Mission The METROsquash mission is to use squash, education, mentoring, cultural enrichment and community service to empower Chicago Public School students to realize their full academic, athletic and personal potential. History Founded in 2005, METROsquash uses the sport of squash as a hook to engage students both academically and physically, using the unique combination of squash and academic instruction along with mentoring, cultural enrichment, and community service to help students put their best foot forward. METROsquash programming fosters self-confidence, independence, and instrumental academic training to prepare students to enter their best matched high schools, and to eventually lead them in, to, and through college. By extending the CPS school day with extensive, structured learning time, each METROsquash student spends ten hours in the program per week. Students spend an equal amount of time in squash and fitness instruction and academic tutoring and are able to excel in a safe, chaperoned environment, while building lasting relationships with new peers and responsible adult role models. Modeled after many other successful urban squash programs across the U.S., METROsquash became a part of the National Urban Squash and Education Association (NUSEA) in 2006, which provides the model for all of the urban programs, requiring accredited programs to meet 19 different curricula criteria, and maintain strict reporting and evaluation measurements.These programs serve hundreds of students each year and have transformed thousands of lives. Currently, there are 12 accredited urban squash programs in cities across the U.S. including: New York City (Harlem and the Bronx), Boston, Philadelphia, New Haven, Denver, San Diego, Baltimore, Detroit, Santa Barbara, and Minneapolis, with emerging programs developing across the country each year.