On Tuesday, May 20, Westside High School senior, Ja’Toria Sherman, was presented with a $6,000 scholarship from the Southern Tennis Foundation. She received the big check in front of her friends and coaches.

“I was shocked,” said Sherman. “My coaches told me to apply for it, but I didn’t know if I would get it.”

The scholarship is awarded through the Southern Tennis Foundation and provides $1500 per year for four years to a senior who plays on their high school team.  It is awarded based on academics, need, and community service. 76 students from nine southern states applied and Sherman was one of 10 to receive a scholarship.

Sherman has been playing tennis for three years at West Side High School after her band coach encouraged her try out. She says she fell in love with it. Her senior year, she was able to get a little more coaching through the Macon-Bibb County Recreation Department’s B.U.S.T.-ED (Building Up School Tennis through Education) program, a new teen tennis program.

“We were tasked with doing a teen tennis program and originally had it at the Tennis Center, but realized transportation would be an issue,” said Macon-Bibb County Tennis & Pickleball Supervisor Sarah Witherspoon. “So, we thought the best thing to do was to bring it into schools, and West Side showed some interest.”

From September until March, Witherspoon and coaches would go out to the West Side High School tennis courts to give students lessons once a week.

“I liked that these practices allowed for more one on one opportunities,” said Sherman.

She says she plans on continuing to play tennis and will be attending Kennesaw State University to major in Elementary Education with a concentration in English. She wants to get her ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) Certification. She wants to teach English abroad in Japan through the JET (Japanese Exchange and Teaching) Program. She plans to use her Southern Tennis Foundation Scholarship for housing expenses.