{"id":184499,"date":"2026-03-09T18:24:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-09T18:24:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/184499\/"},"modified":"2026-03-09T18:24:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-09T18:24:08","slug":"oca-usta-florida-and-seminole-county-launch-tennis-program-for-neurodivergent-individuals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/184499\/","title":{"rendered":"OCA, USTA Florida and Seminole County Launch Tennis Program for Neurodivergent Individuals"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Altamonte Springs, Fla., March 9, 2026\u00a0\u2013 Tennis has proven to be a sport that anyone can participate in with a racket and a ball. It brings people together, encouraging physical activity, building self-confidence and fostering social connections.<\/p>\n<p>This month, OCA, a local nonprofit helping neurodivergent individuals from two \u2013 65 years of age, is launching a new tennis program in partnership with USTA Florida and Seminole County Government.<\/p>\n<p><img width=\"900\" height=\"600\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-post-109042 wp-image-109046\" alt=\"\" data-public-id=\"IMG_0009\/IMG_0009.jpg\" data-format=\"jpg\" data-transformations=\"f_auto,q_80\" data-version=\"1773078928\" data-seo=\"1\" data-size=\"900 600\"  data- data-delivery=\"upload\" onload=\";window.CLDBind?CLDBind(this):null;\" data-cloudinary=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\u201cTennis is a lifelong skill that can be adapted to a variety of ability levels, making it an ideal fit for OCA\u2019s mission of creating inclusive opportunities for all,\u201d says Silvia Haas, CEO and co-founder, OCA. \u201cUltimately, our goal is not only to teach tennis skills but to provide participants with meaningful recreational experiences that contribute to a healthier lifestyle and an enhanced quality of life.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The program will feature weekly tennis classes designed for varying levels of skill for the participants. Each class will be taught by trained staff and volunteer coaches who understand the needs of these individuals.<\/p>\n<p>The program was funded by a grant from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ustafloridafoundation.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">USTA Florida Section Foundation<\/a>, including the purchase of equipment for the participants to use outside of the program.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOCA has shown how sports can help enrich the lives of everyone over the years, and being able to partner on this program is something we\u2019re very excited to be working with them,\u201d says Deborah Ballerino, tennis service representative, USTA Florida. \u201cFrom our perspective, showcasing why tennis is a great sport for anyone is a critical part of what our organization does.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>One of the goals of the program was to find community partners to support the participants in the classes. Seminole County\u2019s Parks and Recreation offered Sandlando Park, featuring 25 tennis courts and 7 racquetball courts for residents to use.<\/p>\n<p><img width=\"900\" height=\"600\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-post-109042 wp-image-109049\" alt=\"\" data-public-id=\"IMG_0022_109049c0692\/IMG_0022_109049c0692.jpg\" data-format=\"jpg\" data-transformations=\"f_auto,q_80\" data-version=\"1773079045\" data-seo=\"1\" data-size=\"900 600\"  data- data-delivery=\"upload\" onload=\";window.CLDBind?CLDBind(this):null;\" data-cloudinary=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is a tremendous addition to what we provide at Sanlando Park and I\u2019m grateful for our team at Seminole County Parks &amp; Recreation for making this happen,\u201d says Andria.<\/p>\n<p>Herr, chair, Seminole County Board of County Commissioners. \u201cIt\u2019s important for all of us to provide opportunities like this to fulfill the lives of so many in our community.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The classes started in February and continue through. Those interested in participating can reach out to OCA for more information.<\/p>\n<p>Media Contacts:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Altamonte Springs, Fla., March 9, 2026\u00a0\u2013 Tennis has proven to be a sport that anyone can participate in&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":184500,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[28,30,29],"class_list":["post-184499","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184499","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=184499"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184499\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/184500"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=184499"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=184499"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=184499"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}