Throughout 2021, USTA Florida continued to tackle diversity, equity, and inclusion in the organization through the #AMPLIFY Initiative. The initiative, established to engage and amplify the Black voices in our tennis community so we can provide a more inclusive environment within USTA Florida, remains a major focus for the organization through staff training and education, new tennis programming and more diverse partnerships.
Since the #AMPLIFY Initiative was launched in July of 2020, staff training and education has been a focal point. All staff have been required to attend trainings related to diversity, equity, and inclusion on topics such as inclusion in the workplace, unconscious bias, and courageous conversations. Professional development opportunities continue to ensure that our staff are trained to understand racial inequality and have conversations with individuals from diverse communities.
Building partnerships with diverse organizations to create tennis programming has also been vital to our growth. Through the #AMPLIFY Initiative, USTA Florida has built partnerships that have helped create tennis programming in predominantly Black communities across the state. Forming new tennis programs ultimately guarantees more Black people be exposed to the sport of tennis, and hope to encourage and inspire other diverse communities to play tennis.
As an organization, USTA Florida strives to grow in the diversity, equity and inclusion space and the long-term #AMPLIFY Initiative has ensured we do just that. This is just the beginning of a long journey to create a standing impact for our USTA Florida family and Florida tennis community, and we look forward to what 2022 will bring. To learn more about the #AMPLIFY Initiative, visit USTAFlorida.com/Amplify.
