Parks & Recreation Magazine - November 2015

The Work We Do | Recreational Therapy Certification | LWCF Legislative Update NOVEMBER 2015 W W W. N R PA . O R G

Recreation Ready on Arrival

The Navy’s innovative Community Recreation program provides top-notch MWR offerings for troops and their families Page 46

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contents november 2015

Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class

volume 50 | number 11 | www.nrpa.org

Sailors participate in a sunrise yoga class aboard the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Theodore Roosevelt as a part of Suicide Prevention Month, held this past September.

COVER STORY

46 Recreation on Arrival The Navy’s innovative Community Recreation program provides top-notch MWR offerings for troops and their families Elisabeth Weaver

FEATURE

52 The Work We Do Our work as park and recreation professionals has impacts that go well beyond the obvious Dan Dustin

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Read the digital edition of this issue online at http://ezine. parksand recreation.org.

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contents november 2015

departments

columns

10 Letters

6 Perspectives

12 50th Anniversary Archive Throwback: February 2006

14 Community Center Reimagining Urban Parks 14 Notable News 16 NRPA Connect Hot Topics 18

20 By the Numbers Lovin’ Las Vegas

22 Partnerships For Parks Small-Sided Soccer — A Leap of Faith Jack Kardys

24 Member to Member An Epic Play Experience for all Ages and Abilities 24 Mariana Espinoza Licensure for Recreation Therapists: Why? Why Now? 26 Robin Wexler, CTRS, and Anthony Martino, CTRS

56 NRPA Update Making the Case: Parks and Health 56 Meet Parks & Recreation’s Newest Advisory Board Members 57 New Water Values Calculator Helps Show Economic Impact 58 Member Benefits: It’s Time to Renew Your Insurance 60

Communities Within Communities Barbara Tulipane, CAE

8 Editor’s Letter Saluting MWR Gina Mullins-Cohen

28 Advocacy Life After LWCF David Tyahla

30 Law Review Transgender Discrimination in Male Locker Room James C. Kozlowski, J.D., Ph.D.

38 Future Leaders The Morale, Welfare and Recreation Experience Michael D. Huffstetler, CPRE

40 Conservation Thinking ‘Outside the Fence’ Leads to Innovative Conservation Richard J. Dolesh

42 Health and Wellness Making Consessions for a Healthy Lifestyle Jill Geller

44 Social Equity Voices Remembered Sandra J. Gonzalez and Eyvette Ruiz

Test Your Park and Recreation Knowledge 60 Member Spotlight: John Prue 62 Professional Development Calendar 63

64 Operations Park Foundations Can Prove Valuable Partners

66 Products 68 Marketplace 71 Reader Service and Advertiser Index 72 Park Bench Cabin Fever Reliever Catrina Belt 4

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Communities Within Communities I’m a military brat. Yes, I know there is a move afoot to use a more politically correct word but for me, military brat is not a derogatory term. To be even more specific I am a Marine Corps brat. Unlike other branches of service, the Marines are not usually allowed to take their families when they have an overseas assignment, so I don’t have the experience of living abroad.

What I do have is the wonderful experience of growing up on military bases in the swampy Carolinas and on the beautiful Southern California coast. I’m sharing this because unlike most of you, I didn’t grow up using traditional park and recreation services.

When I was a kid a military base was essentially a community within a community. We bought our clothes at the PX, our groceries at the commissary and the occasional event of eating out meant going to the “club” — on base. In fact, venturing off base was a very rare event and while our choices may have been limited, we made out like bandits when it came to recreational opportunities and access to open space.

Because my father was a pilot, we lived on air bases, which meant that we always lived on a coast — near the ocean. This of course allowed us to take up boating, water skiing, surfing, crabbing, fishing, etc. It also meant that we had access to some of the tools used to train pilots. Our pool, for example, had a high dive that was really more of a tower for parachute training. It was a rite of passage when you mustered the courage to take the plunge, as it meant you were no longer a kid!

Our bases were also surrounded by woods that were then surrounded by a security fence. Our parents, therefore, didn’t care what we did as long as were home for dinner. We built elaborate forts (after all, we were military kids), and explored every inch of the forest. I learned the pecking order of nature when I watched with horror as a snake devoured an entire nest of bird eggs I had been protecting for days! I also learned the pecking order of humans as the games we played were ruled by the older kids due to the absence of coaches and parents!

Perhaps this is why when I visit a county or a city I look for that sense of community where families have recreational opportunities, access to nature and a connection to each other. Building a community within a community is what you do for a living — creating a place where childhood memories become the treasured gifts of adults.

BAR BAR A T ULIPAN E, C AE President and CEO

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NRPA’S MISSION: To advance parks, recreation and environmental conservation efforts that enhance the quality of life for all people.

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Jack Kardys

Chair of the Board of Directors Susan Trautman, CPRP

Miami-Dade Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces Department Miami, Florida

Great Rivers Greenway District St. Louis, Missouri

Michael Kelly

Chair-Elect Stephen Eckelberry

Chicago Park District Chicago, Illinois

Bartlett Park District Bartlett, Illinois

Brian Knapp

Past Chair Detrick L. Stanford, CPRP Clayton County Parks and Recreation Jonesboro, Georgia

Treasurer Neelay Bhatt PROS Consulting Indianapolis, Indiana

Secretary Roslyn Johnson Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission Greenbelt, Maryland

President and CEO Barbara Tulipane, CAE National Recreation and Park Association Ashburn, Virginia

NOVA Parks Fairfax, Virginia

Detrick L. Stanford, CPRP Clayton County Parks and Recreation Jonesboro, Georgia

Molly Stevens Westcave Outdoor Discovery Center Austin, Texas

William “Joe” Turner Houston Parks and Recreation Houston, Texas

LIFE TRUSTEES Beverly D. Chrisman Lexington, South Carolina

Anne S. Close Fort Mill, South Carolina

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

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James H. Evans

Leon T. Andrews

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EDITOR’S LET TER

Saluting MWR Parks and recreation reaches into almost every aspect of our lives, and plays a different role depending on where we are in the general course of living them. For hundreds of thousands of Americans, a period of military service may be featured in life’s timeline. My own father rarely speaks of his experiences in WWII — for which he was awarded the Bronze Star — but says enough to indicate the experience was difficult, gruesome and harrowing.

During my own childhood, I remember Walter Cronkite’s somber voice emanating from our living room TV as he announced that day’s death tolls in Vietnam.

Today’s news reports of United States military action in any of several overseas theaters lack the candid, frank delivery that Cronkite masterfully employed, but tell us enough to know that the men and women who serve our country do so under trying circumstances at best.

Interestingly, it’s the armed forces that’s credited with coining the term R&R — rest and recreation. Back in the August issue of Parks & Recreation (http://ezine.parksandrecreation.org/HTML5/NRPA-Parks-Recreation-Magazine-August-2015), Dean Tice, NRPA executive director from 1986 to 2001, discussed the importance of being able to pull troops off the line and get them into a recreational environment to help rebuild their will to live. That’s where departments of Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) come in. The park and recreation professionals who live and work at any of the more than 6,000 military installations around the globe are tasked with finding creative ways for their patrons to relieve stress, have fun and stay healthy. They have become expert in cutting-edge recreational modalities — like skydiving, scuba, equestrian and boating — as well as leading intramural sports leagues, special events and camping trips. Basically, you name it, MWR does it.

PRESIDENT AND CEO Barbara Tulipane, CAE VICE PRESIDENT OF MARKETING, COMMUNICATIONS AND PUBLISHING, AND EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Gina Mullins-Cohen gcohen@nrpa.org EXECUTIVE EDITOR Samantha Bartram sbartram@nrpa.org MANAGING EDITOR Sonia Myrick smyrick@nrpa.org EDITORIAL INTERNS Catrina Belt cbelt@nrpa.org PUBLICATION DESIGN Creative By Design www.creativebydesign.net SENIOR MANAGER OF ADVERTISING Dana Storm 703.858.2174 dstorm@nrpa.org MAGAZINE ADVISORY BOARD MEMBERS Keith Anderson Gerald Brown Ernest Burkeen Gwendolyn Chambers

On page 46 of this issue, author Elisabeth Weaver gives us an overview of how the Navy is expanding its MWR offerings with a focus on Naval Station Great Lakes, the navy’s largest training facility, located near North Chicago in Lake County, Illinois. It’s also a model of what MWR can do for the men and women who depend on it, as well as the surrounding community, which often benefits from MWR programs and partnerships.

Brendan Daley

Dan Dustin, Ph.D., shares his experience at a Vietnam veteran’s memorial on page 52.

That relatively brief visit triggered a cascade of realizations that led Dustin to contemplate our attitudes toward our work, the impact of our work, and the meaning of our work as park and recreation professionals.

Paul Gilbert

We know the important role parks and recreation plays in day-to-day life. In this issue, we’re reminded that the work we do supports all we touch — our children, friends, parents and the brave women and men who make it possible for us to continue this important vocation.

Ryan Eaker Mariela Fernandez Robert García Kathleen Gibi Sandra Gonzalez Greg Harrison Todd Lehman Sam Mendelsohn Maria Nardi Dr. Kevin Riley Paula Sliefert Anne-Marie Spencer Stephen Springs

GINA MULLINS-COHEN Vice President of Marketing, Communications and Publishing Editorial Director 8

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Letters

[Ed. Note: Incredible feedback from the 2015 NRPA Annual Conference keeps rolling in, and we’re grateful to everyone who shared their thoughts, suggestions and impressions following their experiences in Las Vegas. Here, we highlight just a handful of the hundreds of comments we received from you, our dedicated members and engaged attendees.]

I attended the NRPA Annual Conference for the first time in 2015. The knowledge and networking I got from it was invaluable. I’ve never been to a conference where I felt like I gained something from every session I attended. The speaker quality is high and the expo was great! My department is ordering some equipment based on what I saw at the expo.

— Heidi Miller, Fitness Coordinator at City of Grand Prairie, Texas In a previous life, I was a practitioner. Now, I am a consultant. Regardless of which hat I have worn, the NRPA Conference has always offered motivated professionals the opportunity to learn from the best of the best and leave feeling inspired about the parks and recreation industry.

— Michael Svetz, Senior Project Manager at PROS Consulting Give up a few CEUs and go to the Parks Build [Community] dedication! It truly shows the impact we make on real peoples’ lives!

— Eric Lucas, previously the Director of Parks and Recreation for the City of Grandview, Missouri, and now the Director of Parks, Recreation and Culture for the Town of Windsor, Colorado Being my first NRPA Conference, the experience has given me motivation to build upon my journey in parks and recreation and opened my mind to thinking of new ways of doing things and to mentoring young professionals about what I have learned.

— Michael Wright, Community Services Manager for the City of Fontana, California 10 Parks

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We hope the articles you read in Parks & Recreation are thought-provoking and engaging, and we want to hear your opinions on what you read in these pages.

Through social media posts, website comments, emails to staff or posts on NRPA Connect, let us know how the magazine’s articles apply to your job and your agency. To submit feedback for this section, email Executive Editor Samantha Bartram at sbartram@nrpa.org.

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SCAN TO SAVE

Archive Throwback: February 2006

By Samantha Bartram

E

ach month throughout 2015, we’ve used this space to take a step back in time, examining the contents of past Parks & Recreation magazines and, often, comparing those articles to contemporary conversations related to our field. This writer has marveled at the often striking similarities — some issues have been examined, panned, praised and generally worried over for almost as long as NRPA has existed. This month, the similarities are beginning to blur together, and instead of inspiring wonder at our continued dedication to some of these subjects, they are beginning to beg the question, “Will we ever achieve any sort of resolution?”

Take the February 2006 issue, where author Cheryl Sadowski suggests three ways to engage minority populations in recreational opportunities. Her “Striking a Chord with Minorities” cites a trio of “compelling themes” that, if properly addressed, could help park and recreation agencies “successfully meet the needs of the diverse populations they serve.” Those themes are culture, community and opportunity. In a nutshell, Sadowski prescribes “tuning into minority culture,” sustainable land-use practices that place parkland and open space in urban neighborhoods, and increasing access to facilities and programs, to address each theme, respectively.

Almost 10 years, hundreds of studies and dozens of magazine articles later, we’re still beating Sadowski’s drum. Not to mention the dozens of years before Sadowski put pen to paper, when park and recreation professionals sought to increase participation and awareness of their offerings among diverse communities.

Appropriately, Sadowski begins her 12 Parks & Recreation

piece with an anecdote about Ernest Atwell, a black American man lauded across the park and recreation field as spearheading the first major push to create recreation programs for African-American communities.

“Today, Atwell’s photo graces the halls of NRPA’s headquarters...I wonder: Would he be pleased at the dedication and creativity with which today’s recreational programs and services are delivered,” she asks, continuing, “or, does the slight cast of his eyes bespeak disappointment that 85 years later, we still face many

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of the same barriers in meeting the needs of minorities in America’s urban centers?”

Sadowski’s answer — “I imagine a little of both” — is a neat hedge against having to explicitly call out her peers as having failed to solve the quandary. Indeed, almost 10 years after Sadowski provided us a general blueprint for engaging diverse communities, we’re still struggling to figure out exactly how it should be implemented. At this year’s Annual Conference, dozens of education and research sessions dealt chiefly with matters of social equity and still more addressed the subject as it related to whatever core concept was being discussed. It’s clear that, as we approach 2016, successfully engaging diverse, often urban, populations continues to be a source of angst for our industry as a whole.

Progress certainly has been made since Atwell’s time, but the concept of radical inclusivity must extend beyond just parks and recreation if the issue of social equity is ever to be adequately resolved. “What might be achieved if we could galvanize all… citizens around [the concepts of culture, community and opportunity] — not merely as success quotients for providing park and recreation services, but rather as demands from our politicians and community leaders for quality of life.” What, indeed?

Samantha Bartram is the Executive Editor of Parks & Recreation magazine (sbartram@nrpa.org).

Community Center Reimagining Urban Parks

By Nancy Desmond, CPRP

C

leveland Metroparks is well known for its 23,000 acres of meadows, wetlands, rivers and forests ringing the suburbs of Cleveland. But, in the last few years, chartered by a new strategic plan, the park district has enthusiastically made inroads to better serve urban residents. Urban spaces can offer unconventional challenges and require creative solutions beyond the boundaries of normal operations. Rivergate Park, located in Cleveland’s industrial Flats area, was one such space.

Seven acres of desolate pavement and gravel hidden away in an old industrial area next to the Cuyahoga River shipping channel, Rivergate Park did not have the obvious makings of a park.

The land, formerly used for boat storage, was empty but for two drab, pre-engineered steel buildings. No grass or trees grew there, and the dredged shipping channel was busy with enormous bulk freighters carrying industrial materials.

For several years, the space challenged the imaginations of many who tried to envision it as a park.

But, this scrappy piece of land could provide something found almost nowhere else in Cleveland: public access to the Cuyahoga River. It is centrally

located close to the 110-mile Towpath Trail that stretches from the heart of Cleveland to central Ohio. Land-use planners envisioned park space for urban residents, water recreation and economic development, but the will and the funding were not yet there.

In 2008–2009, a series of serendipitous events moved plans forward: the price of commercial real estate dropped and the Cleveland Rowing Foundation (CRF) was seeking a bigger location. However, CRF only needed half the property, so it collaborated with the Trust for Public Land (TPL), and the two organizations purchased the entire parcel, valued at $6 million, for just $3 million.

