Club Insider Articles – Sixth in a Series
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by Cheryl Kirk
Several years ago, a group called Future of Racquetball (the predecessor of the current Growing the Sport Advisory Group) created a series of six articles for publication in a long-standing newsletter produced by Justin Cates called Club Insider.
This series, written during the COVID time period, was a collaboration between the 20x40 Alliance entities (USA Racquetball and the U.S. Handball Association), two sport governing bodies with a common mission: to save courts. Club Insider content is positioned for facility owners and managers, so this was an approach to communicate with decision makers who can keep courts intact for our sports as well as for perhaps other activities as well.
The 20x40 Alliance continues to partner to this very day. All six Club Insider articles can be found on usaracquetball.com under Save Courts. https://www.usaracquetball.com/about/strategies-for-saving-courts/saving-courts-navigation/club-insider-articles
Here’s the sixth and final one...for your convenience, reflection, and action.
Court Sports: It’s Academic!
Strategies for Helping Students and Graduates Make Transitions to
Long-Term Club Memberships
Jill* recently graduated from college, and she’s walked into a whole new world. She doesn’t live at home anymore, she’s no longer living on campus, and she no longer has access to her campus recreation/fitness center. She’s starting an entry-level position with a company in a town near her alma mater. Jill is now on her own, and she knows that while she doesn’t have a lot of discretionary income, she really wants to stay fit and meet some new friends. Maybe check out a few health clubs? She loved being part of the recreational and competitive court sports scene at her university. Maybe a health club with courts...
Greetings from USA Racquetball and US Handball!
*In truth, we don’t know Jill! We made her up, but we didn’t make up this scenario, which continually plays itself out across the country. We often say we wish we had a dollar for every time someone says, “I used to play _______ (fill in the court sport) in college.” The follow-on question from us is, “Well, why don’t you still play?” and the answer is some variation of “Life took over, and I moved on to other things.”
We think playing handball and racquetball are fine things to include in a full and enjoyable life, and we’ll get right to the point. For recent college graduates, could their new “third place”––ala their “Cheers-style home away from home”––be your club? And, are there ways to create partnerships with local colleges and universities even before players graduate and move on in their lives?
Q&A: IDEAS TO CREATE CONNECTIONS BETWEEN CLUBS AND COLLEGES/UNIVERSITIES
Might clubs consider a discounted membership or program to bring recent graduates into the fold?
Eric Hillgren, President of the Hinder Club in St. Louis, shared, “The Missouri State University Handball team has always produced lifelong Handball players that seem to end up around the St. Louis area. We are quick to reach out to them and offer them a 50% discount on a membership at the Hinder Club for their first two years out of college. This has worked out so well for us as many of them have continued on as full-time members after their two years and have become lifelong members at our club.” – Eric Hillgren (President of the Hinder Club)
Ross Colyer (Missouri State Graduate now in St. Louis in his first year out of college), adds, “It would have been tough for me to afford a gym membership out of college, but because the Hinder club offered me a discount to join their club, it made it much more manageable and has allowed me to continue to play Handball.”
How can clubs connect with collegiate coaches/athletic directors and vice versa?
Start with reaching out to them in your own neck of the woods! We’re pretty excited about what Renee Sitter of the Tucson Racquet Club has to say: “TRC reaches out to Club Sports teams (racquetball and/or handball) at the local colleges and extends an offer for them to join the racquetball or handball leagues. All they do is pay the league fee ($20-$25 per season). This is a great way to get college students involved with the local players’ groups, find that possible ‘third place,’ and benefit from the opportunity to increase their skills.”
Matt Krueger (US Handball’s Executive Director) comments, “I certainly wish more clubs would do this! Not only to draw in more prospective members, but it also brings in new players to interact with current members and enhances their league experience. It all equates to retaining long-term members, because we know players who require courts to pursue their passion will stick around for a long time.”
Could state associations and collegiate councils work with clubs to assist with making connections with colleges/universities, perhaps via the national organization?
Yes, of course! For example, in USA Racquetball’s structure, which includes Regional organized councils that concentrate solely on collegiate racquetball, they host an annual USA Racquetball Intercollegiate Championships. Clubs from colleges and universities across the country compete for top honors, and the top male and female gold medalists earn an alternate position on the U.S. National Racquetball Team.
For more information, visit: https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Racquetball/Programs/College-Racquetball/Collegiate-Conferences.
Similarly, USHA’s Collegiate Program Mission Statement reads:
“It is the mission of the United States Handball Association’s Collegiate Program to promote, develop, and expand the sport of handball at the collegiate level. Our goal is to increase awareness of handball’s lifelong benefits to university administrators and student-athletes; and support recruitment and participation in a yearly intercollegiate competition.”
Visit http://www.ushandball.org/collegiate-handball/ for more details on USHA’s collegiate focus including a number of established scholarships to support collegiate players.
We believe it’s all about outreach and connections. By way of sharing this information on collegiate programs in both of our organizations, we offer that if fitness facilities are looking for connections with racquetball clubs in colleges and universities, or if collegiate coaches and advisors are searching for ways to keep their current athletes playing these great lifetime sports as they embark upon the next phase in their lives, we are happy to help in any and every way we can. We’re just an email message away!
Sincerely,
USAR and USHA
Is your club already running a collegiate program? Do you have ideas or thoughts to share on the joys and challenges of maintaining connections with your local university? We would love to hear more about it. Please contact Karen or Cheryl at the email addresses on this page.
Contributors: LeaAnn Martin and Sam Esser, U.S. Handball Association; Cheryl Kirk, USA Racquetball
USA Racquetball Contacts
Karen Grisz – ktracquetball@gmail.com
Cheryl Kirk – cherylkkirk@aol.com
Please visit https://www.usaracquetball.com/about/strategies-for-saving-courts/saving-courts-navigation/programming for court programming resources and materials.
Also, contact Adam Manilla or Erika Manilla for more information about
Manilla Athletics’ Racquetball Program Coordinator Course.
