Andre's Blog 

I have just returned home from a dizzying, exhausting, thrilling 40 day journey around the world. They call it a book tour, but to me it was something much deeper, much more personal. I felt the need to connect with people, people from every walk of life and in every condition. I needed to echo in person the story of my memoir.

For eighteen months I have been collecting and recollecting my life stories, my process, my lessons learned, usually the hard way, my friends and family, my choices both bad and good, my painful spiral downward and the exhilarating feeling of taking ownership of my life. I wrote honestly, shining a bright light on my actions, my motives, on my soul. I labored over this book intensely for one reason, to inspire and to give hope to people. I wrote to prove that tomorrow can be different, it can be better than today, your courageous choices now can create a life of your choosing in the future. It is never too late for a personal revival.

It began in Las Vegas on November 8th, I then hit New York, Miami, Toronto, San Fran, LA and places large and small in between. Then off to Europe, all the big cities, London, Berlin, Paris, doing interviews and book signings. From the outside it may have looked like the typical book tour, frantic and high profile. But actually inside me it felt like I was closing the loop on a long term dream, a dream to change a life, to make a difference, and now I was seeing in people’s eyes the fulfillment of that dream. Often as people came to the front of the line I could tell even before they spoke that they had read the book, there was a knowing, a glimmer.

Now, I’ll be reconnecting with family, catching up with friends and of course, lots of little league. I hope you check back soon, I have some thoughts about the holidays and the New Year. There are also some exiting new things percolating for the Foundation. They are big and they can make a profound difference in education. I’ll be laying them out here as they take shape.

All the best,

Andre

I have had the good fortune to work alongside many athletes who are doing their part to have a real impact for good in the world, and there is so much work to be done. The suffering and inequalities around the globe vary, from war torn areas to political corruption that leads to hunger and disease. The way we approach easing that suffering must be smart and effective. Here are two groups that I know intimately that are getting it right.

Athletes For Hope. In 2007 a group of high profile professional athletes came together to begin an organization with a specific goal of tapping athletes from all sports who wanted to give back. I joined forces with Muhammad Ali, Lance Armstrong, Cal Ripkin Jr. and others. Our vision for AFH is to empower the sports community, especially individual athletes, to each get involved through giving back to their community. For many active players it is unrealistic to launch and host a foundation or philanthropic organization on their own. Athletes For Hope provides an opportunity and a platform for individuals and whole teams to connect with their communities to do good.

Children For Tomorrow. Stefanie Graf, long before coming into my life, had already found her true life’s work. Her heart for children led her to the war torn regions of the world and the hunger zones of the planet. There she found a different kind of suffering,  going largely unnoticed and untreated. Many of these children grow up in everyday occurrences of war, violence, abuse, exile or loss of the family. We all have seen those terrible pictures showing us the material wounds in war zones and trouble spots. But the inner conflicts and trauma caused by violence are not visible. They often lead to new aggressions and circles of violence. The victims of today often are the offenders of tomorrow. Stefanie’s work is to help heal the inside, to bring counseling and treatment for the mind and soul. Her work is focused in Eritrea, Mozambique, Kosovo, South Africa and is headquartered in Hamburg.

Elie Weisel once said, “The opposite of love isn’t hate, the opposite of love is indifference.” I’ve always thought of love as an action word, and it was on display in full force at our 14th Grand Slam for Children. Throughout the year we work fast and furiously to create a memorable evening that will raise funds for the future of our Foundation, and the pace always quickens as we get closer to the event. But on Saturday night in the ballroom of the Wynn Resort, seeing familiar faces, and so many new faces, seeing the outpouring of generosity, I stopped to just take it in, and felt overwhelming gratitude, appreciation and even relief.