Seventy percent of the produce used at Cleveland Metroparks-owned Merwin’s Wharf Restaurant comes from within 10 miles of the location, adding to conservation efforts.

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Tying It Together In 2013, Cleveland Metroparks CEO, Brian Zimmerman, was charged by a new strategic plan to bring more park services to the urban core. He quickly grasped the potential in that stark patch of pavement and steel buildings. The existing and potential entities on the site needed an agency such as Cleveland Metroparks to help tie them all together. The Ohio City Bicycle Co-op, serving the needs of the cycling community, had been operating on the edge of the property for many years. The city was looking for space to locate a long-promised skateboard park. CRF moved in and the Cleveland Dragon Boat Association was using the vacant parking lot.

Cleveland Metroparks envisioned an urban park united around recreation, including rowing, paddling, skateboarding and bicycling, and connected by regional trails.

In an unusual twist, one vacant building on the property came with a liquor license, a coveted revenue-generating asset in Ohio where the number of such licenses is limited. In a departure from typical park and recreation practices, the park district transformed the building into the full-service, riverfront Merwin’s Wharf Restaurant that it owns and manages.

An important component of the restaurant is connecting people with the long-neglected Cuyahoga River.

Diners enjoy close-up views of giant freighters plying the waters. Dwarfed by the freighters, paddlers, rowers and dragon boaters glide by. The paddlers can use the free public dock that was

installed near the restaurant, and diners can take guided water taxi rides, while learning about the history and nature around them. They can also play games on the enormous riverfront patio. Occasional lectures on local culture and history fill the indoor meeting room with diners excited to learn more about Cleveland as they sample local fare.

Nearby, skaters, young and old, practice tricks in the skate park. Bikes are available to purchase for the price of your own labor at the bicycle co-op.

Rowers from high school age to adult come and go in large groups each day.

Every year, the Dragon Boat Festival and annual Regatta attract thousands to watch and cheer. Rivergate Park offers an innovative urban social space for active and passive recreation.

A CLEAR SOURCE OF FUN

The Cuyahoga River — which burned on several occasions, most famously in 1969 — suffered from so much pollution and industrial use that access for recreation was not considered. But, the river is getting cleaner, Cleveland is diversifying its economy beyond industry, and Cleveland Metroparks is striving to provide better recreation and open space to urban residents. In a sign of growth, other businesses have sprung up along the road leading to Rivergate Park. This once dreary patch of pavement is now a bustling recreational hub with an impact on quality of life and economics. And, residents who can recreate in and around their once-neglected river are more likely to protect this natural resource.

In the last few years, Cleveland has

seen a resurgence. Young professionals and empty nesters are flocking to the city and downtown residences are 97 percent occupied. The restaurant scene is eclectic, construction cranes dominate the skyline and local businesses thrive. Cleveland Metroparks has positioned itself as a leader in helping with the Cleveland renaissance by taking on unlikely challenges and offering non-traditional solutions to better serve urban populations with parks and recreation. Rivergate Park is a fine example of what can happen when a park district uses imagination and collaboration, finding new ways to serve new audiences.

Nancy Desmond, CPRP, is Director of Special Projects for Cleveland Metroparks (nd@clevelandmetroparks.com).

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Community Center Notable News

n In September, we lost two extraordinary NRPA leaders: Donald Dale Henkel, 86, who passed away September 14, and Robert F. Toalson, 83, who passed away September Donald D. Henkel 15. Henkel, who retired as NRPA’s Director of Professional Services in 1991, was a pioneer in the movement to create a true profession for those working in his field.

He was instrumental in setting the standards for accrediting parks and recreation curricula throughRobert F. Toalson out the country and establishing a national certification plan for professionals.

Henkel was born in Oak Park, Illinois, graduated from Indiana University in 1951, and served two years in the Air Force before completing his master’s degree from George Williams College in 1955 and earning a Ph.D. in recreation administration from the University of Illinois in 1967. He loved photography and helped to produce the book Footprints that tells the history of Palisades Park, Michigan. Toalson, NRPA’s 24th president, was born in Dodge City, Kansas, and graduated from the University of Kansas with a degree in political science in 1954. Upon graduation, he served three years as a commissioned officer in the U.S. Marine Corps and 16 Parks & Recreation

went on to earn his master’s degree in park and recreation administration from Indiana University in 1958.

This past August, Parks & Recreation magazine reached out to Henkel and Toalson to include some of their stories in the 50th Anniversary Commemorative issue of the magazine (http://ezine.parksandrecreation. org/HTML5/NRPA-Parks-Recreation-Magazine-August-2015). For health-related reasons, Henkel was unable to participate but, through his wife, communicated his continuing love, pride and enthusiasm for the field. Following a year-long internship in the Philadelphia park system with Robert W. Crawford, one of the foremost distinguished professionals in the park and recreation field, Toalson moved to Oak Park, Illinois where he served as director of recreation for 11 years. In 1970, he became general manager of the Champaign Park District, and in both Oak Park and Champaign, he was awarded the title of Outstanding Citizen.

He taught at Indiana University, the University of Illinois and Oregon State University, and co-authored Administration of Recreation, Parks and Leisure Services with Dr. Lynn Rodney, professor at the University of Oregon. You can read more about Toalson at www.parksandrecreation. org/2015/August/Rober t-Toalson-NRPA-s-24th-President. n More than a dozen Staten Island, New York, parks will see improvements under a $285 million program recently announced by Mayor Bill de Blasio and Parks Commissioner Mitchell J. Silver.

This includes the Community Parks Initiative — a citywide plan to improve historically under-funded parks in growing, impoverished neighborhoods — which will now receive an additional

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$155 million in capital dollars through 2019. n The Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation recently held a series of meetings to gather input on what people would like to see at a new county park, slated to transform the Puente Hills Landfill that has been closed since Halloween 2013. When it was in operation, this landfill was the largest municipal dump in the United States. Plans to turn Puente Hills Landfill into a county park are still in their early stages. The completed draft plan for the park will be presented in early December, with an environmental impact report to follow. n Cape Coral, Southwest Florida’s largest city, will soon be better prepared for extreme weather with the installation of lightning detectors at 17 city parks. Currently, every park has one person designated to check the proximity of lightning strikes and alert everyone to take cover if they get too close. The city council approved spending $118,511 for the detectors and once they are installed, when lightning gets close — within 10 miles — a strobe light will flash and a siren will sound. The city says beefing up its lightning detection system has been on its to-do list for years, but the parks department didn’t have the money for it until now. The Weatherbug lightning detectors should be installed by January 1, a city spokesperson tells WINK News. Maintaining the system will cost the city about $12,000 per year.

For more news from around the industry, visit www.parksandrecreation.org/2015/November/Notable-News.

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Community Center IS ANNOUNCING A PHOTO CONTEST!

Hot Topics NRPA Connect is the place to network with your fellow park and recreation professionals! Need a little inspiration? Visit www.nrpaconnect.org today to read about the latest hot topics. It’s easy — join the discussion today!

Pen Pals Your colleagues are starting pen pal programs. In the age of electronics and technology, programs like this teach children how to address an actual letter and promote literacy. If you are interested in starting a similar program, visit Connect and join in the discussion!

Smoking Bans in Parks Does you agency prohibit smoking in your parks?

What about a smoking ban on golf courses or trails?

Read the discussion to see how your colleagues are addressing this issue, even if their state ordinance does not match their tobacco-free policy.

Always ahead in science and value.

Mother’s Day Events As a park and recreation professional, you know it’s never too early to start planning an event. Your colleagues post their great ideas to celebrate Mother’s Day, including a mother/daughter tea party, flower hike, coloring contest and more.

Teen Centers Looking for inspiration to improve programming and marketing efforts at your teen/youth center? There are two key audiences that need to be approached — the teens themselves and their parents. Read this conversation to learn how to make your teen center more successful.

Visit www.nrpaconnect.org and let the networking begin! Need help accessing your profile? Contact us by email at customerservice@nrpa.org or by phone at 800.626.6772.

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By the Numbers

Lovin’ Las Vegas We asked for your feedback and were excited to see that overall, your comments confirmed what we believed: The 2015 NRPA Annual Conference in Las Vegas was a great success! As one attendee noted: “NRPA’s Annual Conference is a great professional development experience, full of opportunity for learning and engagement with other park and recreation professionals from across the country,” and, as you can see below, from around the world. Education, networking and the exhibit hall continue to offer the highest value for attendees at all levels of experience, with executive and middle management levels giving education the highest value (90 percent and 86 percent, respectively) and staff level giving networking the highest value (81 percent).

50: Number of states represented by attendees (plus 3.3 percent: Increase in attendance over Germany, Zimbabwe, France, Singapore, Czech Republic, India, China, Chile, Columbia, New Zealand, Israel, Costa Rica, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Jamaica, Finland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Lithuania, Mexico, Japan, Australia, Hong Kong, United Kingdom, South Korea, Spain, Canada, Turkey, Brazil and other countries).

292: Number of traditional education sessions,

speed sessions, Off-Site Institutes and Pre-Conference Workshops presented (out of 702 submissions).

2,200+: Number of hours invested by approximately 160 attendee volunteers.

3,972: Number of downloads of the 2015

NRPA Conference app.

3,000+: Number of attendees at the Exhibit

Hall Reception for networking with their fellow members.

the 2014 NRPA Conference in Charlotte, North Carolina.

48:

Number of awards, scholarships, fellowships and Hall of Fame honors presented.

1,251:

Number of times the #NRPA50 hashtag was used on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

4.8 million: Number of impressions

made by social media mentions of the #NRPA50 hashtag.

55 percent: Attendees who make final purchasing decisions (or are a part of the group that makes the final purchasing decision) for their agencies.

98 percent: Attendees who visited the

exhibit hall at least once during the Conference (56 percent of whom stayed on the floor for at least three hours).

337: Number of speakers.

81 percent: Portion of surveyed attendwho rated their overall satisfaction level of their 2015 430: Number of exhibitors on the Exhibit Hall floor. ees NRPA Conference experience as a 4 or 5 out of 5.

300,000: Total square footage occupied in Sources: 2015 NRPA Annual Conference attendee survey, NRPA

the Exhibit Hall.

176: Number of exhibitors already booked for the

2016 conference (as of press time).

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Conferences department, NRPA Marketing and Communications department

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Partnerships For Parks Small-Sided Soccer — A Leap of Faith

By Jack Kardys

L

ong before David Beckham showed interest in building a soccer stadium in Florida’s sunny Miami-Dade County, another United Kingdom import, Scottish-born Alan Georgeson and his son Scott Georgeson, owners of Soccer 5 USA, were already investing in small-sided soccer fields in Miami-Dade County-owned parks.

Miami-Dade County and Small-Sided Soccer Miami-Dade County has 1.6 million residents of Hispanic origin — more than half the county’s population.

Traditionally, Hispanic people love to play and watch soccer. Miami-Dade County Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces (PROS) recognized the need to build more soccer fields at regional and community parks to keep up with demand. However, PROS was planning and building regulation-sized soccer fields, and running out of land

quickly. So, why invest in small-sided soccer versus traditional soccer fields?

Small-sided soccer is played with fewer players than traditional soccer.

Small teams can play a game with just a few friends on smaller playing fields. Small-sided soccer is ranked the fastest growing sport in the United Kingdom and is preferred for teaching children the basics of soccer.

With small-sided soccer, players have more contact with the ball and develop skills faster. Smaller fields are also easier for children to manage.

Small-sided soccer fields are easier for children to navigate and offer an ideal situation to teach basic game skills.

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PROS found a partner in the Georgesons, who are both familiar with how to manage smaller fields and teach the game.

In 2010, Soccer 5 USA approached PROS about building small-sided soccer fields at Kendall Soccer Park, a popular regional park in Miami-Dade.

At the time, there were no small-sided soccer facilities anywhere in Miami-Dade. Soccer 5 proposed to build four state-of-the-art facilities in an undeveloped section of the popular park. Soccer 5 came equipped with the design and the capital to construct the facilities in record time, but first they had to navigate their way through the complex public procurement system with Miami-Dade County.

Soccer 5 applied for a permit to conduct business with Miami-Dade County, which is a one-year contract with a one-year optional extension.

Taking this risk was a great leap of faith for a company interested in investing capital to build on land with a short contract life. Miami-Dade Parks also assumed risks, including what to do with the development once it was built and no guarantee of the game gaining a following the way it has overseas.

During this time, while Soccer 5 was operating under its permit and growing in popularity, PROS put out a recreational program contract to provide soccer programs and facilities in its parks. Through this contract, the vendor pays a minimum guaranteed payment and a percent-

age of its gross revenues each month.

Soccer 5 USA bid and was awarded the contract for the Kendall Soccer Park, adding additional years, opportunity and risk to its investment.

Private-Public Partnership — Mutually Beneficial After only two years, Soccer 5 USA’s investment was clearly a success. The fields were well-designed and residents and soccer fans immediately took interest. From the success of its partnership, PROS once again put out a request for proposal to create similar venues at two other regional county parks — Tropical Park and Amelia Earhart Park — and Soccer 5 again won the bid. Soccer 5 USA invested in more fields at the two additional parks, expanding its business into the north and south end of Miami-Dade to complement its central location in Kendall.

Since its venture into partnership with PROS, Soccer 5 USA’s business model includes soccer facilities with state-of-the-art fields and technology, afterschool and summer camp programs, and youth and adult soccer. The company manages the annual Miami Soccer Festival, which includes youth and adult tournaments. The company has proposed plans to construct additional fields in existing parks. Once construction is completed, Soccer 5 USA’s total investment in smallsided soccer facilities in Miami-Dade County will exceed $3 million. Recently Soccer 5 launched franchise opportunities and continues to lead the development of small-sided soccer in south Florida.

“Small-sided soccer is exploding across the nation, and we are excited to be at the cutting edge of developing quality facilities in Miami-Dade

Investing in small-sided soccer fields allowed Miami-Dade PROS to offer sports opportunities to hundreds more players.

County Parks, offering spaces to play and building revenue streams for all stakeholders,” says Alan Georgeson, chairman of Soccer 5 USA. “We also are adding increased value to our development and investment by working with national companies, including Cushman and Wakefield, Fieldturf and Soccer.com.”

Soccer 5’s success is shared by PROS and its patrons. Organized teams bring families and soccer enthusiasts to parks on a regular basis. Soc-

cer 5 has seen its business grow and its investment in county-owned land provides needed recreational opportunities and facilities to our community.

Sports and parks enhance community health and well-being. This type of successful public-private partnerships should be “business as usual” for parks across the country.

Jack Kardys is the Director of Miami-Dade County Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces (kardys@miamidade.gov).

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Member to Member Grand Prairie, Texas: Giving the Gift of Play An epic play experience for all ages and abilities

By Mariana Espinoza

T

he Grand Prairie (Texas) Parks, Arts and Recreation Department has accomplished much during the past decade, including being awarded the NRPA Gold Medal Award (2008), receiving numerous state and regional awards in design and programming, having its Director, Rick Herold, honored as an American Academy for Parks and Recreation Fellow, and opening new parks and facilities such as the award-winning 50-plus active adult center, The Summit. Grand Prairie is at it again with its current project — a mega recreation center called The Epic.

