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USTA Southern Honors Althea Gibson with Scholarship
by Rhiannon Potkey, 13 December 2022
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The Southern Tennis Foundation, the charitable affiliate of USTA Southern, has established a college scholarship in memory of trailblazer Althea Gibson.
One of the greatest athletes of any sport, Gibson won five Grand Slam singles titles and six doubles titles. She achieved the world No. 1 ranking in 1958, becoming the first Black player to earn that distinction.
It took 43 years, when Serena Williams won the 1999 US Open, for another Black female to win a major singles title.
Gibson was the first Black woman to appear on the covers of Time Magazine and Sports Illustrated, and was the first Black to play on the Ladies Professional Golf Association tour in the 1960s.
Gibson was born on Aug. 29, 1927 to sharecroppers on a cotton farm in Silver, South Carolina. Her family moved to New York in search of a better financial future, settling in Harlem in 1930. She passed away on Sept. 28, 2003.
The STF’s Scholarship Committee selects 10 graduating high school seniors to receive scholarships and academic excellence awards. The scholarship is $1,000, which is renewable for the next three years if the student maintains a 3.0 or better GPA, remains a full-time student and does not otherwise receive a full college or tennis scholarship.
The minimum criteria for selection:
- Current member of the USTA
- Current resident of a Southern state with residence in a Southern state for a minimum one school year
- Annual household income is $100K or less with no children in college
- Annual household income is $120K or less with 1 or more children in college
- Active tennis player who has:
- Been ranked in the top 500 in USTA Southern in past two years
- Played on a high school team for two years, or
- Played in a Junior Team Tennis, NJTL team or program for two years
The application requires a high school transcript, a short essay, support letter and financial information. Students must complete all sections of the application and upload all requested supplemental information to be considered.
Recipients are expected to engage in publicity about their scholarship, the role of tennis and education in their lives and submit a photo and/or video.
Any juniors interested in applying for the scholarship can click here: https://form.jotform.com/STAjotform/2023-STF-College-Scholarship
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About Rhiannon Potkey
Rhiannon Potkey is a veteran sportswriter with more than two
decades of experience in journalism. Potkey has covered many
sports at many levels and has a passion for finding great stories.
Potkey has covered the U.S. Open, junior sectional and national
events, college conference championships and Davis Cup matches.
Potkey is currently Content Strategist for Tennis Recruiting. You
can reach Rhiannon by email at
rhiannon@tennisrecruiting.net.
