FAQ
Baseline Basics
Tenacity tennis instructors run tennis clinics during the school day for 4th and 5th graders at select schools. The clinics are offered once a month to introduce the Tenacity Pathway to students who are preparing for middle school.
Ace Academy
Tenacity currently has four partner schools: Curley K-8 School in Jamaica Plain, Lilla G. Frederick Pilot Middle School in Dorchester, BCLA/McCormack 7-12 School in Dorchester, and East Boston High School in East Boston.
Any student in our four partner schools is eligible for the Ace Academy program. There is no academic requirement, students are not obligated to join the program based on school recommendations, and there is no cost. Program staff visit the schools starting in the fall, and contact the families of all interested students. If it seems that Tenacity will be a good fit for the student and family, staff visit them and officially enroll them in the program. This is the first of many visits as the family makes a three year commitment to the program.
Ace Academy is a free program for students at our partner schools. While families do not pay a monetary fee for services, we do have high expectations for our students. They are expected to attend the program every day it is run (three to five days a week), for three years, and participate for at least three weeks of the Summer Tennis & Reading Program.
We did! Tenacity staff have used various other literacy curricula and programs as inspiration, but the scope, sequence, and content of the lesson plans that we teach are unique to Tenacity.
Tenacity takes a games-based approach to teaching tennis. This means that students learn by playing a variety of tennis based games, rather than just drills on stroke production and strategy.
Yes! Our program relies on volunteers in both tennis and literacy to run efficiently. Please visit our Volunteer page for more information.
College & Career Prep and Post-Secondary Services
Any Tenacity students who graduate from our Ace Academy. Those who fulfill their commitment to the Ace Academy program and graduate at the end of their 8th grade year after 2-3 years of participation, are entitled to an array of services and support throughout high school and beyond.
The goal of Post-Secondary Services is to build upon the positive impact of the Ace Academy and College & Career Prep programs by continuing to ensure that our students will grow into successful and productive young adults and move on into the next phase of life, whether it is attending college or a vocational school, learning a trade, or joining the military.
Starting when our students are still in the 8th grade, College & Career Prep assists them with the high school selection process. Later, we continue to offer support to students as they move through their challenging high school years and beyond. We do this by offering educational, social, and emotional support through formal and informal programs and services. This includes regular check-ins throughout high school, tutoring and test preparation (e.g. SAT, MCAS), connections to academic enrichment programs, job and volunteer opportunities, ongoing tennis opportunities, scholarship opportunities, and assistance with college selection and financial aid processes. We work hard to maintain connections to our alumni; we do this through consistent tracking, and social and recreational alumni events.
We recognize that some students may have wished to fulfill their commitment to Ace Academy, and are committed and loyal to Tenacity, but couldn’t finish the program due to circumstances beyond their control (e.g. they moved or switched schools). For these rare circumstances, students who wish to become “honorary” alumni and have access to all the services and opportunities of the College & Career Prep and Post-Secondary Services programs may go through an application process. A panel will be assembled to review each application, and we will decide on a case-by-case basis who may become honorary alumni.
Summer Tennis & Reading Program
The Tenacity Summer Tennis & Reading Program serves Boston, Worcester, and Chelsea residents between the ages of 6 and 15. We cannot make exceptions to the residency or age requirements.
Nothing! The Summer Program is FREE!
However, it does cost Tenacity about $60 per child, per week to run our Summer Program. If you are able, we ask that you make a small donation (on a per week calculation based on your family’s income level) for each child attending when you register them for the program.
Immediately after filling out a registration form or registering online! Everyone gets accepted into our program, provided the site you choose isn’t already full.
At the end of the online registration process, you will get a confirmation page which will let you know that you have completed the registration process and that you have been accepted into our program. If you mailed in a form, you must take note of the site and week you signed up for.
The Summer Tennis & Reading Program is currently located at up to 24 sites throughout Boston, up to five sites in Worcester, and one site in Chelsea. Please visit the individual Summer Tennis & Reading Program pages to find out if Tenacity is available in a neighborhood near you.
