Tempe, AZ – The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) is excited to announce the launch of a new student-athlete mentorship program that will aim to strengthen the personal and professional development of current student-athletes through mentorship from successful college tennis alumni.
As a continued effort to provide more development opportunities not only for the coaches within the association but their student-athletes as well, this program adds to an array of opportunities the ITA has established over the past few years for student-athletes which include the ITA Student-Athlete Council and ITA Rising Coaches Program.
“We are thrilled to launch this inaugural student-athlete/alumni mentorship program,” stated ITA Community Manager, Elicia Smith. “Our 2023-24 ITA Student-Athlete Council was instrumental in its creation, proposing a mentorship program with our College Tennis Alumni Network as a way to help alleviate the stressful and daunting process of transitioning out of college athletics. We hope this program will provide student-athletes with the tools, connections, and resources to feel more prepared as they enter this next chapter in their lives and empower them to feel confident in their potential beyond the tennis court.”
Available to student-athletes entering their final year of college, the ITA Student-Athlete Mentorship Program will pair 15 student-athletes with 15 members of the ITA College Tennis Alumni Network and will cultivate a collaborative relationship in which the mentor and mentee will discuss many key aspects of the transition to the professional world after graduation.
Spanning the duration of the academic year (September to April), student-athletes will be paired with mentors based on factors such as professional interests, level of college tennis played, and their biggest concerns about the transition after college.
Once paired, the mentors and mentees will go through an orientation session hosted by an ITA staff member before beginning the year-long program. Throughout the year, pairings will have monthly objectives and will be asked to reflect each month on the previous month’s discussions.
Applications are now open for both student-athletes interested in being a mentee and college tennis alumni interested in being a mentor. Mentee applications can be found here and mentor applications can be found here. The deadline for applications is August 9th.
About the ITA: The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) is the governing body of college tennis and is committed to serving college tennis and returning the leaders of tomorrow while promoting both the athletic and academic achievements of the collegiate tennis community. The ITA, founded in 1956, is comprised of nearly 1,700 men’s and women’s varsity tennis teams representing over 1,250 institutions, administers numerous regional and national championships, and the ITA College Tennis Rankings for nearly 20,000 college varsity student-athletes at NCAA Division I, II, and III; NAIA; and Junior College levels. The ITA also has a comprehensive awards program for players and coaches to honor excellence in academics, leadership, and sportsmanship. For more information on the ITA, visit WeAreCollegeTennis.com and follow the ITA on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and LinkedIn.
