Kill A Mockingbird, Moby Dick, The Alchemist, Three Cups of Tea, Never Let Me Go, The Giver… or perhaps one that she is currently reading at school.
As parents, we want the the very best for our children. Emphasize the quality of long-term practice over short-term results. Show them that you value how they spend their days. And teach them to appreciate the way in which you spend yours.
Try the 30-30-30 rule: 30 minutes, 30 days, 30 pages.
Let me know what happens next.
Take care, ~Carol