On May 10, 2014, Grand Prairie residents voted to combine revenues from two local sales taxes to be used to build a mega recreation center that will include a library, indoor/ outdoor water park, amphitheater, trails and gigantic playground. The playground, named PlayGrand Ad-

ventures, will be a destination playground for people of all ages and abilities. PlayGrand Adventures will be located at Central Park, a regional 177-acre park that includes five lakes.

The Epic will be within walking distance of PlayGrand Adventures, and together, PlayGrand Adventures and

This rendering outlines plans for the huge PlayGrand Adventures park, featuring amenities for children and families of all ability levels.

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The Epic (including Epic Waters the indoor/outdoor water park), will change the way Grand Prairie residents and neighbors in the Dallas/ Fort Worth metroplex experience play and leisure.

Building the Dream The PlayGrand Adventures project committee consists of individuals from the community, local and national organizations, and the City of Grand Prairie Parks, Arts and Recreation Department. During the past five months, staff members have been working closely with architects from HKS and TBG on the playground design, which involves accessing individual pod design, theming and selecting playground equipment. The playground is scheduled to open in 2017 and will feature wide ramps for wheelchairs, safety rails, padded and concrete surfacing, large restrooms, equipment that is accessible by all at different heights, plenty of shade and specialized swings, and a retractable roof for play year-round, just to name a handful of features. It will also feature various areas that focus on social, emotional, sensory, physical and cognitive needs. At build-out, PlayGrand Adventures will comprise 10 acres.

The Gift of Play To make PlayGrand Adventures a reality, the Grand Prairie Parks,

Arts and Recreation Department is working closely with the Texas Recreation and Parks Foundation, which is spearheading fundraising for the project. In addition to the traditional in-kind donations, and differing levels of partnership and donor opportunities, the Grand Prairie Parks, Arts and Recreation Department has reached out to the community with an EPIC Tile project as a way to cultivate involvement in and to share the excitement about the project. For $10, anyone can purchase and decorate a ceramic tile and will have the opportunity to see their artwork incorporated into the design of PlayGrand Adventures. In just four months, more than 200 tiles have been sold at community events.

A profile completed by the Texas Workforce Investment Council reported that Texas has the second highest number of people with disabilities. Dallas County has an estimated 232,580 individuals with disabilities and, of those individuals, the largest number has ambulatory disabilities.

Grand Prairie Parks, Arts and Recreation Department is committed to providing all-inclusive, accessible recreation programs and facilities. The department’s adaptive golf program and adaptive swim lessons are popular classes, and this playground is another step toward meeting the needs of all our citizens. PlayGrand Adventures is expecting to exceed at least $5 million in partnerships through the support of the community and friends who see a need and believe in inclusive play. In the words of Grand Prairie’s Mayor, Ron Jenson, “We don’t want to just build things to say we built them. We want to change people’s lives for the better.”

PlayGrand Adventures is already having a positive effect on the community by engaging it and strengthening its support to make a project of this magnitude a reality. Park staff and committee members, including Texas Scottish Rite’s Hospital for Children’s Therapeutic Recreation Director, Dana Demsey, have spent countless hours speaking with citizens to get their ideas about what would make the playground experience welcoming and inviting and about the types of amenities, including safety features, they think would benefit everyone. This gift is for everyone, from the parents who may have ambulatory and non-ambulatory children, to the adults who may be physical impaired, and PlayGrand Adventures will allow all visitors to interact, socialize, recreate and share in the gift of play.

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Member to Member

Licensure for Recreation Therapists: Why? Why Now?

By Robin Wexler, CTRS, and Anthony Martino, CTRS

F

or many years now there has been talk of licensure for recreation therapists, especially for those in the state of New York. What’s driving this talk is the increasing number of complaints that have been filed through the National Council on Therapeutic Recreation Certification (NCTRC Standards Review Committee) about individuals practicing therapeutic recreation services under different titles and without the appropriate professional preparation.

Clay M. Whaley

Because recreation therapy is not licensed in the state of New York, anyone can call him- or herself a recreation therapist. This also means that the profession is not represented on the NYS Board of Regents that currently hears complaints for similarly licensed professions. Therefore, there is no state mechanism that offers protection or recourse for malpractice.

Added to this is the fact that in the current economics of health care, institutions as well as patients are looking for insurance reimbursement to fund treatments for quality care with proven beneficial outcomes. Without licensure, recreation therapy is rarely

covered by insurance reimbursement, and, more and more, organizations will be mandated to hire only licensed recreation therapists to provide these services. As a result, recreation therapists are finding that their jobs are being replaced by professionals who are licensed and can obtain thirdparty reimbursement to the facility.

Many recreation professionals, allied health professionals, administrators, consumers and politicians are wondering what this actually means.

What Is Recreation Therapy?

Recreation therapy, also known as therapeutic recreation or therapeutic

Ben Deleon, left, a volunteer surf instructor, and Pfc. Job I. Depass, a patient in the Army Warrior Transition Unit at Naval Medical Center San Diego, California, leave the water after a surfing lesson. The lesson is part of a recreational therapy class coordinated by the Balboa Warrior Athlete Program, which helps wounded, ill and injured service members improve their level of function and mobility through exercise and recreational activities.

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recreation services, is defined by the American Therapeutic Recreation Association as “a treatment service designed to restore, remediate and rehabilitate a person’s level of functioning and independence in life activities, to promote health and wellness as well as reduce or eliminate the activity limitations and restriction to participation in life situations caused by an illness or disabling condition.”

The ultimate goal of recreation therapy is self-motivated, intrinsically satisfying leisure participation. The recreation therapist works with the client, family and members of the treatment team, and others to design and implement an individualized treatment or program plan, depending on the setting. Treatment interventions might include adapted sports and games, art, music, drama or other creative arts activities, stress management group or use of various relaxation and other techniques such as yoga, community integration outings, activities of daily living such as cooking, leisure education and leisure counselling, as well as other activities that are used to reach treatment goals.

Recreation therapists work in various clinical settings, such as hospitals, psychiatric or skilled nursing facilities, substance abuse programs and rehabilitation centers; in community settings, such as adult care, outpatient clinics, adaptive sports and recreation programs, home health, private consulting, developmental disabilities services, and other health and human services, parks and recreation programs, camps and youth programs;

and in long-term, continuing care or residential facilities. They treat and rehabilitate individuals with specific medical, social and behavioral problems, usually in cooperation with physicians, nurses, psychologists, social workers, and speech, physical and occupational therapists.

A minimum of a bachelor’s degree with a major in recreation therapy or therapeutic recreation, or recreation with a specialization in recreation therapy or therapeutic recreation is required for national certification.

Specific requirements can be obtained from the National Council for Therapeutic Recreation Certification (see www.nctrc.org).

Licensure vs. Certification Depending on the type of laws enacted, certification and registration may be either voluntary or mandatory.

Licensure, however, is a mandatory regulation that prohibits unlicensed persons from practicing a profession.

Although laws tend to differ in style, generally, they will restrict the practice of the profession (“practice restriction”), the use of certain descriptions or titles (“title restriction”), or of practice and title use.

Utah, North Carolina, New Hampshire and Oklahoma currently have recreation therapy licensure and are willing to assist New York’s efforts with obtaining licensure through a task force created by the American Therapeutic Recreation Association (ATRA). These states all use the NCTRC exam as the mechanism to become licensed, freeing the state from the cost and validity of developing and administering their own state’s individual licensure tests. Ten other states are currently working toward licensure and are planning to use the NCTRC exam as well. Washington

requires state registration and California requires state certification coordinated with the California Title Protection regulations.

Becoming Licensed Currently, in the state of New York, therapeutic recreation is not being held accountable in the same way as other allied health and human services. Although the profession has similar standards as other allied health professions (e.g., level of education, clinical fieldwork standards and a minimum competency exam), there is no regulating entity to ensure that properly prepared professionals are practicing in the state.

If New York passes a licensure bill for recreation therapy, there will likely be two ways to become licensed: 1. New recreation therapists/new graduates — graduating from an accredited college with a major in recreation therapy/therapeutic recreation, passing a certification exam as determined by the licensure board, and applying for licensure and paying a licensing fee.

2. Certified therapeutic recreation specialists (CTRS) who currently hold a national certification through NCTRC — applying for licensure and paying a fee to become licensed.

The New York bill will include certain defined non-certified individuals who wish to obtain licensure that will likely have to apply for a provisional waiver. This waiver will allow them to continue to practice under the clinical supervision of a CTRS for a specified period of time, during which they will be required to show the licensing board they are making steady progress toward meeting the necessary requirements to take the national exam.

The Outlook for Recreation Therapy Recreation therapy has been designated as one of the fastest growing health care and human service occupations in the United States. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, employment for recreation therapists is projected to grow 13 percent from 2012 to 2022, about as fast as the average for all occupations. Rapid growth is expected in geriatric care facilities, outpatient physical and psychiatric rehabilitation, and services for individuals with disabling conditions.

As the large baby-boom generation ages, it will need recreation therapists to help treat age-related injuries and illnesses, such as strokes, and hip-andknee replacement rehabilitation, and dementia. Recreation therapists will also be needed to help manage chronic conditions such as diabetes, dementia and obesity and to play key roles in the treatment of substance abuse, PTSD, head injury and mental illness.

The primary purpose of licensure is to protect consumers, ensuring that they will receive quality recreation therapy services. For therapist, licensure not only will increase professionalism and provide a means of removing unqualified practitioners, but will also meet the growing mandate from organizations to hire only licensed recreation therapist and allow therapists to have their services covered by insurance reimbursement.

Robin Wexler, CTRS, is a board member of the Long Island Leisure Service Association and a member of the NY State Committee for the Licensure of Recreation Therapists (profrobinw@aol.com). Anthony Martino, CTRS, is an employee of the North Shore-LIJ Health System Southside, an executive board member of the New York State Recreation and Park Society and member of the LILSA board (amartino@NSHS.edu).

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ADVOCACY

Life After LWCF

By David Tyahla

A

t midnight, October 1, the light flickered out on one of the nation’s most popular and successful legislative programs. But the political battle over the future of the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) is sure to rage on into the winter, as lawmakers debate how to divvy up the hundreds of millions of dollars it receives each year.

Legislative Update Despite the efforts of a bipartisan group of congressional supporters, the LWCF was allowed to expire on September 30. While this certainly could lead to long-term, negative impacts with regard to federal support for conservation and outdoor recreation, little or no impact will be felt by state, regional and local park agencies that hope to receive funding from the State Assistance Program.

The most immediate impact is the inability of the government to accrue new revenues from offshore energy exploration and production to fund the various programs currently supported through the Act. The unspent balance of existing revenues has been identi-

28 Parks & Recreation

fied at $20 billion; therefore, there is ample revenue available to fully fund the LWCF for the next year, and about 20 more beyond that. This situation highlights the fact that the LWCF has only been “fully funded” at its authorized amount ($900 million) a couple of times during the 50-year life of the program — even while ample revenues, NOT individual taxpayer dollars, have been generated to fund it.

So, congressional appropriators (those who control the funding for each federal agency and program) remain able to approve funding for LWCF as part of their annual spending for the Department of the Interior and National Park Service. However, the program’s expiration means

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oil and gas companies have stopped paying into it. That has increased the stakes for the program’s long-term outlook and added pressure on its supporters in Congress.

Senate and House supporters are seeking opportunities to attach reauthorization as an amendment to legislation moving through Congress this fall.

Additional Action in Committee The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee recently included LWCF reauthorization as part of a comprehensive “Energy Reform” bill (S. 2012) it reported to the full Senate for consideration. The measure would permanently reauthorize the LWCF, but would not include any mandatory funding. It also allocates a minimum 40 percent of annual LWCF spending to what NRPA is calling a “Stateside Suite” of programs. This includes the State Assistance Program, but also funding

for other worthwhile initiatives such as the Forest Legacy, Cooperative Endangered Species, and historical protection for American battlefields.

While we welcome any effort to ensure that at least a portion of annual LWCF dollars go to support state and local active outdoor recreation through the State Assistance Program, we have shared our concerns with Committee Chair Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Ranking Member Maria Cantwell (D-WA) that without any mandatory funding for LWCF, State Assistance and these other valuable programs will receive no more funding than what is currently being appropriated annually.

For State Assistance this is approximately $40-45 million to be distributed across all states and territories.

In the House, Chairman Rob Bishop (R-UT-01) has stated, repeatedly, his desire to see LWCF reauthorized — prior to the end of 2015, if possible. He has called for significant changes to how LWCF operates with, first and foremost, more funding being sent directly to the states — specifically the State Assistance Program — as well as a desire to see LWCF used for education and possibly to help fund “Payments-in-Lieuof-Taxes” (PILT). PILT is an issue critical to many western communities that face significant losses in annual tax revenue because the federal government owns so much of the territory within their borders.

coming months we’ll see a permanently reauthorized LWCF, with full and dedicated funding that will allow for a more dependably, robustly and equitably supported State Assistance Program.

Your voice is needed — visit www. nrpa.org/advocacy-engage to learn how to contact Capitol Hill and urge support for the LWCF! Use the #RenewLWCF hashtag in your social media interactions to further drive home the essential nature of this legislation to the field of parks and recreation. For detailed information about LWCF and NRPA’s position, visit www.nrpa.org/Advocacy/Legislative-Platform/Renew-the-Landand-Water-Conservation-Fund.

Outlook and How You Can Help NRPA remains optimistic that in the

David Tyahla is NRPA’s Senior Government Affairs Manager (dtyahla@nrpa.org).

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L AW R E V I E W

Transgender Discrimination in Male Locker Room

By James C. Kozlowski, J.D., Ph.D.

W

ith the increasing recognition of civil rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) individuals, administrators and agencies may question whether public recreation facilities are required by law to provide separate changing areas for transgendered individuals. Good public relations can avoid many potential legal problems. Accordingly, if at all possible and practical, a policy of accommodation for the expressed special needs of any individual is preferable to confrontation, whether or not the law requires such accommodations. When a separate unisex changing area is available upon request, many people, including transgender individuals, may find this type of commonplace accommodation to be reasonable and acceptable under the circumstances.

Several federal agencies, including the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) have provided guidance for employers and transgender employees regarding restroom access in the workplace. This workplace guidance

30 Parks & Recreation

may also provide some insight into what might constitute an appropriate policy for providing restrooms and changing facilities for transgender individuals in a public recreation facility.

OSHA On June 1, 2015, OSHA published

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“A Guide to Restroom Access for Transgender Workers� (www.osha. gov/Publications/OSHA3795.pdf).

OSHA guidelines require agencies to make access to adequate sanitary facilities as free as possible for all employees in order to avoid serious health consequences. For a transitioning employee, this means that, once he or she has begun working in the gender that reflects his or her gender identity, agencies should allow access to restrooms and (if provided to other employees) locker room facilities consistent with his or her gender identity.

Transitioning employees should not be required to have undergone or to provide proof of any particular medical procedure (including gender reassignment surgery) in order to have access to facilities

designated for use by a particular gender.

Under no circumstances may an agency require an employee to use facilities that are inconsistent with the employee’s gender identity. Agencies are encouraged to provide unisex, single-user restrooms when feasible to maximize comfort and access for everyone, including individuals with disabilities and those with young children; however, transgender employees should not be limited to using these facilities.

The OSHA publication also provides guidance to employers on best practices regarding restroom access for transgender workers, including single -occupancy, gender-neutral (unisex) facilities or use of multiple-occupant, gender-neutral restroom facilities with lockable, single-occupant stalls.

