Mission

The Clarke-Oconee Tennis Association (COTA) is a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization whose mission is to promote tennis in the greater Clarke-Oconee area.

Strategic Plan

Vision Statement

COTA strives to be an inclusive, welcoming organization focused on filling the courts in our community with players of all ages, race and skill levels for social, competitive, and instructional tennis programming. In everything we do, COTA will embody sportsmanship and integrity. Our primary goal is to promote the social and health benefits of tennis: tennis is fun, tennis is for everyone!

Core Values

COTA embraces the following core values that will ground our work:

  • Integrity and fairness

  • Sportsmanship and respect

  • Professionalism and competence

  • Passion for the sport

  • Teamwork

  • Inclusiveness and diversity

COTA Board Goals

  • Increase participation in both leagues and community social/fun play

  • Improve delivery of information about COTA and our programs to the community

  • Increase volunteer participation, focusing on recruiting new board members and volunteers with skills that align with COTA needs/goals

  • Develop and maintain educational and appreciation programming for team captains

  • Develop initiatives to focus on underrepresented populations

  • Ensure ongoing financial resources to support our mission

Priority Issues and Strategies Organized Under Strategic Themes

Participation/Growth

  • Host 2 social tennis events (e.g., mixers, tournaments, Grand Slam watch parties) per year

  • Host 2 supervised youth play days in partnership with public facilities and their pros (try to associate those with end of programming, e.g., camps, after school lesson sessions)

  • Create programming to increase participation in specific groups

    • Add a flex league for youth and adults

    • Host one day events for youth play

    • Develop a plan to increase racial diversity and continue programming targeting African American and Latino community members

Improve Organizational Process

  • Gather (formally or informally) feedback from captains and players to review and update rules, set calendar, evaluate leagues and decide on new league programming or procedures, etc.

  • Maintain an updated website that allows for accessible and searchable delivery of information

  • Maintain an active social media presences

  • Improve Captain Education and Appreciation Program to attract and retain captains

    • Create “how to” videos to help new captains learn the common tasks of being a captain

    • Conduct a survey or focus group to probe issues captains face and their ideas for incentives and best practices

  • Recruit new Board members who can work on specific strategic plan action items

  • To increase awareness of COTA Board process, announce Board meeting dates, times and locations on social media within 48 hours and solicit concerns or input

Develop Human Resources

  • Maintain organizational stability with ongoing succession planning for League Coordinator and Executive Director positions

    • Create detailed work responsibilities and timelines for each position

    • Identify and engage a volunteer to be involved in each of those positions

  • Provide an annual local pro appreciation gift

Maximize Financial Resources

  • Make ongoing decisions on bidding for State Championships (40+ and/or Trilevel), as these events provide an additional source of revenue

  • Monitor revenue and expenditures to determine if/when either need to be addressed