ctor
USAPA JUNIORS
PROGRAM
REDESIGNED TO
MEET FUTURE
NEEDS OF
OUR YOUTH.
By Bob Nibarger
Chair of the USAPA Juniors Program
T
he USA Pickleball Association (USAPA)
Juniors Program, for ages 7-19, launched at
the 2016 USAPA Nationals in Casa Grande,
Arizona. Kids from across the U.S. came
together for a social event that featured guest speakers,
pizza, and a very popular event that matched the kids
with top-level pickleball pros.
For the past two years, the Juniors organization
has focused on developing a specialized website,
usapajuniors.org, and the USAPA Juniors Facebook
page. A pickleball junior advisory committee helps
support a new USAPA Recreational Programs
Department and provides direction and guidance
regarding junior pickleball initiatives. The newly formed
Recreational Programs Department includes Hope Tolley,
Director of Recreational Programs and Services, and also
Jason Jamison, National Programs Advisor.
Steve Manolis, a certified pickleball teaching pro and
a USAPA Educational Ambassador, introduced a Youth
Education Initiative program in 2017. His continuing
work with park districts as a pickleball court advisor has
changed the landscape of public courts in the Phoenix
area. Looking ahead to 2020, Steve will be a contributor
in leading a group of other ambassadors and players
introducing families, PE teachers, schools and parks
departments to further recreational play through the
USAPA’s Community Engagement Program, which was
just released this year and will be led by the USAPA’s
Recreational Programs Department.
The Junior Committee consists of a diverse group
of community pickleball leaders nationwide and includes
Bob Nibarger (Chair), Jim Ludwig (Pickleball Academy
of Southwest Florida), Josh Grubbs (coach and parent),
Sharon Brown (junior academies), Altaf Merchant
(professional player), Stephanie Lane (senior professional
player), Kyle Klein (Sanctioned Tournaments Committee
member and parent), Russell Elfterion (Parks &
Recreation leader), Hope Tolley (USAPA staff) and Jason
Jamison (USAPA staff).
Youth pickleball has grown dramatically in only three
short years. Membership has grown, physical education
programs are adding pickleball to their curriculum, clubs
are forming and the USAPA is expanding opportunities
for juniors to play in sanctioned tournaments. In response
to the enormous growth in youth pickleball, the USAPA
and the Professional Pickleball Registry (PPR) have
joined forces and will be launching many new programs
CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2019 |
MAGAZINE
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