Surf City Squash News

Renato Paiva
Surf City Squash
Executive Director

This is our concluding newsletter for the 2007-2008 academic year. I'd like to begin by sharing with you one last adventure of Surf City Squash.

Fourteen students participated in the National Urban Individual Tournament at Williams College. The results? Two consolation winners and 1 runner-up in the main draw! Moreover, three of our students were awarded prizes for Essay and Poetry in the Creativity Contest. While the Surf City students composed less than 10% of the entrants, they won a third of the academic prizes.

Overall, SCS had a stimulating and heartfelt weekend. Special thanks to Greg Zaff and the NUSEA family. Also much gratitude to Chris Sparr and his staff for organizing this event.

First Year - the Final Numbers
Taking a look at this past year, we'd like to outline the course that Surf City Squash has driven this past 2007-2008 academic year. In the classroom, the group's GPA (grade point average) has increased. In the sports arena, we have played over 10 official tournaments. That's quite a feat for the students, especially it being their first year learning and playing squash.    Finally, on the streets of San Diego, our students have given 20 hours of their time this year to serving the community over a span of 6 projects.

Looking to Year Two
Envisioning our second year has been quite challenging, but extremely life-giving because we believe there is always so much more for our students. Firstly, we are working to establish a mentoring program to provide one-on-one counsel. Building a solid relationship with an older mentor figure can help sustain a student's personal, academic and career growth.

Secondly, we will be taking the students to visit colleges throughout the States. Providing our students the opportunity to walk through the lecture halls and tour campuses makes higher education a palpable goal. They're literally stepping into their future - and that's exactly what we want.

As we're on the subject of 'stepping,' a hike club has been created to promote a togetherness in cardio workout and in enjoying nature. And lastly, Surf City Squash will implement a Cultural Program beginning this Fall season involving trips to museums, concerts, exhibitions and plays.

Ana Surf City Squash.jpg
Meet Our Students - Ana Rodriguez

For the month of July, I would like to introduce you to Ana Rodriguez, a soon-to-be 8th grader in our Surf City Squash program.

Ana's ancestral roots stem from the beautiful country of Mexico, a cultural powerhouse whose influence is seen in San Diego.  She is the oldest daughter in her family. This fact materializes into qualities demonstrated on the courts and in the classroom. She is an excellent student because of her discipline and organization skills.

As a young athlete, her traits overflow into her passion for squash; she possesses impressive squash skills. Therefore, it doesn't come as a surprise when she became a semi-finalist in the Urban Squash Individuals 2008.
And her adventures in SCS continue to remain exciting: Ana recently returned from the Dartmouth Squash Camp where she visited a superb school and learned squash from the school's coaches.

I am looking for your suggestions, comments and support! Please do not hesitate to contact me anytime at 858-452-0122 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .