USTA Florida Expands County Regions Served by Tennis Program Coordinators

USTA Florida Tennis Program Coordinators (TPCs) are meeting with community tennis organizations and individuals throughout the state in anticipation of expanded service regional boundaries that will take place beginning in January 2016.

The four re-aligned or expanded territories include the Panhandle region (Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, and Bay counties), North-Central Florida (Leon, Wakulla, Columbia, Alachua, and Marion counties), North-East Florida (Duval, St. John, Flagler, Volusia, and Brevard counties), and Central Florida (Lake, Seminole, Orange, Osceola, Polk, Hillsborough, and Pinellas counties). Also served is the South Florida region (Miami-Dade, Monroe counties).

“In responding to a tennis provider survey we did earlier this year, one of the common needs amongst our tennis communities was the need to have a stronger and united connection with USTA Florida,” says Andy McFarland, associate executive director and managing director of the recreational tennis department at USTA Florida. “Many tennis communities feel that with the presence of a TPC in their community, it will help them develop and grow tennis more effectively and make them feel more inclusive of our organization.”

The expanded geographic territories (see map below) now include Florida counties that haven’t been covered by USTA Florida field staff in a number of years.

“Unfortunately we do not cover 100 percent of Florida with our Tennis Program Coordinators as we do not have the manpower to service some of the more rural areas of the state, but we have capable program staff based in our association headquarters that will be able to help those communities with their recreational tennis needs,” McFarland says.

The current team of Tennis Program Coordinators currently stands at four full-time and one part-time staff that cover most metropolitan and populated counties in Florida.

“We recently had a 14-year TPC resign from our organization and are strategizing how best to re-cast her former territory, and a few others that are not covered by a TPC,” McFarland says. “Communities shouldn’t be surprised to receive communication or perhaps local facility visits from a Tennis Program Coordinator before January. Our TPCs are wonderful tennis customer service agents that are very proactive in reaching out to build relationships and to help service recreational tennis needs as best they can.”

For any questions related to Tennis Program Coordinators or anything youth or adult recreational tennis related, contact Andy McFarland at mcfarland@florida.usta.com or (386) 671-8927.