Note: The USTA SC Diversity and Inclusion Plan approved by the Board of Directors on September 26, 2010 is summarized in the following document. It should be noted that the 2011 Diversity and Inclusion Committee has been assigned the task of developing a new and more comprehensive plan to be approved by the Board of Directors for implementation prior to the end of 2011.
SUMMARY OF USTA SOUTH CAROLINA
DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION PLAN
Current Initiatives
General. USTA South Carolina is fully committed to diversity and inclusion, as indicated by the diversity statement adopted by its Board of Directors and displayed prominently on its web site:
USTA South Carolina welcomes all people who play, watch, support or enjoy the game of tennis into our events, programs, membership and leadership and will not discriminate against any person on the basis of age, sex, race, ethnicity, creed, sexual orientation, color, physical condition or national origin. Moreover, we believe that the growth of tennis hinges on the inclusion of groups that have not traditionally been heavily involved in the sport. We will earnestly solicit the participation of these groups and actively support efforts toreach out to them more effectively.
Policy. The USTA SC Policy on Diversity and Inclusion commits volunteers and staff to work proactively to increase diversity in each of the following areas:
- Placement of job announcements and hiring of staff
- Recruitment of Board of Directors and committee members
- Development and funding of programs and activities
- Award of grant funds
- Selection of players for Senior Cup teams and of players and coaches for player development functions
- Selection of award recipients
- Recognition of volunteers and staff
- Marketing, advertising and public relations
- Selection of vendors, in accordance with the USTA SC Policy on Purchasing
In addition, the requirement to work toward increased diversity and greater inclusion is echoed in a variety of other policies that deal with specific programs and activities.
Planning. The USTA SC Strategic Plan repeats the diversity statement as a Core Value and contains the following goals:
- Make diversity an embedded part of the organization and its programs
- Foster diversity in member organizations
Training. USTA SC has made a commitment to provide formal training on diversity and inclusion on a regular basis. Within the past two years, Diversity and Inclusion has been a major topic at the organization’s annual meeting, as well as in its Community Training and Development Workshops and Community Development Leadership Forums.
Committee Structure. The USTA SC Diversity and Inclusion Committee consists of volunteers chaired by an experienced volunteer leader. It is supported by an assigned staff liaison. Its 2010 Action Plan, which was based on the USTA SC Strategic Plan, included the following objectives. Most of these objectives have been met; those that have not will be carried over to the 2011 Action Plan:
- Collaborate with the USTA SC Community Development Committeeto ensure that all CTAs have published diversity statements and that at least half of them include minority members in their governing bodies
- Collaborate with the USTA SC committees to ensure applications and accountability report forms for all financial grants made or managed by USTA SC include diversity impact statements
- Prepare a statement defining USTA SC Diversity and Inclusion Committee’s role as the primary advocate for increased diversity within the USTA SC and its member organizations
- Review the USTA 2010 Diversity and Inclusion Statement and provide recommendations, as appropriate, on whether there need to be any changes to the USTA SC Diversity Statement in order to bring the two statements into alignment
- Determine the multicultural participation profileof Staff, USTA SC Board and Committees, CTA governing bodies, and to the extent possible, USTA SC programs
- Prepare a report to the USTA SC Board of Directors, summarizing the multicultural profile of the organization, the South Carolina CTAs, and USTA programs in South Carolina
- Identify a pool of potential appointees of diverse multicultural backgrounds for consideration for appointment to USTA SC Board and committees
- Encourage CTAs to conduct at least one program designed to increase diversity and multicultural participation in tennis, and prepare an end-of-year report on programs conducted
- Plan and conduct at least one major training session on diversity awareness and multicultural participation for key volunteers and staff of USTA SC and the SC CTAs
The committee, like all USTA SC committees, submits quarterly reports on its progress to the Board of Directors through the Strategic Planning and Evaluation Committee. Its end-of-year reports become part of the Organization’s annual Progress Report.
Planned Initiatives for 2011
Enhanced Diversity and Inclusion. The President will add up to four additional members to the current Diversity and Inclusion Committee prior to the March 2011 Board of Directors meeting. These new members will include people familiar with diversity programming, corporate/non-profit operations, and underserved population groups.
Charge. The committee’s charge under this plan will amount to nothing less than a complete re-framing of the USTA SC approach to diversity and inclusion. Specifically, the committee will be tasked to produce a written plan for increasing diversity and fostering inclusion to be presented to the Board of Directors at its June 2011 meeting for implementation during the following quarter. The Planwill address each of the issues listed below and will include concrete objectives, action steps and a timeline. Preliminary budget estimates will be attached for any action steps that will require funding.
The Plan must be consistent with the current USTA SC StrategicPlan and Action Plan, and it is anticipated that some or all of its elements will be added to next year’s USTA SC Action Plan, as organizational or Diversity Committee tasks. Development of this Plan will require coordination with other USTA SC Committees and assistance from diversity experts at USTA and USTA Southern.
Questions to be Addressed by the Committee
- Organizational Structure and Roles. What changes are needed in the composition, organization, or operations of the staff or in the volunteer board and committee structure, or modify volunteer or staff roles in ways that will help us increase diversity and foster inclusion?
- Training. What trainings do we need? For which target audiences? On what timeline? If we conduct a “Diversity Summit” similar to those held at USTA and USTA Southern Section meetings, who should attend?
- Employee Practices. Are there changes to our advertising, hiring, training, or mentoring practices that will help us obtain and retain highly qualified minority employees? Do any of our current employment practices discourage minority applicants or contribute to rapid minority turnover?
- Volunteer Management. How can we improve our procedures for identifying, selecting and training volunteers to increase diversity within our volunteer ranks? How can we better prepare women, minority, and physically challenged volunteers for leadership roles?
- Programming. Do we need to make changes to current programs or develop new programs to increase diversity? If so, what changes and/or additions do we need?
- Marketing. How do we leverage our PR and marketing capacity to increase effective outreach to non-traditional players?
- Grants. How might we alter the grant process to foster diversity and inclusion?
- Contracting. How can we increase the percentage of women and minority contractors without reducing the quality or increasing the cost of goods and services?
- Impact on Member Organizations. What steps can we take that will lead to increased diversity within our member organizations?
- Impact on Tennis Professionals. How can we work in conjunction with SouthCarolina’s tennis professionals to increase diversity among teaching professionals?
- The Committee may address other areas as it sees fit.
1
8/27-10