The OSHA publication cites federal, state and local laws that reaffirm the core principle of providing employees with access to restroom facilities based on gender identification.

EEOC As noted in the OSHA publication, in April 2015, the EEOC ruled that a transgender employee cannot be denied access to the common restrooms used by other employees of the same gender identity, regardless of whether that employee has had any medical procedure or whether other employees may have negative reactions to allowing the employee to do so.

The EEOC held that such a denial of access constituted direct evidence of sex discrimination under Title VII. The EEOC has also published an informational guide titled, “What You Should Know About EEOC and the Enforcement Protections for LGBT Workers” (www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/ newsroom/wysk/enforcement_protections_lgbt_workers.cfm). In so doing, the EEOC acknowledged, “Title

VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 does not explicitly include sexual orientation or gender identity in its list of protected bases.” That being said, “consistent with case law from the Supreme Court and other courts,” the EEOC has interpreted Title VII’s “sex discrimination provision” as “prohibiting discrimination against employees on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.”

Title VII prohibits discrimination in the workplace. In the Johnston case described herein, Title VII was not applicable because the alleged sex discrimination was unrelated to the workplace. Similarly, in this particular case, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), requiring reasonable accommodations for disabled individuals, would not be applicable because gender identity disorders are expressly excluded from the statutory and regulatory definition of “disability” under the ADA. In Johnston, gender discrimination was alleged under Title IX. Title IX prohibits gender discrimination by federally funded educational institutions. In this particular instance, the federal district court found no basis for a claim of sex discrimination under Title IX. In so doing, the court applied the same reasoning described below to reject plaintiff Johnston’s claim of sex discrimination in violation of the Equal Protection Clause.

The reasoning of the federal district court in this particular case seems to be at odds with the guidance from OSHA and EEOC cited above. Specifically, in the absence of applicable federal law to the contrary, the federal court in Johnston found birth gender to be determinative, not gender identity, for restroom and locker room access.

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L AW R E V I E W

Gender Identity In the case of Johnston v. University of Pittsburgh, 2015 U.S. Dist.

LEXIS 41823 (Dist.W.D. Penna.

3/31/2015), plaintiff Seamus Johnston alleged the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown (UPJ) “discriminated against him based on his sex and his transgender status by prohibiting him from using sex-segregated locker rooms and restrooms that were designated for men.”

the Selective Service. He amended the gender marker to male on his United States passport. In November 2013, Johnston amended the gender marker to male in his Social Security record.

Johnston attended UPJ as an undergraduate computer science major for five semesters from 2009 to 2011.

When Johnston applied for admission to UPJ in March 2009, he listed his sex as “female” on his application form. However, when Johnston

Agencies are encouraged to provide unisex, singleuser restrooms when feasible to maximize comfort and access for everyone, including individuals with disabilities and those with young children; however, transgender employees should not be limited to using these facilites.

Johnston was born a female, but identifies as a transgender male. Although Johnston “was assigned the sex of female at birth,” he claimed he is “legally, socially and medically recognized as a man.” Johnston stated he “understood his male gender identity at a very early age, informing his parents that he was a boy at age 9.”

In May 2009, Johnston transitioned to living in accordance with his male gender identity and began presenting himself as a male in all aspects of life.

Beginning in 2009, as part of Johnston’s transition to living as a male, he “amended his identity documents and records to reflect his male gender identity.” In 2010, he obtained a common law name change to Seamus Johnston. In October 2011, he amended the gender marker to male on his Pennsylvania driver’s license.

In July 2011, Johnston registered with 32 Parks & Recreation

began attending classes at UPJ in August 2009, and at all times thereafter, he “consistently lived as male.”

In August 2011, Johnston requested that UPJ change the gender marker to male in his school records.

Men’s Locker Room While enrolled as a student at UPJ, Johnston consistently used the men’s restrooms on campus. During the spring 2011 semester, he enrolled in a men’s weight training class, which was attended only by men. Johnston used the men’s locker room for the men’s weight training class throughout the spring 2011 semester.

He again enrolled in a men’s weight training class for the fall 2011 semester, and again began using the men’s locker room. Johnston used the locker room approximately five times between the end of August and

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mid-September without incident.

On September 19, 2011, Johnston met with the executive director of health and wellness services at UPJ who informed Johnston that he could no longer use the men’s locker room.

Instead, Johnston agreed to use a unisex locker room at the sports center that was normally reserved for referees.

On September 26, 2011, the UPJ vice president of student affairs informed Johnston that “he would be allowed to use the men’s locker room if his student records were updated from female to male.” On September 29, 2011, the UPJ registrar informed Johnston that, in order to change the sex designation on his student records, he had to provide either a court order or a new birth certificate reflecting his current gender.

On October 19, 2011, Johnston registered a complaint with the university president to protest his exclusion from the men’s locker room. The university president responded with a letter dated October 21, 2011, confirming that, in order for Johnston to have access to the men’s locker room, he must officially change his gender in UPJ’s records by presenting a court order or birth certificate. In October 2011, Johnston began reusing the men’s locker room, using the locker room six times between October 24, 2011, and November 14, 2011, without incident.

On November 16, 2011, the campus police issued a citation to Johnston for disorderly conduct because he used the men’s locker room. Despite receiving this citation, Johnston continued to use the men’s locker room. On November 21, 2011, Johnston received a second citation for disorderly conduct for using the men’s locker room. During this confrontation, the campus police chief informed Johnston that if he continued to use the men’s locker room, he would

be arrested and taken into custody.

On November 28, 2011, the coordinator for the office of student conduct and conflict resolution issued an interim persona non grata (i.e., an unwelcome person) against Johnston, barring him from the sports center due to his continued use of the men’s locker room. On November 28, 2011, Johnston again used the men’s locker room, and campus police took him into custody and issued another disorderly conduct citation.

On December 2, 2011, at a disciplinary hearing, Johnston was found guilty of three charges resulting from alleged violations of the Student Code of Conduct and was instructed that he was not to use any male locker rooms or restroom facilities on campus. On December 20, 2011, the coordinator for the office of student conduct and conflict resolution informed Johnston that, due to his use of the men’s restrooms on December 7 and December 15, Johnston would be placed on interim disciplinary suspension and barred under an interim persona non grata from all UPJ property pending an adjudicatory hearing.

A disciplinary hearing was held on January 24, 2012, before a panel of students, who found Johnston guilty of exhibiting disorderly, lewd or indecent behavior, failing to comply with lawful directions of a university official, and entering university facilities without authorization. As a result, Johnston was expelled from UPJ and prohibited from accessing all UPJ property.

ston claimed the UPJ, without justification, treated him “differently from other similarly situated students on the basis of sex, including his transgender status and perceived failure to conform to gender stereotypes.”

As described by the federal district court, 42 U.S.C. § 1983 “provides a remedy for the deprivation of a person’s constitutional rights,” including Equal Protection under the Fourteenth Amendment.

Equal Protection Claim In response to these actions, Johnston filed a federal civil rights claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging discrimination in violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. In his complaint, John

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L AW R E V I E W

To state a claim for relief under § 1983, a plaintiff must allege both the violation of a right secured by the Constitution or laws of the United States and that the alleged violation was committed by a person acting under color of state law.

In his federal civil rights claim, Johnston alleged UPJ “deprived him of his constitutional right to be free from discrimination on the basis of sex under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution when they prohibited him from using men’s restrooms and locker rooms on the university’s campus.”

As cited by the federal district court, the Equal Protection Clause prohibits a state from “denying to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws” U.S. Const. amend. XIV, § 1. Moreover, to “state a claim for sex discrimination

34 Parks & Recreation

under the Equal Protection Clause pursuant to § 1983,” the court noted “a plaintiff must allege the existence of purposeful discrimination because of his sex.” Specifically, “to establish a gender discrimination claim under the Equal Protection Clause,” the court acknowledged that a plaintiff must allege the following: (1) disparate treatment in relation to other similarly situated individuals, and (2) that the discriminatory treatment was based on sex.

Within the context of the Equal Protection Clause, the court further found persons are similarly situated “when they are alike in all relevant aspects.” That being said, the court acknowledged the “Equal Protection Clause does not forbid classifications.” On the contrary, the court noted the Equal Protection Clause “simply keeps governmental deci-

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sion makers from treating differently persons who are in all relevant respects alike.”

Rational Basis Test As described by the federal district court, “state action that does not burden a fundamental right [e.g. free speech] or target a suspect class [i.e. based on race, creed, color, religion or national origin] will be upheld if it bears a rational relation to some legitimate end.”

If state action does not burden a fundamental Constitutional right or target a suspect class, the challenged classification must be upheld if there is any reasonably conceivable state of facts that could provide a rational basis for the classification. On the other hand, gender-based discriminations must serve important governmental objectives and the discriminatory means employed must be substantially related to the achievement of those objectives.

In his complaint, Johnston claimed a “constitutional right to be free from discrimination based on sex.” Specifically, Johnston alleged UPJ had “violated the Equal Protection Clause” by treating him “differently from other similarly situated students on the basis of his sex, including his transgender status and perceived failure to conform to gender stereotypes.” In so doing, Johnston claimed “non-transgender male students were permitted to use the men’s locker room and restroom facilities on campus” while Johnston “was denied access to the men’s locker rooms and restrooms.”

Johnston, however, conceded “transgender is not a suspect classification under the Equal Protection Clause.”

In response, the university argued Johnston had failed to state an Equal Protection Claim.

In so doing, UPJ claimed it “had a rational basis in refusing to permit plaintiff [Johnston] to use male lock-

er rooms, showers and bathrooms — namely, to protect the privacy rights of students” at the university. According to UPJ, “students have a constitutional right to privacy, which includes the right to disrobe and perform personal bodily functions out of the presence of members of the opposite biological sex.”

In the absence of a suspect class (i.e., race, creed, color religion or national origin) or a fundamental constitutional right (e.g. free speech, freedom of religion), the federal district court acknowledged “rational basis review” was the applicable judicial standard under the circumstances of this particular case. Accordingly, under rational basis review, the federal court would be required to uphold a challenged classification “if there is any reasonably conceivable state of facts that could provide a rational basis for the classification.”

In considering this claim, the federal district court noted “society’s views of gender, gender identity, sex and sexual orientation have significantly evolved in recent years.”

[The] Court is mindful that the legal landscape is transforming as it relates to gender identify, sexual orientation and similar issues, especially in the context of providing expanded legal rights. Within the context of these expanding rights and protections arises the profound question of self-identify, as exemplified by this case.

That being said, however, the court acknowledged “neither the United States Supreme Court nor the Third Circuit Court of Appeals has recognized transgender as a suspect classification under the Equal Protection Clause.”

In reviewing Johnston’s discrimination claim, the federal district court would, therefore, apply the rational basis standard within the context of a “public university, whose mission is primarily pedagogical, but which is also

tasked with providing safe and appropriate facilities for all of its students.”

Birth Sex Accordingly, the federal district court had to determine “whether a univer-

sity receiving federal funds [for Title IX purposes] unlawfully discriminates when it enforces the use of sex-segregated bathroom and locker room facilities based solely on a student’s birth sex.”

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L AW R E V I E W

Applying the rational basis test, the federal district court concluded “UPJ’s policy of segregating its bathroom and locker room facilities on the basis of birth sex” was “substantially related to a sufficiently important government interest.”

Specifically, the court found “UPJ explained that its policy is based on the need to ensure the privacy of its students to disrobe and shower outside of the presence of members of the opposite sex.”

Moreover, the court noted this particular “justification has been repeatedly upheld by courts.” Further, the court found discrimination on the basis of sex under these particular circumstances was permissible under the Constitution.

Separating students by sex based on biological considerations — which involves the physical differences between men and women — for restroom and locker room use simply does not violate the Equal Protection Clause…

While detrimental gender classifications by government often violate the Constitution, they do not always do so, for the reason that there are differences between males and females that the Constitution necessarily recognizes.

Biological Sex In his complaint, Johnston had alleged UPJ’s refusal to permit him access to facilities consistent with his male gender identity constituted sex discrimination against him as a male transgender individual. The federal district court disagreed.

As noted by the federal district court, “courts have defined the term ‘sex’ in the context of the Equal Protection Clause” as “the biological sex assigned to a person at birth.” According to the court, “sex, like race and national origin, is an immutable 36 Parks & Recreation

characteristic determined solely by the accident of birth.” Accordingly, within the context of federal civil rights law, the court found the prohibition against sex discrimination “in its plain meaning, implies that it is unlawful to discriminate against women because they are women and against men because they are men.”

As a result, in the opinion of the court, federal civil rights law does “not outlaw discrimination against a person who has a sexual identity disorder, i.e., a person born with a male body who believes himself to be female, or a person born with a female body who believes herself to be male.” In other words, “a prohibition against discrimination based on an individual’s sex is not synonymous with a prohibition against discrimination based on an individual’s sexual identity disorder or discontent with the sex into which they were born.”

The federal district court also noted that courts have “consistently upheld statutes where the gender classification is not invidious [i.e., discriminates unjustly], but rather realistically reflects the fact that the sexes are not similarly situated in certain circumstances.”

In this particular instance, the court noted that Johnston claimed in his complaint that he is a “male” while also admitting in his complaint that he “was assigned the sex of ‘female’ at birth.” Further, the court found Johnston had not alleged that he had “undergone a sex change,” specifically “any kind of sex reassignment surgery.”

While Johnston might “identify his gender as male,” the court found Johnston’s “birth sex” was admittedly female. In the opinion of the federal district court, the fact that Johnston was “born a biolog-

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ical female” was “fatal” to his sex discrimination claim.

Regardless of how gender and gender identity are defined, the law recognizes certain distinctions between male and female on the basis of birth sex. Thus, even though plaintiff is a transgender male, his sex is female, a fact alleged in plaintiff ’s complaint and a fact that has legal significance in light of plaintiff ’s discrimination claim.

Plaintiff alleges that he was assigned the sex of female at birth. To further this point, plaintiff alleges that he did not become aware of his male gender identity until he was 9, and he did not start presenting as a male until sometime later, around the time he matriculated as a student at UPJ. While Johnston had “held himself out as ‘male’ at all relevant times,” the federal district court also noted that Johnston had stated he was female when he applied to UPJ. Moreover, the court found Johnston had “failed to provide the school with requested documentation, consistent with UPJ’s policy, to change the school records to reflect that his sex is male rather than female.”

In light of such facts, the federal district court determined that Johnston had “failed to allege that he was discriminated against because of his sex.” Having found Johnston had “failed to state a cognizable claim for relief under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment,” the federal district court dismissed Johnston’s complaint against the university.

James C. Kozlowski, J.D., Ph.D., is an attorney and Associate Professor in the School of Recreation, Health and Tourism at George Mason University (jkozlows@gmu. edu). Webpage with link to law review articles archive (1982 to present): http:// mason.gmu.edu/~jkozlows.

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The Morale, Welfare and Recreation Experience Everything under the sun for young park and recreation professionals

By Michael D. Huffstetler, CPRE

W

hen talking to other young professionals, college students and colleagues in the park and recreation field, one of the questions I hear most is, “How do I get the experience needed to advance in the field?”

My answer: There is no substitute for hands-on experience. In college and through internships, we learn many skills but don’t always have the opportunity to put them into action until later in our careers where we may end up being labeled the sports, outdoor, aquatics or grounds person as a result of highly siloed entry-level positions. My advice to any young professional seeking a complete experience in parks and recreation is to seek out and begin a career with Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR). MWR is an exciting career field within the world of parks and recreation and offers great hands-on experience in many areas that will prepare you for your next interview, a professional certification exam, and give you confidence in your career.