All Boston sites have a morning session (9 AM – 12 PM) and most also have an afternoon session (1 PM – 4 PM). Children between the ages of 6-10 are eligible to attend the morning sessions and children between the ages of 9-15 are eligible to attend the afternoon sessions.
The Worcester program offers children ages 6 – 15 both a morning session (9 AM – 12 PM) and an afternoon session (1 PM – 3:45 PM).
Chelsea offers a morning session (9 AM – 12 PM) and an afternoon session (1 PM – 4:00 PM) – both sessions are open to participants between 6-15 years old.
Tenacity does not provide any transportation, but many of our sites are accessible via public transportation.
Children should wear sneakers and comfortable athletic clothing (shorts, t-shirt, etc.). Also, please ensure that your child has whatever sun protection he or she needs.
Tenacity provides all tennis equipment and reading material, but children may bring their own rackets or books if they would like. Make sure to CLEARLY LABEL any personal items you bring.
Tenacity provides water at all sites, though children are welcome to bring their own water bottles. No food is provided. Feel free to bring a snack if you think your child will want one.
The program is CANCELLED in the event of rain. Please ensure that your child has a way to get home or a place to go if a rain cancellation occurs. Contact your child’s site leader with any questions regarding rain cancellation.
Because of the demand for this program, attendance is REQUIRED for all confirmed sessions. If your child cannot attend a session he or she is registered for, please contact Tenacity as soon as possible at 617-562-0900 so that another child can be given the space.
Donations
Yes. If you process your gift using the Donate Now (service provided by Classy) link on the Tenacity website, you may use any form of credit card. If you would like to provide your credit card number via phone, fax or mail we can only accept Visa or MasterCard.
Our online donation processor, Classy, protects donations using encryption software which keeps your personal information safe. Your credit card information is not stored for future viewing once it has been processed, which ensures a secondary level of security.
Easy! Simply call 617-562-0900 and we will assist with your donation to Tenacity.
Absolutely! Most of our donations are made by check. Please make your check payable to Tenacity, Inc. and send it to our office, attn: Development Office at 38 Everett Street, Suite 50, Allston, MA 02134.
Yes, donating stock is an easy, wonderful way to help fund Tenacity’s programs. Simply call or email us and we’ll provide detailed instructions on how to contribute your stocks to Tenacity.
We often accept children’s books, office equipment and items needed in the tennis program, however we would appreciate your checking with us first to make sure there is a need for your items. We also ask that you provide an estimated value of your in-kind donation so that we can properly acknowledge the gift. Please understand that establishing the value of an in-kind donation for tax purposes is the responsibility of the donor, not Tenacity.
Tenacity is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization in accordance with the IRS Code. Our acknowledgement letter serves as a gift receipt as well as our thank you letter and may be used to claim a tax deduction. Our EIN number is: 04-3452763
We are grateful to any donors who wish to make a multi-year pledge to Tenacity. Please contact our CEO Ned Eames at (617) 562-0900 x2002 to discuss this option.
It would be our pleasure to help you honor someone in this special way.
Donations make it possible for Tenacity to provide our school-year and summer programs for underserved Boston, Worcester and Chelsea youth, as well as support our students on their journey to high school and beyond.
A confirmation will be sent to you once the donation has been processed. (Online donations are processed immediately, mailed donations are processed within 7 – 10 days).
Yes. We would be glad to accept your donation to our general fund to be used where most needed, or you may also direct your donation to one of the following areas: School-Year Pathway Programs, Summer Tennis & Reading Program, Scholarship, or Future Fund.
A matching gift is a terrific way to increasing the value of your donation to Tenacity. Consult the HR pages on your company intranet or contact your HR department for the proper forms.
Typically you will receive your letter within 7-10 days.
We can set up your record so that you receive fewer mailings from Tenacity, rather than losing touch altogether, however, if being removed from our mailing list is your preference, we will certainly honor that request. Just send us an email or give us a call and we’ll take care of it.
Use our contact form to send us an email with your updated info.
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