BOSTON – October 2, 2024 – Kaplan Construction, a WBE general contractor and construction management firm providing comprehensive
building programs across Greater Boston, announced today that Chief Operating Officer Jane Kaplan Peck has been selected as this year’s Shero Award honoree from Sportsmen’s Tennis and Enrichment Center.
Sportsmen’s Shero Award recognizes trailblazers breaking through glass ceilings to open doors of opportunity for women everywhere. For over 60 years, Sportsmen’s Tennis and Enrichment Center has leveraged tennis to open doors of opportunity for youth in some of Boston’s most underserved communities. As one of the largest organizations in the USTA’s National Junior Tennis and Learning (NJTL) network, the Center provides top-tier tennis instruction, academic support, and life skills programming for more than 5,000 youth annually. In addition to celebrated youth programs, Sportsmen’s is home to hundreds of adult members from across Metro Boston, who rent courts, take lessons, compete on traveling teams, and share their time and talents with Enrichment Center youth.
Following a management transition in 2014, Jane Kaplan Peck took the helm of Kaplan Construction, a family-owned business with half of its employees having served the company for several decades. As chief operating officer and majority owner, Jane oversees day-to-day operations, ensuring the company’s financial stability and long-term success. Under her leadership, Kaplan has been recognized as one of Boston’s largest family-owned businesses and largest women-owned businesses by the Boston Business Journal. The firm has also been included on The Commonwealth Institute’s list of Top 100 Women-Led Businesses in Massachusetts eight times. At Kaplan, nearly one quarter of its employees are women, well above the industry average of 10%.
Kaplan Construction recently completed phase 1 of Sportsmen’s capital improvements plan, which included the construction of a new prefabricated building to house four new tennis courts. The work also involved providing new frost wall foundations, site drainage, as well as pole lights for three adjacent exterior courts. A connector building was constructed to link the new building to the existing facility. The new facility increases Sportsmen’s indoor capacity by nearly 60%, allowing for a wider range of programs and tournaments. Kaplan is nearing the completion of phase 2A, which involves the renovation of after-school classrooms, administrative offices, and bathrooms.
About Sportsmen’s Tennis & Enrichment Center
Sportsmen’s was founded in 1961 as the first indoor non-profit tennis club built in the United States by and for the African American community. From the beginning, our mission has been to build leaders on the court, in the classroom and in the greater community by providing academic, wellness and social development programs alongside recreational and competitive tennis instruction for youth and adults. We are committed to improving life opportunities for youth in Boston’s Blue Hill Corridor while welcoming a diverse community from the Greater Boston area. To learn more, visit www.sportsmenstennis.org.
Photo credit: Craig Bailey