Military parks and recreation programs are expansive and offer everything you would see at a traditional, community-based agency. MWR facilities are top-notch. If there is a trending program or activity, it is being offered.

Activities include skydiving, intramu-

38 Parks & Recreation

ral sports and leagues, hunting, outdoor adventure, youth and childcare, special events, retirees, camping, marinas, boating, equestrian, bowling, theaters, park development, community centers, libraries, water parks, aquatics, marksmanship, gaming, technology,

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fitness, hospitality and lodging, resorts, food service, therapeutic, auto skills, social work, equipment rentals, maintenance, project management, training, certifications, finance, human resources and procurement. There are even opportunities to travel the world and manage recreation programs on ships.

MWR offers everything under the sun for young park and recreation professionals to get their feet wet, learn their passions and talents, and become the well-rounded professional they need to be in order to be successful in work and in life. My story is a perfect example of how MWR can influence, enhance and prepare you for a successful career.

My MWR Experience I first learned of Morale, Welfare and

Recreation from a professor while an undergraduate at East Tennessee State University. He was a believer in the effect these programs can have on our careers and set up many students with internships throughout the world. Some of my classmates supervised programs in Japan, one was trained as a whitewater guide in Colorado; the list of unique experiences keeps going. These internships are professional, invaluable and give students opportunities to lead programs and staff, and participate in the overall management of a department.

After completing an internship program in Charleston, South Carolina, I accepted an MWR position with the Navy supervising interns who led trips and tours, and coordinated campus recreation activities for young student sailors. I left for graduate school in Wisconsin the next year with valuable experience from my first job out of college supervising staff; organizing sports leagues and other recreation tournaments, special events, trips and tours; collaborating with other departments and spearheading committees; performing maintenance tasks; setting standards; applying for grants; and learning new skills in time management, delegation and staff training, as well as participating in many continuous learning opportunities and trainings. The ability to apply this experience to what I was learning in graduate school helped tremendously, and I quickly gained confidence I didn’t know I had at the time.

After completing my courses, I was offered a promotional position within MWR, this time with a large Army installation in Maryland, overseeing outdoor recreation facilities, parks and programs. Also during this time, I was given the opportunity to obtain several certifications, including my CPRP, and I can confidently say that because of my MWR experience,

isn’t uncommon for people to transthere were no areas of the exam that fer from one program area or instalI hadn’t previously been exposed to. lation to another and advance quickly I have been fortunate to work with while staying with the same company. two great municipal programs over the Salaries are competitive and ongoing last eight years, and I used my MWR professional development is a priority. background every day. Every time a Since rejoining MWR, I have gained new project began, I was able to cona wealth of knowledge in managing tribute because of my background, budgets, staff, project development even if it wasn’t part of my everyday and management. The needs on a milresponsibilities. These were some of itary installation are the same as in the the most rewarding times of my career communities. Installations serve tens so far. Assisting in and advancing the of thousands of families, soldiers and organization’s bigger picture is not only civilian employees and, oftentimes, a tremendous asset to the organization, partner with neighboring communibut is also indicative that as a young ties when possible for programming professional, you possesses the necesand special events. Collaboration and sary skill sets and experience to help the networking is a large component of agency develop and reach new heights. military recreation. Upward mobility I now work with the Navy again for is very possible within MWR and exMWR Kings Bay, a CAPRA-accredperience easily transitions to any other ited agency and NRPA Gold Medal area of the profession. winner, managing a small park, resort If you are looking for opportunity and marina on the shores of Lake Allathat can offer you growth in experience toona, just north of Atlanta, Georgia. and knowledge, recognition, an opI tell everyone that I have the best job portunity to do something unique and on the planet, and I mean it. This posirewarding, a way to serve those who tion brings together everything I enjoy serve you, and an opportunity to travel about parks, recreation and hospitality, and possibly see the world, then MWR and it is as unique an opportunity as is the right choice for you. one can have.

As an MWR employee, you beMichael D. Huffstetler, CPRE, is the Navy come part of a worldwide network Lake Site Manager at MWR SUBASE, Kings Bay ofNiceRink-NRPA-1-6HP programs and opportunities.

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Steve Maslowski/U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service

The golden-cheeked warbler, seen here, nests only in the oak/Ashe juniper woods of Texas hill country. Collaboration facilitated through the Army Compatibility Use Buffer program protected thousands of acres of habitat for this endangered species.

Thinking ‘Outside the Fence’ Leads to Innovative Conservation

By Richard J. Dolesh

E

very military base of the Armed Forces within the United States is committed to fulfilling its mission, and some have been doing so for more than a hundred years. But as time goes on, outside factors can interfere with the ability of a base to complete that mission.

Encroachment, suburbanization, complaints about noise or ordinance — even the presence of threatened and endangered wildlife species can impair a base’s readiness to efficiently and economically complete its mission.

In recent years, however, a number of bases have explored new strategies to think innovatively about lands “outside the fence.”

Over time, many bases have had to adopt creative strategies to establish large buffers, protect wildlife species both on and off base, and think to the future about how best to preserve mission readiness. A special program created out of the Office of the Secretary of Defense called

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Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration (REPI) was created to address this very need.

REPI and Conservation The REPI program is designed to “combat encroachment that can limit military training, testing and operations. The program protects military missions by helping remove or avoid land-use conflicts near installations and addressing regulatory restric-

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tions that inhibit military activities,” according to a Department of Defense summary from the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

A key component of the REPI program encourages the creation of partnerships with nonprofit conservation organizations and local and state governments. These partnership activities may include purchase of conservation easements, a form of permanent protection of natural lands that allows compatible uses by landowners such as farming, forestry and protection of threatened and endangered species to continue without disruption to military mission.

The REPI program is seen as an excellent way to preserve missions,

including live-fire training, mitigating noise conflicts, enabling continuation of night-operations training, protecting against electromagnetic interference and more. In addition, the REPI program has produced significant cost savings in multiple ways and is widely regarded as a success by the Department of Defense (DOD) and surrounding communities and landowners.

The idea of building resource-based partnerships is part of a larger trend to look at potential collaboration for energy and infrastructure, says Steve Bonner, a former natural resource planner for the National Park Service (NPS) and now president of his own company that facilitates such partnerships, SONRI Corp. Bonner points out that all military bases have a mandated responsibility to preserve natural resources on base, including managing habitat for wildlife, ensuring water quality and dealing with invasive species, among other responsibilities. He notes the DOD must also balance protection of environmental quality and encroachment on wildlife habitat on base, as well as off base.

Proof in Preservation Robert Gregory, former executive director of the Land Legacy Foundation in Oklahoma and now president of the Compatible Lands Foundation, says that, initially, local landowners often have a high degree of skepticism about the idea of the military trying to preserve lands off base to free up lands on base to complete missions. “But once trust is developed and results are seen,” he says, “it’s a win-win for all.”

Gregory described some of the projects his Compatible Lands Foundation is working on at five bases across the country, including a proj

ect near Ft. Campbell in Christian County, Kentucky. The rural agricultural landscape surrounding the base contains some of the highest quality soils in the state, he said, and local landowners are passionate about protecting farming. By working together with the base and a number of local partners — including the Natural Resources Conservation Service of the Department of Agriculture, which provided a significant share of funding — the Army has been able to secure more than 8,000 acres of buffer lands under conservation easement under its version of the REPI program, the Army Compatibility Use Buffer program (ACUB).

One of the more successful examples of how the Army has creatively achieved this delicate balance of protecting threatened natural resources while preserving military mission has taken place in the lands surrounding Camp Bullis near San Antonio, Texas. The area hosts base operations and training support for Joint Base San Antonio Mission Partners, including firing ranges, simulation exercises and maneuver lands for training.

The oak/Ashe juniper woods of Texas hill country are home to the golden-cheeked warbler, a neo-tropical species that nests exclusively in south Texas in very specialized habitat, and then winters in Mexico and Central America. These warblers — that nest nowhere else in the world but Texas — are a federally endangered species, and thus invoke all the protections such a designation brings. Still, the species continues to decline since its designation in 1991. Its habitat has been degraded by suburban development and the cutting of the juniper forests for roads, lakes and other activ-

ities, as well as the clearing of land for agriculture.

Jim Cannizzo, the administrative and civil law advisor who handles the Retained Army Functions at Fort Sam Houston and Camp Bullis, described how the Army, through its ACUB program, tackled the protection of golden-cheeked warbler habitat around Camp Bullis. In a concentrated years-long effort, the Army has been able to purchase and protect thousands of acres of buffer lands through conservation easements around Camp Bullis. Partners included the City of San Antonio, which transferred several thousand acres of land already set aside for aquifer protection. The Nature Conservancy pitched in, as well as Bexar County and private conservation organizations such as the Bandera Corridor Conservation Bank, a land conservation mitigation bank.

Estimates made by the partnering nonprofit conservation organizations and the Army calculate that up to $50 million has been saved by not incurring other costs that would have been necessary to protect the mission of the base. Without the conservation partnerships, any solution would have led to greater environmental impact, according to Cannizzo. “New roads would have been required to get to suitable training areas, a $2 million bridge would have needed to have been built, and an additional 5 miles of driving and lost training time would have been required to get to training areas,” Cannizzo said.

“This was good for the Army, good for the environment and good for the local communities. It truly has been a win-win.”

Richard J. Dolesh is NRPA’s Vice President of Conservation and Parks (rdolesh@nrpa.org).

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HEALTH AND WELLNESS

Making Concessions for a Healthy Lifestyle

By Jill Geller

H

ealthy food at a sporting event? Are you kidding? Five to 10 years ago this would have been unthinkable. But, it’s becoming more commonplace each year as Americans strive to be healthier and park and recreation agencies expand their commitment to promoting healthy lifestyles. And, that’s exactly what Johnson County Park and Recreation District (JCPRD) in Kansas is doing in its most popular sports and theater venues.

The decision was made to make it easier for patrons to stick to their New Year’s resolutions by starting 2013 with healthy concessions offerings at Okun Fieldhouse in Shawnee and New Century Fieldhouse in Gardner. These two facilities, which host primarily youth programs, welcome more than 500,000 visitors annually. In the summer of 2013, JCPRD’s outdoor community theater, The Theatre in the Park, made the switch to healthier food choices at its

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concession stand. Through an initiative marketed as JCPRD Smart Snacks SCORE!, visitors to these facilities can now enjoy a jalapeno chicken wrap, a turkey sandwich on multigrain bread, or a grilled chicken breast on flatbread. The fryers are gone and fried food is a thing of the past. Food is grilled or cooked in high-speed commercial convection ovens, and snacks and sides now include baked chips, apples and bananas.

Menu boards display the calorie

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count for each item, so patrons can make an educated decision when choosing what to eat. Nutritional pamphlets are available upon request and are even displayed poster-size at some facilities. Healthy eating is also promoted through portion control.

Gone are large candy bars, although fun-size candy can be purchased for a quarter.

JCPRD frequently states that “Everything We Do Makes a Healthier You,” so it was really a decision of walking the talk. Now, we really do make a healthier you, not only by promoting active lifestyles, but also by encouraging smart food choices.

As with most park and recreation agencies, JCPRD is heavily reliant on concession revenues to support operations at its sports facilities. From a financial standpoint, there was concern about making the switch. Staff worried it might have a negative impact on revenues, but they’ve been pleasantly surprised. The community embraced the initiative and concession sales have remained high. Not only has the community embraced it, but the SCORE! program at one venue also is sponsored by a local healthcare organization which provides additional revenue for the agency.

Staff at the venues often hear positive comments from patrons; for example, a high school volleyball player said, “Look mom, they’ve got calorie counts on their menu board!” And, a 6-year old basketball player who excitedly asked his mom to buy him an apple — and she just as excitedly said, “You bet!”

In 2013, when a local news station did a feature story on the new menu, a volleyball mom was quick to give the healthy concession options a very high score: “I’ve gone with my daughter to volleyball games and tournaments at many facilities over the years,” she told the reporter. “When I visited JCPRD’s concession stand, I thought ‘Oh my gosh.’ As the parent of a young athlete, I want to have healthy options for my child. She’s an athlete trying to perform at a high level, and when we’re at a volleyball venue for the entire day, we want to have healthy options available.”

Making the switch was not a quick and easy transition. Months of research and planning occurred, and several factors contributed to its successful implementation. Staff was involved, through numerous tasting

The concessions menu at Okun Fieldhouse not only offers healthy food options, but it also informs consumers of the calorie content of their choices.

Staff worried [making the switch to healthy food choices] might have a negative impact on revenues, but they’ve been pleasantly surprised. opportunities, to ensure that the food really tasted good. Vendors were informed of JCPRD’s strong desire for healthier options and asked for input on menu items. Pricing was carefully considered, with healthier foods priced competitively so as to encourage their purchase. And, frontline staff was educated to help promote healthier choices. Before and after the

program’s implementation, JCPRD consulted with the local health department regarding nutritional standards, and now ensures that more than 50 percent of concession items meet those standards.

Valuable lessons were learned along the way: • If it’s not on the menu, people don’t ask for it.

• Customers appreciate having healthy options.

• Parents appreciate it for their kids.

• Revenues did not suffer as it was feared they would.

JCPRD is thrilled to be fully “walking the talk” and proud that its venues truly make a positive impact on patrons’ health, not only through the activities they provide, but also with the food they serve.

Jill Geller, CPRE, is Executive Director of the Johnson County Park and Recreation District (jill.geller@jocogov.org).

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SOCIAL EQUITY

Voices Remembered Pico Rivera Parks and Recreation’s Veterans History Project brings teens and seniors together while preserving important oral histories

By Sandra J. Gonzalez, FASLA, CPRP, and Eyvette Ruiz

E

leven miles southeast of Los Angeles lies a city of 63,000 people.

While not considered large by California standards, the City of Pico Rivera is known throughout the Los Angeles and San Gabriel region, chiefly because of its active veterans’ programming.

Pico Rivera boasts four veteran’s posts, including two Veterans of Foreign War and two American Foreign Legion posts. Hosting blood drives, music events and receptions, these Pico Rivera organizations serve veterans and their families with positive communication and support.

There are many generations of families who reside in Pico Rivera, and among those families many served in U.S. war efforts. The city’s Department of Parks and Recreation wanted to find a way to collect the 44 Parks & Recreation

stories of the local veterans and preserve them for future generations, while simultaneously facilitating positive interactions between Pico Rivera’s teens and its senior population.

Making Intergenerational Connections In researching how best to achieve these goals, the department learned of the Veterans History Project, a national volunteer effort spearheaded by the Library of Congress that is focused on preserving veterans’ war stories.

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The United States Congress created the program as part of the American Folklife Center — its authorizing legislation received unanimous support and was signed into law by President Bill Clinton in October 2000. The success of the program relies on a national network of organizations and individuals to record the interviews and submit them to the permanent collection of the Library of Congress.

The mission of the Veterans History Project is to collect, preserve and make accessible the personal accounts of American war veterans so that future generations may hear those voices directly and better understand the realities of war. In addition, those U.S. citizen civilians who were actively in-

volved in supporting war efforts (such as war industry workers, USO workers, flight instructors, medical volunteers, etc.) are also invited to share their valuable stories. More information, including guidelines on how to become involved in the project, can be found at www.loc.gov/vets.

