ABOUT US

The mission The First Tee of Greater New Orleans (TFTGNO) is to impact the lives of young people by providing educational programs that build character, instill life-enhancing values and promote healthy choices. TFTGNO was established in December 2003 and began providing youth development programs in March 2004. Our program was significantly impacted by Hurricane Katrina, as the floods which destroyed many of the schools and parks in the Greater New Orleans area significantly impacted our ability to provide our programs. TFTGNO has since rebounded, as we now serve over 15,000 youth annually through our after-school and community-based outreach programs.

Although our program is open to any youth participant between the ages of 5 and 18, we strive to target under-served youth in the Greater New Orleans area who would otherwise not have the ability to participate in a program like ours. We serve the entire Greater New Orleans area, consisting of a seven Parish region. We serve any student, regardless of their physical or mental ability and regardless of their ability to pay for programs. Currently, we serve 79% minority and 38% female students in our out-of-school programs and 92% minority and 49% female participants through our school/community based outreach programs.

In order to reach our target population, we participate in formal outreach partnerships with several, local youth development and educational organizations. We currently partner with 30 schools in Jefferson, Orleans and Plaquemines Parish School Systems, as well as local Charter and Private Schools, including; FirstLine Schools, KIPP, Crescent City Schools, New Orleans College Prep Schools, and St. Michael Special School, to reach participants with our curriculum through their physical education classes. The First Tee also has affiliation agreements with seven local parks and golf facilities to provide our programs, as well as the New Orleans Recreation Development Commission, the Boys & Girls Club, the Department of Defense, New Orleans Kids Partnership and Laureus Foundation’s Sports Based Youth Development Coalition. While there are various youth development organizations in the Greater New Orleans region that use physical activity to reach youth participants, there are no other organizations that utilize the time-tested, research-supported, positive youth development curriculum that TFTGNO utilizes.

OUR LOCATIONS

In April 2015, we participated in the PGA Tour’s Zurich Classic Tournament. Our youth attended six days of junior programs (including the Junior Clinic, Caddie Day, and Junior Course Reporter Program) and we received $10,000 from the PGA Tour.

In March 2015, TFTGNO participant Carlo Carino was selected by The First Tee National Office as the Outstanding Participant of the Year. Carlo was selected from an international pool of over 500 applicants based on his academic performance, volunteerism and participation in our programs. As Outstanding Participant winner, Carino earned a $20,000 college scholarship.

In 2015, we began offering our after-school program at five new program locations. These new program locations will allow us to serve an additional 200 students in 2015.

In January 2015, we provided our National School Program training to twenty Orleans and Jefferson Parish schools. We’re partnering with over 40 Physical Education teachers from local schools to implement the outreach program as part of student’s P.E. classes.

In December 2014, we were selected to participate in the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation USA’s Model City Initiative - New Orleans. The initial cohort of six organizations will focus on providing high-quality youth development programs to children in New Orleans between 2015-17.

In September 2015, participants Camille Simon and Carlo Carino spent a week at Pebble Beach playing in The Nature Valley First Tee Open. Camille was paired with 27 year PGA Tour Fran Quinn and Carlo was paired with Tom Lehman, winner of the 1996 Open Championship.

Our 10th Annual First Tee Golf Classic sponsored by Walmart was held on September 21. We were able to raise over $70,000 for our programs.

In October 2015, participants Angelica Harris and Carlo Carino were selected as RBS Achiever of the Year finalists. Angelica and Carlo got to visit Ponte Verda, Fla. where they were honored at a ceremony held at The Open Championship.

In November 2015, Carlo Carino and Angelica Harris were selected to be a part of Gambit Weekly's 40 Under 40 Class. They were chosen for their dedication to making New Orleans a better place.

In December 2015, we hosted our Girls Only Golf and Life Skills Clinic at TPC Louisiana. Over 100 girls came out for a day filled with golf, games and a leadership panel featuring nine local inspiring women.

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