United States Tennis Association and Discovery Education To Host Exclusive US Open "Careers Beyond the Court" STEM Virtual Field Trip to Inspire Students' Pursuit of Careers in Sports

SILVER SPRING, Md., Sept. 13, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The United States Tennis Association (USTA), the national governing body for the sport of tennis, and Discovery Education, the leading provider of digital content and professional development for K-12 classrooms, have teamed up to host the first ever Careers Beyond the Court Virtual Field Trip to inspire students to explore exciting career paths in the tennis industry. The event, announced today, will premiere on Thursday, September 14, 2017 at 1:00 p.m. ET. Careers Beyond the Court will take students to the new USTA National Campus in Orlando, Florida and the 2017 US Open, hosted at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York, to expose youth to experiences motivated by their passions and talents. As part of the Virtual Field Trip, special guest host James Blake, USTA Foundation Chairman and former world #4 tennis pro, along with US Open executives, will share experiences and insider knowledge of the diverse and dynamic career paths available in the sports industry.

"Discovery Education is proud to support USTA and their longstanding commitment to enriching the lives of youth, while encouraging the pursuit of their academic and talent-driven ambitions," said Lori McFarling, senior vice president and chief marketing officer, Discovery Education. "We are excited to present Careers Beyond the Court as a unique digital learning initiative to inspire today's young people to explore longterm career goals."

During the Virtual Field Trip, in an immersive classroom environment, Careers Beyond the Court will provide students with quality experiences, classroom activities and an insider's view of the important roles needed in the sport of tennis, beyond just professional play. The exclusive premiere event feature dynamic digital resources and will introduce learners to:

• Tennis Pros: Kaitlin Flaherty and Kyle LaCroix will showcase the career of a tennis pro, and the many responsibilities that this key role plays in the industry, from teaching and coaching, to pro shop management, to marketing, maintenance and more.
• Technology In Tennis: Sean Prokes, USTA National campus raquet bar manager and Joel Disbro, Wilson Sporting Goods lead racquet technician, will give students a look inside a technical career in tennis, racquet stringing.  Sean and Joel will both explain their roles in keeping the key piece of equipment in the sport ready for player and will explain the STEM behind their careers.
• Mental Conditioning and Performance Coaching: Players need physical coaching, the right equipment, and the important ingredient of mental conditioning and performance coaching. Students will hear from Ed Tseng, Rio Olympics performance coach, lecturer and author, who has coached top players to increase their mental tenacity.
• Event Management and Operations: The Virtual Field Trip will conclude with an exclusive look at careers within the US Open. Students will meet Stacey Allaster, USTA chief executive for professional tennis and David Brewer, US Open tournament director to hear how their careers combine operations, event management, marketing and more.

"The Careers Beyond the Court Virtual Field Trip activity is exciting because it empowers students to consider ranging career paths through immersive and interactive standards-based classroom instruction," Rob Lamb, Pattonville, Missouri School District science teacher. "Virtual Field Trips open up a world of exploration and opportunity for youth to experience, showing students how to follow their dreams is more effective than telling them to, and when it comes to inspiring the next generation of thinkers and doers, every interaction counts."

Available at no cost to classrooms nationwide, Careers Beyond the Court provides high school students, educators and families engaging experiences that provide an all-access look into the many career opportunities available in the tennis industry. The program's online experience, includes: video vignettes, accompanying career profiles, industry guides and a selection of colleges with specific sports-related degree programs.

Educators and classrooms can join the conversation with a LIVE Twitter chat using #TennisVFT to get questions answered by @USTA, @DiscoveryEd and other featured participants.  For more information on the program or to access the site's free resources, visit careersbeyondthecourt.com.

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About The United States Tennis Association (USTA)
The USTA is the national governing body for the sport of tennis in the U.S. and the leader in promoting and developing the growth of tennis at every level – from local communities to the highest level of the professional game. A not-for-profit organization with more than 715,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds in growing the game. It owns and operates the US Open, the highest-attended annual sporting event in the world, and launched the Emirates Airline US Open Series, linking seven summer tournaments to the US Open. In addition, it owns approximately 90 Pro Circuit events throughout the U.S. and selects the teams for the Davis Cup, Fed Cup, Olympic and Paralympic Games. The USTA's philanthropic entity, the USTA Foundation, provides grants and scholarships and helps under-resourced youth and individuals with disabilities, and supports wounded, ill and injured service members, veterans and their families. For more information on the USTA, log on to usta.com, "like" the official Facebook page, facebook.com/usta, or follow @usta on Twitter.

About Discovery Education
Discovery Education is the global leader in standards-based digital content for K-12, transforming teaching and learning with award-winning digital textbooks, multimedia content, professional development, and the largest professional learning community of its kind. Serving 4.5 million educators and over 50 million students, Discovery Education's services are in half of U.S. classrooms, 50 percent of all primary schools in the UK, and more than 50 countries. Discovery Education partners with districts, states, and like-minded organizations to captivate students, empower teachers, and transform classrooms with customized solutions that increase academic achievement. Discovery Education is powered by Discovery Communications (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK), the number one nonfiction media company in the world. Explore the future of education at DiscoveryEducation.com.

SOURCE Discovery Education