The Pico Rivera Department of Parks and Recreation decided to work with its teen club to create a learning opportunity and intergenerational project for the city’s youth and seniors. The Veterans History Project seemed like a great way to highlight senior veterans and help share their stories, while simultaneously offering new and different programming opportunities for teen participants. The teens responded with excitement, while understanding that this project would require research and dedication in order to be successful.

Getting Started With a group of brave and willing teen interviewers on board, outreach began to search for local veteran participants.

A number of different methods were used — the Pico Rivera Senior Center was an obvious first stop, as it is an active location for local seniors, with more than 200 patrons visiting daily.

From there, department staff reached out to the commanders of each of the four veterans’ posts, as well as the Veterans Council and Ladies Auxiliary presidents. Standard outreach methods were also employed, such as creating fliers for posting at all city buildings and community centers.

The city newsletter and quarterly recreation programming guides also featured articles or requests for veteran volunteers. Finally, all parks and recreation personnel and other city staff members were asked if they or other members of their families had served.

In the end, a total of six veterans volunteered for the project, representing service from WWII, as well as the Korea and Vietnam wars.

When staff members first contacted the senior center to ask resident veterans if they would be interested in sharing their stories — not only with the young volunteers but also for documentation in the Library of Congress — most were very happy and eager to tell their stories. Still, some veterans did not want to relive that time of their lives. That was when staff fully realized that some of these stories may be extremely sensitive to the veterans, and the teens would need to be well prepared.

It should be noted that the Veterans History Project is not solely an intergenerational undertaking. In fact, most submissions will not be. But, participation of students and youth is encouraged, and it has been utilized across the country as an acceptable Eagle Scout project. That said, youth interviews require significantly more guidance and supervision. When engaging students for this project, it is required that only those in 10th grade or higher be involved, because of the possibly serious nature of veterans’ accounts and stories. Parks and recreation staff found this to be an appropriate stipulation in the actual interviews, as some descriptions of combat did contain graphic detail.

To prepare the interviewers, teen leaders spent several weeks discussing the various wars, history and experiences in war that the veterans may have encountered. Each teen was paired with a veteran and required to research that veteran’s particular war. Staff members sat down with each teen and conducted mock interviews to help them understand the process and assist them in communicating effectively

and efficiently. Staff provided plenty of guidance throughout the process to ensure it would be an educational experience. In all, the teen training took eight weeks of preparation.

Collecting Stories Each participating veteran was required to fill out a biographical data form, which is part of the submission package for the Library of Congress.

This gave information about the veteran, including branch of service, dates of service, rank, duties and assignments, and wartime activity.

In addition, a list of 15-20 questions was filled out by each veteran regarding their time spent in the military.

Reviewing this form along with the veterans’ questionnaires in advance of the actual interviews helped the teens gain a better understanding of what they needed to research, as well as what to expect from their veteran.

The written and oral interviews by the teens were conducted according to protocols provided by the Veteran’s History Project. After the interviews were completed and paperwork filled out and reviewed, the collection was sent to the Library of Congress to be added to its permanent collection in Washington D.C. Through their participation in this project, Pico Rivera teens had an opportunity to leave their own legacy, gain knowledge and education about history and wartime, and develop a deeper relationship with their senior neighbors. And the true local heroes — the veterans of Pico Rivera — are now also part of that legacy.

Sandra Gonzalez, FASLA, CPRP, is the Director of the Pico Rivera Department of Parks and Recreation (sgonzalez@pico-rivera. org). Eyvette Ruiz is the Recreation Coordinator at the Pico Rivera Department of Parks and Recreation (eruiz@pico-rivera.org).

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avy Morale, Welfare and Recreation, or MWR, is a crucial element in the development and maintenance of “Total Force Readiness” for the military community. Navy MWR provides a variety of quality-of-life programs and services in the areas of fitness and sports, deployed support, movie theaters, libraries, golf, bowling, marinas, enlisted Sailor or Liberty Program, youth and family recreation, entertainment and hospitality. Now providing even broader opportunities, the new “Navy Community Recreation” program further engages its customers in the areas of outdoor recreation, community events, discount attraction tickets, vacation bookings, leisure skills development, recreation equipment rentals, parks and picnic areas, and information and referrals to a variety of recreational offerings in the local area. Although providing these recreational options for years, this new initiative is a better way for Navy MWR to communicate what it does and create efficiencies — and ultimately better offerings — to the active duty, family members and other eligible patrons at 75 Navy installations around the world.

eation

Ready on Arrival The Navy’s innovative Community Recreation program provides top-notch MWR offerings for troops and their families

By Elisabeth Weaver

Streamlined Service Navy Community Recreation is Navy MWR’s consolidation of community-focused recreational programs and services.

It contributes directly to the MWR mission and positively affects quality of life for the entire installation community.

Through streamlined programs and services that are both facilitated and self-directed, Navy Community Recreation engages customers by providing information, services, equipment and facilities to meet their leisure interests.

The concept of the Navy’s Community Recreation Program was born several years ago, but only recently came to fruition. The idea is to offer quality programming for each Navy community by sharing existing resources, storefronts

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and personnel. While the concept of recreational programming isn’t a new idea, being able to bundle resources to offer improved programming is. Part of the success and appeal of the Navy Community Recreation program is that it bundles resources and offers the right amount of standardization and flexibility to truly fit the needs of each and every MWR program around the Navy, regardless of geographical location, mission or size of the population stationed at a particular base. Through the efforts of Commander, Naval Installation Command (CNIC), and a designated Community Recreation Advisory Board, program standards, position descriptions for all levels of employees, desk guides with standard operating procedures and other processes have been created and implemented around the Navy. Plus, specific marketing initiatives, including a new logo and brand promise, were implemented. In addition, training workshops have been held in all 11 Navy regions to help educate and en-

gage current MWR employees who will be participating in the new Community Recreation approach. These standardized processes have allowed a streamlined, global roll-out of the new Community Recreation program.

Getting to Know Naval Station Great Lakes Naval Station Great Lakes is the home of the United States Navy’s only boot camp, located near North Chicago in Lake County, Illinois. The base has been transforming civilians into sailors for more than 100 years. From its founding in 1911, it has maintained its position as the Navy’s largest training facility with more than 25,000 military and civilian personnel working, training and living there. The mission at Great Lakes is to deliver highly skilled, technically proficient, disciplined and motivated sailors to the fleet. Naval Station Great Lakes is a dynamic environment where training occurs 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It continues to be a preferred

The Navy’s Community Recreation program expands recreational offerings to fit the needs of any MWR community regardless of mission, geographical location or population size.

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duty station, which attracts some of the finest sailors in the Navy.

From Community Recreation’s inception, the MWR Department at Great Lakes has been at the forefront of the initiative, with members participating on the original Internal Process Team. This team brought together senior leaders from various headquarters and installations to develop the baseline of the new program. MWR Great Lakes also played a role by forming a secondary group, which developed the actual details and basis for the program standards that were recently rolled out in 2015.

As an advocate for NRPA and the first-ever winner of the Armed Forces Gold Medal Award in 2012, the Community Recreation initiative was ultimately an extension of efforts that were already underway at Great Lakes. John Prue, MWR Installation program director says, “This new initiative was a great way for us to not only expand our services to our military community, but also provide an opportunity to better package and communicate what services we offer to a very transient population.”

With almost 950,000 square feet of facilities and 150 acres of recreational green space, the MWR Department at Naval Station Great Lakes is a vibrant program with a combined operating budget of $18 million and a recorded 1.6 million customer visits this past year. Through the advent of the new Navy Community Recreation program, MWR Great Lakes has increased recreational offerings for the military community with base-wide special events such as the Lake Michigan Polar Bear Plunge, a murder mystery dinner theater, the annual Cardboard Boat Regatta, Breakfast with the Bunny, Customer Appreciation Week, a character dinner and dance, live music concerts, life-sized holiday card challenge,

More than 150 people braved frigid temperatures to participate in the annual Lake Michigan Polar Bear Plunge, a time-honored tradition at Naval Station Great Lakes.

“Smoke on the Water” barbecue cooking competition, “Fish Fest” and more. MWR’s signature special event is its Fourth of July Celebration, which is a tremendous example of community recreation through a public celebration.

Building Community Recreation through Celebration Naval Station Great Lakes has celebrated the nation’s birthday since opening its gates 104 years ago. For decades, though, the celebration was internal and took the shape of a family picnic or barbecue, and in most years some form of fireworks display was a part of the annual festivities.

However in 1993, MWR leadership had a vision to turn the internal holiday celebration into a major opento-the-public community festival, which would allow local residents a chance to see the base and celebrate with Navy families. From that point forward, Naval Station Great Lakes hosted a true open-to-thepublic Fourth of July Celebration.

The event grew so big that in 2001, well over 50,000 people were entertained during three days of festivities.

During that time, the event hosted headline acts like REO Speedwagon, The Doobie Brothers, Charlie Daniels, Eddie Money, Joan Jett and Cheap Trick. The event also hosted the official “Taste of Lake County,” featuring many area food vendors, and became known for its amazing fireworks and laser light shows that are choreographed to music. Both in 2000 and 2001, the Fourth of July Celebration received international recognition through the International Festival and Events Association

From Community Recreation’s inception, the MWR Department at Great Lakes has been at the forefront of the initiative.

(IFEA) with numerous Pinnacle Awards for various categories.

In 2011, the event expanded for the base’s Centennial Celebration. This time, it was recognized with a third place “Grand Pinnacle” award from the IFEA, categorizing it one the three best festivals in the world for budgets less than $250,000. Today, the tradition continues with an annual two-day Fourth of July Celebration, bringing together families, the general public and military personnel from all over the region to enjoy the nation’s birthday at the “Quarterdeck of the Navy.” Surveys indicate that the festival is still noted for great fireworks shows with 40,000 people regularly in attendance. Most recent-

ly, the festival was recognized again at the IFEA’s annual conference in Tucson, Arizona, with four additional Pinnacle awards. The Great Lakes MWR team utilized this long-standing community outreach celebration to create its own internal community recreation program for all ages and abilities throughout the year.

Making Wider Connections Building on the success of its Fourth of July Celebration, MWR Great Lakes continued to expand Community Recreation through interdepartmental collaboration. In the fall of 2014, MWR was able to align its existing tickets and leisure travel office, special events, green spaces, outdoor recreation and gear rental program with the new CNIC Program Standards.

First, staff focused on the services and programs they were able to offer with the talent and qualifications of employees already in place. With limited programming staff, the determination was made that in order to enhance programming, additional outside expertise would be needed. Organizers then began the process of networking and building relationships with agen-

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cies in the local community that could offer valuable services and recreational programming to the military community stationed at Great Lakes. As a result, they formed partnerships with several off-base attractions and organizations in order to broaden services and offerings. Great Lakes Community Recreation worked hand-in-hand with a local community college to offer enrichment courses, including cartooning, drawing and painting classes, and pet wellness clinics, right on the base. They also worked with a nearby botanical garden to register base families for weekend leisure skill and educational programs like making homemade ice cream, gumballs and super balls. Recently, Great Lakes Community Recreation also partnered with a popular sports and entertainment center, indoor water park and the county forest preserve for additional classes and special military nights for families. The Navy Community Recreation initiative allowed Great Lakes to leverage these partnerships, which

facilitated greater quantity and variety of programs and services offered to program participants.

Throughout the year, Great Lakes Community Recreation partnered with other off-base support services to offer themed programming that in-

Navy Community Recreation keeps a pulse on the community’s interests and needs, as well as current recreational trends... cluded Month of the Military Child in April and November’s Military Family Appreciation Month. The Great Lakes Community Recreation department coordinated the programs and presented a consolidated month of activities, events and outings

Runners participate in one of several races that take place throughout the year at Naval Station Great Lakes.

geared toward families. A sampling of the wide variety of programming and leisure-skill classes hosted by Community Recreation this past year includes overnight camping trips, cinema café, basic bike maintenance clinics, beginning archery classes, DIY holiday wreath class, paint nights, family sledding meet-ups, an ice fishing trip, recreation and leisure travel expo, DIY hand-knit scarf instruction, fly-tying class, kite-making class, self-defense for women classes, themed 1980s karaoke nights, Cinco de Mayo and Mardi Gras parties, pumpkin painting, family-fun nights at the bowling center, DIY kid’s moss terrarium making, free fishing days, how to make bonfire treats, camping gear orientation, beach day, kayaking class, story-writing contest, sensory-friendly movies, parent and child photo booth, and outings to local zoos, concerts, amusement parks and theatrical productions. As a result of the re-alignment under Community Recreation and the partnerships with local organizations this past year, Great Lakes was able to offer approximately 48 trips and outings, about 50 new programs, 38 new classes/ clinics, and 14 major special events to the base community, which was an increase of 120 programs from the previous year.

Growing Happy, Healthy Communities Survey data gathered from program participants during the past year has allowed staff members to evaluate and adjust programs to better fit the needs of the base community.

This feedback was collected, analyzed and implemented to truly enhance the Great Lakes Community Recreation program. Overall, the customer feedback has been positive. Debra Pruitt, MWR customer and military spouse, wrote, “MWR

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Some 40,000 people regularly attend the annual, two-day Fourth of July Celebration, which Naval Station Great Lakes has hosted since opening its gates 104 years ago. Since 1993, this event has been open to the public.

staff is WONDERFUL — they are always willing to go above and beyond to make any event unforgettable. I am impressed by their ability to really take into consideration the needs and wants of the local [military] community.”

According to CNIC program standards, Navy Community Recreation focuses on the community as a whole, as well as unique demographic markets, including but not limited to single service members, families, retirees, couples without children, single parents, etc. Navy Community Recreation keeps a pulse on the community’s interests and needs, as well as current recreational trends, and provides programming for niche demographics as warranted. Navy Community Recreation staff has the knowledge to refer customers outside the base when necessary and encourages engagement with the civic community. With this in mind, park and recreation organizations located near Navy installations can reach out to the Community Recreation department to discuss ways that they may be able to partner.

When asked what makes military communities similar to any other city or town, Leslie Gould, the Community Recreation program manager for CNIC says, “Military communities share similar wants and desires for expanded recreation opportunities just like any other city or town. Our military community wants improved green-space offerings such as trails and parks, creative programs that provide fun such as special events and command parties, and recreational opportunities that get them out and about. They want to build relationships with others who have like-minded recreational pursuits.

Our military communities are striving to create memories, increase socialization and improve well-being through the recreational opportunities that are available to them both inside and outside the fence lines.”

Overall, Navy Community Recreation is program-centric and offers a variety of different facilitated and self-directed recreational opportunities that guide participants through leisure experiences in the form of events, activities, trips and outings.

By combining departmental resources, Navy Community Recreation provides services that equip participants with the ability to pursue a variety of recreational endeavors.

“Navy Community Recreation strives to bring ‘More Ways to Recreate’ to our patron base,” Gould says. “We are focused on building a strong relationship with communities surrounding our installations in order to expand program offerings.

Bundling allows for ease of access for our customers and innovative programs, which is our number-one priority. Our Navy community, with the help of our MWR recreators, can access information, resources, fleet support and so much more from a well-educated and crosstrained staff. In addition, our recreation staff members are learning all aspects of recreation and are able to use that knowledge for advancement and expanded programming options for the fleet.”

Elisabeth Weaver is the Recreation Director, MWR, at Naval Station Great Lakes (elisabeth. weaver@navy.mil).