That state of peace was only shattered once, and that is as I prepared to walk to the stage and give my speech at the start of the event. I have a negotiation with my nervous system before every speech, but the presence of the 60 Minutes camera crew added to the butterflies. However, I was able to outline several new strategies for us moving forward. One is our new name, the Andre Agassi Foundation for Education. This clearly reflects our mission of reforming public education, and emphasizes the priorities and seriousness of our work. We also unveiled a new campaign aimed at funding the education of our students at Agassi Prep in Las Vegas. The Engelstad Family Sponsor Our Students campaign had a great launch as we strive to make up the difference between our state’s per pupil funding and our level of funding at Agassi Prep. A gift of $2,500 will make up the difference for one student at Agassi Prep, which changes a child’s life for a full year. Our new campaign asks donors to give at any amount, and here is the unbelievable part, the Engelstad Family Foundation in Las Vegas will match these gifts for all students for five years. That means every $50 gift becomes $100 and every $2,500 gift becomes a $5,000 gift, this generosity leaves me without words.

My personal thanks to our great staff and volunteers, our corporate partners large and small, our entertainers who never fail to deliver a phenomenal show and to every generous heart. As we harness the compassion of people intent on making a difference and focus it on a national strategy of reform, I believe we can be an unstoppable movement on behalf of children in America.

P.S. The 60 Minutes piece will showcase our foundation and our school, it airs on Sunday night, November 8th.

Our work at Agassi Prep is being noticed on an ever larger scale. In late August we were honored to have the Secretary of Education Arne Duncan join us at our school in Las Vegas. Known for his reform minded agenda and brilliant career in education, we were eager to learn from him and to show him our work.

Many of the reforms the Secretary is striving for are firmly in place at Agassi Prep, such as a longer school day, longer school year, more parental involvement and holding teachers accountable for the progress of their students. Mr. Duncan remarked that "the best ideas are not going to come from Washington, but rather from local schools that know what works."

My personal time with the Secretary was quite inspirational. He was gracious and plain spoken, with no pretense. It is refreshing to find a man of his magnitude still so approachable. Best of all, he commented that many of the innovative ideas being considered around the country are just that...ideas, however, our school was actually practicing those reforms and seeing the results. We have become a model proving that education can be transformed in America with commitment and fresh thinking.

All of this reinforces our belief that our work on the local level can make a difference at the national level.

Recently I returned to the US Open in New York and stood on Center Court, exactly where I stood three years ago when I retired from professional tennis. The USTA (United States Tennis Association) was paying tribute to athletes who give back. I was joined for the opening night ceremonies by Mia Hamm, David Robinson and Doug Flutie, all great athletes making a difference and caring for others.

Standing in front of thousands of people brought back a cascade of memories. The sights and sounds of 21 years echoed across my mind. Some of the highest and lowest moments of my life took place in this very arena. Feeling the warmth of the fans was breathtaking and humbling. I was also given an opportunity to speak to the crowd and to an international television audience about the work of the Andre Agassi Foundation.

I told the crowd that in those 21 years on the tennis tour I saw that there were so many inequalities, that although we were blessed, that the blessings were handed out unevenly, that is especially true with children. I am so appreciative of those across America who have stepped up to fill that need, especially through education. My hope is that those of us working to reform education will come together and learn from each other and inspire each other. Working together we can raise awareness and become a powerful force for change.

Our work in Las Vegas has inspired us to raise our voice in the national discussion of education reform. We'll take advantage of every opportunity to advocate for higher resources and higher accountability, and to bring fresh thinking and innovation toward equipping the next generation.

Our students at Agassi Prep had their first day of school last month for the 2009/2010 year. We started earlier than most schools, which fits with our philosophy of a longer school day and a longer school year. We use that extra time creatively to enhance their learning and growth. Now as the students begin again to move toward the future, my mind wanders back to the past.

I thought of the early days, scouting locations, trying to find a piece of ground for the school that was affordable and could accommodate our vision of a large sweeping campus. At the groundbreaking, reporters, politicians and other dignitaries surrounded me as we pushed the first shovels into the dirt. There were speeches given that day, but they were drowned out in my mind. I felt like I could actually hear children laughing, learning. It was overwhelming picturing the young lives that would be shaped, the dreams that would be born in that spot.

Every year on back to school day I have to brace myself for the emotions. I think of the sacrifice and work of the staff and teachers. I think of the generosity of people in Las Vegas and around the world that helped make this dream a reality. It can all be overwhelming, but a beautiful overwhelming. I feel gratitude, I feel optimistic, but most of all I feel inspired. I want every child, in every neighborhood, in every state to have these same opportunities. Our Foundation is focused and energized to help make that dream a reality.