Facilities: Detroit broke ground last month for a new varsity tennis complex. The new facility will house eight hard courts with the blue and green color scheme used at the U.S. Open and a 4,000-square-foot viewing pavilion. The project will also add a natural grass playing field for soccer and lacrosse adjacent to the courts. Construction should be complete this fall, with a dedication scheduled for September 11.

Conferences: A record number of Sun Belt student-athletes were honored for their academic achievements during the 2007-08 academic year. More than 1,500 Sun Belt student-athletes earned a grade-point average higher than 3.0 and were recognized on either the Sun Belt Academic Honor Roll (3.0-3.49 GPA) or Sun Belt Commissioner’s List (3.5 GPA or better). The previous high was 1,429 student-athletes honored for academic achievement in 2006-07.

Miscellaneous: Georgetown students participating in ESPNU’s Campus Connection program scheduled and produced 48 hours of programming for ESPNU that ran July 7-8. Four journalism students developed the schedule devoted to Georgetown programming, featuring men’s basketball games from 1983-2008, men’s and women’s lacrosse and sailing. Students Nick Sementelli, Bridget Geraghty, Paul Campbell and Peter Keszler participated in the project … Tulane is hosting a program for disadvantaged youth called the Youth Impact Program, sponsored by the NFL Youth Football Fund. The program introduces more than 100 boys ages 9-12 to college life with a focus on academics, life skills and athletics. This is the first time the 10-year-old program will be at Tulane. The New Orleans Saints will also provide significant support to the event, which runs through August 1 … Football student-athletes in Penn State’s Uplifting Athletes, Inc. raised more than $300,000 for the Kidney Cancer Association during the sixth annual Lift for Life and other fund-raising activities. Nearly 100 student-athletes tested their strength and endurance in the Lift for Life, a strength and conditioning challenge including 11 exercises ranging from the traditional bench and leg presses to the giant tire flip and iron cross. The winning team members were Daryll Clark, Josh Hull, Greg Miskinis and Mickey Shuler. For more information, visit http://www.upliftingathletes.org.