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Vietnam Veterans Memorial State Park

The

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We Do Daniel L. Dustin, Ph.D.

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n a hillside overlooking Angel Fire, New Mexico, is a small white chapel, erected in 1968 by Dr. Victor Westphall to commemorate the life of his son, David, who was killed in Vietnam. I discovered the chapel, January 17, 1993, while driving along a mountainous road between Taos and Cimarron. Freshly fallen snow blanketed the landscape, and there was a hush in the air that invited contemplation. I had the chapel to myself as it was Super Bowl Sunday and most of the country was otherwise occupied.

As I was about to leave the chapel, I noticed across the back wall a row of photographs honoring soldiers killed and missing in action. On this particular day, the list included the names of men from Missouri, and my heart skipped a beat when I realized that one of the names belonged to someone I had known. For 25 years, I had lived my life oblivious to the fact that he lost his soon after I left basic training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, in the summer of 1968. In that instant, I understood that we never accomplish anything in life by ourselves. We are standing — all

of us — on the shoulders of countless unnamed others who have given of and sacrificed themselves so the rest of us might remain free to build a more civilized and enduring society.

That moment also reminded me of the importance of the work we do in parks and recreation and in whose honor we are obliged to do it. Three interlocking themes came to mind — our attitude toward our work, the impact of our work, and the meaning of our work — and the following stories are illustrative of these themes.

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Kenny Karst Photography

Jeff Warner Photography

WORK WE DO

Eric Blehm

Our Attitude Toward Our Work There’s an old parable about three stonecutters who each were asked the same question: “What are you doing?”

The first stonecutter replied, “I’m cutting stone.” The second answered, “I am a stonecutter and I am cutting stones to earn money to support my family.”

The third replied, “I am a stonecutter and I am building a cathedral!”

Whether we are groundskeepers in Florida, playground supervisors in California, recreation programmers in Texas, or Morale, Welfare, and Recreation specialists overseas, what really matters is the attitude we bring to our work. How do we approach the work we do? Is it a job, a career, or a calling?

It is the attitude we bring that will most influence the impact of the work we do.

The Impact of the Work We Do We cannot predict if and when the little things we do or say will have big impacts later on. But, the science of Chaos Theory teaches us that such impacts will happen. Popularized as “The Butterfly Effect,” Chaos Theory has proven scientifically that little things do matter. But because we cannot predict if and when they will matter, we must proceed largely on faith that an encouraging word here, a small deed there, may have a monumental impact some54 Parks & Recreation

Scott Gediman

where down the road.

Each and every one of us cannot help but make a difference in the course of human events. Whether we serve up for our constituencies what they want or what we think they ought to want, we are each in our own way contributing to the unfolding of the future. Through acts of commission and omission, we are bound to have an impact.

Looking back at my early years as a college professor at San Diego State University, there are two instances that illustrate that little things matter, because they sometimes lead to very big impacts. The first occurred sometime in the late 1970s when a young man and his father from North Hollywood, California, dropped by my office to discuss the young man’s future. His siblings were all intellectually gifted and on their way to becoming doctors, lawyers and accountants, but Scott, unlike his brothers and sisters, was neither an intellectual nor partial to book learning. His father wondered if parks and recreation might be a good college major for him, and, after our brief conversation, I concluded, matter-of-factly, that parks and recreation might be a good fit.

Scott enrolled the following fall and

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took a class or two with me, but I never really gave him another thought.

And, that was that — until three years ago when he contacted me and invited me for a visit to his “office,” Yosemite National Park, where he is the assistant superintendent in charge of preserving and protecting John Muir’s “Range of Light.”

The second instance occurred sometime in the mid-1980s. This time, the student’s name was Eric, and he was a journalism major with a parks and recreation minor. Eric was an outdoor enthusiast and a good student, but his mother had passed away recently, and, as he was about to graduate, he was in a funk. I suggested that as a graduation present to himself, he hike the John Muir Trail as doing so might be good for what ailed him.

Again, that was that — until 2005 when I received an email from Eric telling me he had written a book in which he acknowledged the role I had played in his life. The book, The Last Season, was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in nonfiction, and Eric was selected as Barnes and Noble’s “Discovery Author of the Year.”

The Last Season, it turns out, is about the disappearance of a backcountry wilderness ranger in Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Park, a story Eric stumbled upon while hiking the John Muir Trail. Eric has since written two more New York Times nonfiction best-sellers about the war in Afghanistan, The Only Thing Worth Dying For and Fearless, and his last book, Legend, about a Medal of Honor winner’s gallantry during the Vietnam War, was recently released.

My off-the-cuff comments to Scott and Eric changed the course of their lives. At the time, neither I nor they knew my comments would have an impact, but they did. How do I know? Because, more than 20 years later, Scott and Eric each told me so.

Vietnam Veterans Memorial State Park

In Whose Honor Do We Do Our Work?

Since my epiphany at the Angel Fire Vietnam Memorial in the winter of 1993, I have tried to live my life in conscious appreciation of the sacrifices made by others so we may enjoy the freedom to build a better world. But, I have also come to understand that freedom brings with it an obligation to live our lives in a way that honors those who have given up theirs for us as well.

Every day, we must respect the power we have to make a difference, apply that power with the dignity it deserves, and proceed with the understanding

that every little thing we do or say is replete with rippling effects that reverberate far and wide. In all likelihood, we will never know how much of a difference we are making in this world, but rest assured we are making a difference. That fact of life, and faith in ourselves, should be enough to sustain us through good times and bad. To that end, I wish you the very best of success in all the ‘little things’ you do to build a happier, healthier, and more civilized United States of America.

Daniel L. Dustin, Ph.D., is a Professor in the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism at the University of Utah (daniel.dustin@ health.utah.edu).

Vietnam Veterans Memorial State Park

The Meaning of the Work We Do Truly understanding that we are impactful human beings should lift our spirits and energize our attitude toward our life’s work. But, it might also feel a bit unnerving because being impactful brings with it both responsibility and accountability for our actions. So, “What is the meaning of the work we do in parks and recreation?” The 12 soldiers from Missouri and countless others have died for our freedom — a way of life that champions each individual’s opportunity to make the most of his or her God-given talents. Enlivening this freedom, this way of life, is what the field of parks and recreation is ultimately about.

When people are free to choose what they want to do for the pure joy of doing it, they turn to us. We help them unleash their creative energy. Recognizing and respecting the park and recreation profession’s centrality in bringing this fundamental democratic value to life, we, too, are challenged to demonstrate excellence in every aspect of the work we do, however exalted or humble.

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NRPA Update Making the Case: Parks and Health

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ithin our field, it’s common knowledge that access to parks, recreational opportunities and open space is beneficial for our health, both physical and mental. As park and recreation professionals, we get it. But, do our elected leaders? Do the people who wield control over our funding truly understand how well-established is the link between parks and healthy habits?

In February, NRPA, Active Living Research and a host of park and recreation leaders convened a workshop to attempt to answer that very question.

We wanted to know what research already existed that could help demonstrate the health benefits of parks, where any research gaps might exist and how we could best communicate this information to decision makers.

We discovered that a robust body of research is already available to help us make our case — the challenge lies in how to disseminate that information.

Communications Kit To help you better communicate the benefits of parks to the overall health

of your communities, we’ve developed a comprehensive communications kit replete with substantive data you can begin using immediately. It includes: Parks and Health Fact Sheets These easy-to-use HTML-formatted sheets are broken down into different issue areas with citations, so it’s easy to cut and paste from our website to your documents. Formatted PDFs you can print and distribute are also included — go to www.nrpa.org/ ParksandHealth/Fact-Sheets to examine the materials.

Infographics Library This page contains links to publicly available infographics that help tell the story of the positive impact of parks on community health and well-being in easy-to-scan visual content. Downloadable infographics are available at www. nrpa.org/ParksandHealth/Infographics-Library.

Parks and Health PowerPoint Slides These slides con-

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dense the information from the fact sheets. For each fact sheet topic, there is one master slide with several data points, followed by four to six slides with one fact and one image apiece.

The slides are designed to supplement your presentation, as the content, layout and design can be modified based on your needs. Download the slides from www.nrpa.org/ParksandHealth/Presentations.

Success Stories Several examples drawn from NRPA’s online database highlight park and recreation agencies from around the country that are serving as public health leaders in their communities.

Read more at www.nrpa.org/ParksandHealth/Success-Stories.

Social Media Calendar We’ve included ready-to-use social media posts to coincide with optimal times of the year to start conversations with your community about how they use parks to get and stay healthy. Explore this resource at www.nrpa.org/ParksandHealth/Social-Media-Calendar.

Testimonials Researchers and elected officials discuss the health benefits of parks and how those benefits translate into tangible, positive impacts within our communities. Read more at www.nrpa. org/ParksandHealth/Testimonials.

A comprehensive overview of all the Making the Case documents and links to all the above-mentioned materials is available at www.nrpa. org/ParksandHealth. For more information about these resources, contact NRPA Director of Strategic Health Initiatives Zarnaaz Bashir, at zbashir@nrpa.org.

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Using Art to Define Our Parks

Meet Parks & Recreation’s Newest Advisory Board Members

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How creative art installations can be used to add character to parks and create connections with the wider community Page 58

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2015 NRPA ANNUAL CONFERENCE ISSUE

arks & Recreation magazine’s roster of high-level industry professionals contributing to our content, design and direction continues to grow. Adding to the members who signed on our Advisory Board this spring (www. parksandrecreation.org/2015/August/Meet-Parks-and-Recreation-sAdvisory-Board) are the three motivated and inspired individuals profiled below.

Keith Anderson Director, Washington D.C. Department of Parks and Recreation In January 2015, Anderson was appointed interim, and then acting director, by Mayor Muriel Bowser. Anderson was confirmed by the D.C. City Council in July 2015. Prior to serving at DPR, Anderson held the title of director at the District’s Department of the Environment (DDOE). In that role, Anderson established the world’s first stormwater retention credit trading program and led the effort to make D.C. the third most sustainable city in the United States.

With more than 12 years of public service experience in Washington D.C., and in addition to his service as DDOE’s director and interim Director, Anderson also served as DDOE deputy director and chief of staff.

Mariela Fernandez, Ph.D. Assistant Professor in the Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management Department, Clemson University Fernandez has several years of experience conducting research pertaining to Latino communities. Her master’s thesis focused on the programmatic aspects hindering Latino participation at a public recreation center, and her dissertation focused on how the nonprofit sector can be mobilized to increase access to open green space in an urban Latino community (Little Village) in Chicago. Fernandez’s future research will focus on the growing Latino population in South Carolina with keen interest in this population’s access to open green space and the potential impacts on its health and well-being.

Welcome to Chicagoland The Chicago Park District cultivate a world-class park continues to system in the American Midwest Page 40

THE SOCIAL EQUITY ISSUE

Maria Nardi Chief of Planning and Design Excellence, Miami-Dade Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces Nardi’s work examines the role of parks and public spaces in shaping cities, the emerging evidence-based science of health and the built environment, and the creation of equitable communities through greater access to parks and public spaces. Prior to her work at Miami-Dade County, Nardi was chief of urban design for the City of Miami. Nardi has been recognized for her work, including the International Progressive Architecture Urban Design Award, the University of Miami Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Architecture Profession and the Harvard Honor Award for Excellence in the Study of Landscape Architecture.

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NRPA Update New Water Values Calculator Helps Show Economic Impact

By Daniel Espada

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ark and recreation agencies are facing many challenges in today’s fiscally constrained environment. With limited time and resources available to meet an ever-expanding mandate from their communities, it is critical to have data and documentation to support funding requests.

For park and recreation professionals looking to determine the economic value of their agency’s ecosystems, NRPA is here to help with two calculators inside PRORAGIS. The first is the Park Values Calculator that helps value your park agency’s assets in terms of the benefits associated with air quality, water quality and improved health.

This month, we have added a new Water Values Calculator to PRORAGIS that assigns a monetary value to your agency’s ecosystem services.

NRPA worked closely with Dr. Daniel Ames and his team at the Brigham Young University Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering to develop a simplified process to evaluate ecosystem services.

Why Is NRPA’s Water Values Calculator of Interest to You? Park agencies, in their role of managing and protecting natural resources, must make informed decisions when determining where to invest time and capital. Effectively doing so means comprehensively assessing the value of local parks, a complex undertaking that should not only consider the economic value of the land, but also account for the numerous ecosystem services provided. This is not a trivial exercise, as ecosystem services provide direct and indirect benefits to both the local environment and human well-being. These benefits span 58 Parks & Recreation

from tangible products like fresh water and food to more imperceptible services like climate regulation, pest control and waste management.

The new, easy-to-use interactive calculator developed by BYU and NRPA can help you determine local ecosystem service values of park and recreation assets within your community.

After navigating to an area of your choosing and loading park and water body data with a few simple clicks, the system automatically calculates the acreage and subsequent value of the ecosystem services provided.

What does this value mean? The ecosystem services provided by your wetlands, streams, open water and park acreage are a combination of the direct and indirect affects on our survival and quality of life. Ecosystem services can be broken down into four main types: 1. Provisioning services. This includes products from the ecosystem such as food or water.

2. Regulating services. Water purification, climate regulation and similar actions are included here.

3. Habitat services. This refers to ecosystems that provide habitat for migratory species and maintain the viability of gene pools.

4. Cultural services. These include non-material benefits like spiritual enrichment, intellectual development and recreation.

The values for open water, wetlands,

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streams and park acreage are supplied according to The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) database. You have the option to change the value to fit your local situation; however, we recommend you use the value supplied by TEEB. Economists measure the value of ecosystem services by estimating the amount people are willing to pay to preserve or enhance them. Arbitrarily assigning a monetary value to these services can lead to a harsh critique from economists and policymakers.

One of the unique features of the calculator is the ability to draw new areas directly on the map for planning scenarios. For example, if you zoom to a local park and have been playing with the idea of adding a small pond or wetland, you can draw the feature in your chosen location and the system will calculate the ecosystem service value of the newly added water body.

The NRPA Water Values Calculator is the latest tool in the PRORAGIS suite designed to help your agency in the effective management and planning of resources and facilities.

By streamlining the process of ecosystem service valuation, you now have the ability to provide evidence of the true value of your local parks and water bodies. Visit www.nrpa. org/PRORAGIS to check out the NRPA Water Values Calculator — you can find it under the “calculate” tab within the PRORAGIS tool.

Daniel Espada is NRPA’s Research Analyst (despada@nrpa.org).

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NRPA Update It’s Time to Renew Your Insurance!

N

ovember is here, and that means it’s time to think about renewing your insurance policies before January 1 rolls around.

NRPA-sponsored insurance programs with AON are the onestop shop for park and recreation organizations and individuals in need of insurance. These insurance programs are specifically tailored to fit your needs at competitive prices! Which policies are renewing in the new year?

Read on to find out!

Team Sports Liability and Accident Insurance General Liability and Excess Accident Medical coverage for youth and adult baseball, softball, basketball, hockey, swimming and other team sports.

Blanket Accident Insurance Excess Accident Medical coverage for participants, coaches, trainers and managers who engage in supervised recreation activities sponsored by your organization.

Interns and Instructors Liability Insurance General Liability coverage for instructors and interns while acting within the scope of their duties granted to them by the sponsoring organization.

Make sure you are covered when the new year starts. Interested in learning more or getting coverage?

Visit www.nrpainsurance.com for more information, applications and rates.

