Imperial Valley College breaks ground for new tennis courts, opening door for more athletic improvements on 60th anniversary

IVC holds ground breaking along with "Meet the Teams" event on big day

IMPERIAL, Calif., (KYMA, KECY) - With a brighter future in mind for athletics, Imperial Valley College took the first step in a transformation of their facilities by breaking ground on new tennis courts.

Students, faculty and administration gathered together for a very special day on Wednesday - not only celebrating the ground breaking - but also celebrating their athletes by including a "Meet the Athletes" event.

Both of these falling on the school's 60th Anniversary.

The new tennis courts are expected to be in place by early fall, according to Athletic Director, Enrique Lechuga, who is getting a front row seat to the transformation early on in his new position. Lechuga taking over as the new AD just two months ago.

He, along with Superintendent President, Dr. Lennor Johnson, saw the plan unfold in front of their eyes that was put in place by administration that came before them.

"Those guys steam-boated this project ahead and made it possible," said Lechuga. "We have to give praise to them."

The project has been underway for several years, and it's something that has been a long time coming - opening the door for projects on several other facilities across the campus.

"This is something that is really just incredible," said Dr. Johnson. "It's something that is well overdue and something I have advocated for since I was here in 2016 and I'm really glad it's coming to fruition."

On top of the tennis courts, there are up to eight other facilities that the school says it is working on upgrading - mostly because several of their athletic facilities are unplayable and don't have lights.

But with the vision of improving facilities campus-wide, it opens the door for a whole new transformation that they hope will elevate their athletic programs.

"By investing in those students, and investing in our students, now we're saying that you are important," said Dr. Johnson. "Extracurricular activities and athletic programs are important, so please tell your friends, come to the games, support us because we're supporting you."

The changes have also brought a ton of support from across the school and community - something the administration hopes will build over the years.

"We had people from all kinds of different departments here supporting our athletes. It's really important that we kind of build that support for each other because athletics is a point of interest for every body." added Lechuga. "I think it's really important to continue to build these relationships. Not just here on campus, but with the community itself."