Test Your Park and Recreation Knowledge The following question is a sample Certified Park and Recreation Professional (CPRP) examination question.

Which of the following are the two most important outcomes when conducting registration?

A. Accounting of records and ease of enrollment B. Participant satisfaction and accurate receipts C. Accounting accuracy and daily deposits D. Revenue security and staff scheduling Calling all beginning to mid-level professionals! The Certified Park and Recreation Professional (CPRP) is the national standard for all park and recreation professionals who want to be at the forefront of their profession.

For more information on the CPRP certification program, please visit www.nrpa.org/cprp.

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Get Your Community

Walking!

Walking is the best method of overcoming our nation’s physical inactivity epidemic. Park and recreation agencies can play a major role in improving our nation's health by designing safe walkable communities, and promoting programs and policies that support walking.

Parks Promote Walking People living within a

10-minute

walking distance of a park

have higher levels of physical activity and lower rates of obesity.

Group walking in nature can significantly lower depression, stress and enhance mental well-being.

Resources Now Available

to help you create safe routes to parks and walkable communities

Visit www.nrpa.org/Walking-Initiatives to view the infographics and watch the video

NRPA Update Member Spotlight: John Prue

H

e accepted a position as a college intern in 1986 with the Naval Station Great Lakes, and since then, John Prue, installation program director of fleet readiness, has been developing, planning, operating and maintaining Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) facilities and activities for more than 25,000 Navy personnel, their family members, retirees and other eligible patrons in the immediate area. He also plans and organizes community special events, such as an internationally recognized, open-to-the-public Fourth of July Celebration that draws more than 40,000 attendees, and oversees a hotel and lodging program that serves Department of Defense travelers and temporarily assigned military personnel. Prue maintains affiliations with several international associations and serves as the United States Navy Representative to NRPA’s Armed Forces Recreation Network. He received a master’s degree in management from Webster University (1994), a bachelor’s in parks and recreation administration from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse (1986) and has been the recipient of several professional awards. Parks & Recreation recently had the opportunity to learn a bit more about Prue’s work and personal life — below is our conversation.

Parks & Recreation magazine: What five words best describe you?

John Prue: Driven, determined, dedicated, unpredictable and (a little) sarcastic.

P&R: During the course of your career as installation program director, what has been your greatest achievement and how has it shaped you?

Prue: My greatest achievement was actually getting my master’s degree in 1994 from Webster University. I was working full-time and finishing up my thesis and final presentation with a brand new baby at home, who happened to come three weeks early at that! Bottom line: the graduate degree was a powerful learning outcome in my career, and I used that newfound knowledge and experience to immediately make positive impacts to my work with MWR and as a professional in our industry.

P&R: What is most interesting about your work?

Prue: I think the most interesting

62 Parks & Recreation

thing for me working here at Naval Station Great Lakes is the sailors that I meet. We are the Navy’s only “boot camp” and approximately 38,000 recruits each year start their career and train on our base. From the young sailors to our senior enlisted and officers, there is a true dedication to duty and professionalism that you just would not imagine. Meeting these military members (and their dedicated families, as well) makes me proud as an American and also glad that I’m serving them with our MWR programs and services.

P&R: What has been your greatest challenge(s)?

Prue: As much as we try to function like a normal business, the “bureaucracy” can be a challenge at times.

In fact, we are the government (local, state or federal), and there will always be some of that, as a part of the job!

P&R: The MWR Department at Naval Station-Great Lakes was the first military installation to win the cov-

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eted National Gold Medal Award and the Great Lakes MWR team also currently holds the Commander Navy Installations Command (CNIC) 5-Star Accreditation, which exemplify the highest standards of MWR programming. What has been the key to your success?

Prue: [It’s] about teamwork and good people. I have always had a tremendous group of talented staff members who make things happen each and every day. Their focus on the sailors/families drives what they do and with good communication and teamwork, great things can happen to any organization!

P&R: When not on the clock, what’s your favorite way to unwind and why?

Prue: I actually like to get outdoors and play golf but never seem to have the time, so my real answer is cooking!

My son is a senior in college and is on the track and field team, so an occasional 5-hour track meet with my wife, in God knows what kind of weather, is actually enjoyable, after all these years. Finally, I’m a huge Green Bay Packer fan and go to many games!

— Sonia Myrick, Managing Editor of Parks & Recreation magazine

NRPA is dedicated to providing learning opportunities to advance the development of best practices and resources that make parks and recreation indispensable elements of American communities.

Find out more at www.nrpa.org/education.

CHECK THIS OUT

SCHOOLS AND CONFERENCES NRPA Conferences and Schools are forums where the park and recreation community comes together to exchange ideas and information. Register now for these upcoming events. All NRPA Schools are held at Oglebay Resort in Wheeling, West Virginia, unless otherwise indicated.

Missed the 2015 NRPA Annual Conference? No need to worry, we have 11 of the best sessions recorded and ready to view in the online learning center. Watch one or watch them all at www.nrpa.org/elearning.

January 17-22, 2016

January 31- February 5, 2016

March 13-18, 2016

August 28-September 4, 2016

October 5-8, 2016 - St. Louis, Missouri

CPSI PROGRAM

29-Mar-2 15-17 15-17

Phoenix, Arizona Bismarck, North Dakota

5-7 13-15 19-21 20-22

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The Aquatic Facility Operator (AFO) certification is a state-of-the-art certification for pool operators and aquatic facility managers.

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The Certified Playground Safety Inspector (CPSI) certification program provides the most comprehensive training on playground safety standards and the credentials to inspect playgrounds for safety compliance.

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23-24

St. Louis Park, Minnesota Chattanooga, Texas Burlington, North Carolina Lisle, Illinois North Miami, Florida Carmel, Indiana Ellicott City, Maryland

www.nrpa.org/AFO

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63

Operations Park Foundations Can Prove Valuable Partners

By Howard R. Albers

I

n early 2015, the Virginia-based Fairfax County Park Foundation (FCPF) Board of Directors inquired if there were established norms in the park and recreation industry concerning required donations from board members, the funding source of foundation staff and membership programs.

Unfortunately, they found no centralized source of information about park foundations, so answering these questions was more challenging than expected.

Stepping up to fill the informational void, FCPF staff performed an in-depth electronic literature search and conducted telephone interviews with NRPA staff, the executive director of the National Association of Park District Foundations (NAPDF), a fellow of the American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration (AAPRA) and nu-

64 Parks & Recreation

merous park foundation executive directors. Following is an overview of the results of that work.

Preliminary Findings Research found no industry-wide best practices, benchmarks, mission statements or fundraising activities for park foundations. None of the contacts even had a consolidated list

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of park foundations, nor did they have suggestions for developing a comprehensive list. Comments were offered such as: “If you find any, I would be surprised” and “I’d be interested in your research results.”

Because of the significant absence of information about park foundations, additional research was needed. To ensure that the research would not be solely based on staff opinions and comments of national award winners, efforts were made to identify additional park foundations.

Methodology The researcher developed a list of park foundations using the Internal Revenue Service list of exempt organizations, Guidestar USA Inc. and NAPDF’s 390 Facebook friends. The universe was modified by eliminating international park foundations; national, state or special-interest park foundations; and entities that were considered too small (less than $800,000 annual contributions and grants) or, on the surface, did not appear to be comparable to FCPF. Seventy-one park foundations were reviewed.

Using GuideStar, income tax returns were obtained for each park foundation in the sample. The park foundation’s year of formation; website information; number of directors, staff and volunteers; annual revenue; staff salaries; total fundraising expenses; and fund balances were gathered and analyzed.

Attempts were made to contact park foundations by telephone or email so that detailed information could be gathered. The park foundation websites or Facebook pages were scanned for noteworthy information to answer the questions posed by FCPF’s board.

Park foundation representatives were cooperative, but frequently did not have answers to some of the specific questions being asked. Follow-up contacts were made but not all park foundations responded to all of the questions. While the results are not statistically valid, they provided sufficient information to respond to the initial questions that prompted this research.

Research Results Eight of 19 park foundations (42 percent) responded that they require a minimum donation from their directors. The required level of annual donations ranged from $500 to $25,000.

Several responders commented, however, that serving as a director involves other resources than making a monetary contribution. Directors have a wide variety of valuable experiences and abilities to offer the park foundation board.

Thirteen of 18 park foundations (72 percent) responded that foundation staff salaries were paid using some or all of foundation donations.

The park foundation staff ranged from 0 to 508 employees.

Fourteen of 22 park foundations (63 percent) had membership programs.

One foundation representative commented that memberships are a good way to show community support and are helpful in responding to grant and sponsorship applications. Memberships also allow for measuring growth and may encourage some donors to give additional funds to move to the next level of membership.

Research disclosed that in 1894, three decades before the Madison, Wisconsin, municipal parks department was created, private citizen members of the Madison Park and Pleasure Drive Association purchased, developed and maintained public lands for all to enjoy. Today, many park and recreation departments receive benefits from relationships with friends groups and park foundations.

• Monitor park planning and operations for economy, efficiency and equitable treatment; and • Restore public space, maintain public trees and beautify schools and open space.

Conclusions Park foundations provide different types of services in support of their park districts. The research found

Today, many park and recreation departments receive benefits from relationships with friends groups and park foundations.

In addition to the traditional fundraising role for their park and recreation districts, productive park foundations also conducted some of the following activities: • Provide financial assistance to people in need so they can benefit from park and recreation programs; • Promote the social, educational, environmental and cultural life of communities; • Promote park programs and facilities; • Use the experience and facilities of community foundations where appropriate; • Encourage community involvement and volunteer activities; • Own, maintain, manage and operate facilities and programs on public spaces; • Coordinate and leverage the efforts of friends groups volunteers; • Serve as a fiscal agent for groups working to improve parks; • Conduct organized opinion campaigns advocating for additional park financing from annual local taxes and park maintenance and development bond funds;

that the level of contributions and grants were larger when park foundations provide fiduciary services for support and friends groups, mobilize volunteers, offer grants, promote or operate events, publish a list of needs, or provide advocacy and coalition services. The expanded roles create synergy resulting in improved park maintenance, greater taxpayer support per resident and an enhanced national reputation regarding the quality of community parks.

In order to have forward momentum, park foundation leaders need to periodically review their organizational structure, mission and use of resources. With a good measure of creativity and a committed board of directors and staff, park foundations have unlimited opportunities to help improve and support the activities of nearby park agencies and cultivate greater recreational opportunities for the communities they serve.

Howard R. Albers is a Research and Communications Volunteer with the Fairfax County Park Foundation (howard.albers@ fairfaxcounty.gov).

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65

Products Waste Station G-woc’s one-of-a kind community enrichment station makes recycling affordable.

Built from structural steel, it contains recycling and waste containers, solar-powered LED lights, two community banners for sponsorship opportunities and many optional technology features. Five models were designed with the assistance of a CPRP/NRPA Academy member. Each G-woc is fully customizable and can be built to accommodate your park’s unique specifications. G-WOC, 423.598.0380, WWW.G-WOC.COM

Slideboarding WhiteWater West’s Slideboarding is a waterslide that integrates gaming, skill and competitive sports into an experience that will define waterparks of the future. It uses a smart gaming system that knows who you are, tracks your progress and scores your run down the waterslide! It also uses a state-of-the-art ride vehicle with an embedded game controller.

Slideboarding appeals to a wide variety of guests by offering excitement without being risky or feeling physically challenging. WhiteWater West’s Slideboarding transforms a classic waterpark experience into an innovative, video-game-integrated waterslide. WHITEWATER WEST, 604.273.1068, WWW. WHITEWATERWEST.COM

Carbon Fiber Material

HVAC EC Motors FridgeWize’s new high-efficiency HVAC EC motors target larger applications — like rec centers, concession outposts and office buildings — to significantly maximize energy and dollar savings for even more enterprise clients. The new high-efficiency motors include fan coil motors, air handler motors, rooftop packages and pool motors. With so many day-to-day operations dependent on reliable motors, implementing energy-efficient equipment like FridgeWize’s HVAC EC motors will make a greater impact. FRIDGEWIZE, 970.987.5388, WWW.FRIDGEWIZE.COM

66 Parks & Recreation

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Sweden-based TeXtreme offers the next generation of carbon fiber material in the sporting goods industry. The cutting-edge technology uses Spread Tows instead of yarns to achieve materials that produce ultra-lightweight and high-performance products. Utilization of TeXtreme Spread Tow carbon fabrics and carbon UD tapes confirms that 20-30 percent lighter composite parts can be produced with improved mechanical properties and superior surface smoothness. Many sports, including ice hockey, cycling, tennis, surfing and kayaking, have seen an immediate impact on performance when using TeXtreme. Agencies that add products with TeXtreme Technology achieve better outcomes on weight, stiffness, strength, etc. compared to those using other conventional carbon fiber materials. TEXTREME, +46.33.340.18.00, WWW.TEXTREME.COM

HELPING AGENCIES GROW MARCH 13-18, 2016 WWW.NRPA.ORG/REVENUE-SCHOOL oglebay resort and conference center wheeling, west virginia

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With this innovative approach to edging, using your Gator as the power source. This attachment is capable of doing large area edging on concrete. All that is required is a Gator, one operator, and our edger. The easy-on/easyoff design of the attachment allows you to use the edger without dedicating a Gator.

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sidewalks, cart paths, street medians, and walking trails, this could become one of the most useful tools that you employ. No whirling blades, no thrown objects that could injure the operator or bystander, makes this tool a safe alternative. Clean up is easy with a rear mounted blower as you go.

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United States Postal Service Statement of Ownership, Management, and Circulation 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

Publication Title: Parks & Recreation Publication Number: 312215 Filing Date: October 2015 Issue Frequency: Monthly Number of Issues Published Annually: 12 Annual Subscription Price: $30.00 for members; $36.00 for nonmembers Complete Mailing Address of Known Office of Publication (not printer): National

Recreation and Park Association, 22377 Belmont Ridge Road, Ashburn, VA 20148-4501

Complete Mailing Address of Headquarters or General Business Offices for Publisher (not printer): National Recreation and Park Association, 22377 Belmont Ridge Road,

Ashburn, VA 20148-4501

Full Name and Complete Mailing Address of Publisher, Editor, and Managing Editor: > PUBLISHER—Gina Cohen, National Recreation and Park Association,

22377 Belmont Ridge Road, Ashburn, VA 20148-4501 > EDITOR—Samantha Bartram, National Recreation and Park Association, 22377 Belmont Ridge Road, Ashburn, VA 20148-4501 > MANAGING EDITOR—Sonia Myrick, National Recreation and Park Association, 22377 Belmont Ridge Road, Ashburn, VA 20148-4501 Owner: National Recreation and Park Association 22377 Belmont Ridge Road, Ashburn, VA 20148-4501 Known Bondholders, Mortgagees, and Other Security Holders: None Tax Status: The purpose, function, and nonprofi t status of this organization and the exempt status for federal income tax purposes has not changed during the preceding 12 months.

Publication Title: Parks and Recreation Issue Date of Circulation Data Below: September 2015

15. Extent and Nature of Circulation

a. Total Number of Copies (Net press run) (1) Mailed Outside-County Paid Subscriptions Stated on PS Form 3541 (include paid distribution above nominal rate, advertiser’s proof copies, and exchange copies) b. Paid Circula- (2) Mail In-County Paid Subscriptions Stated on PS Form 3541 (include paid distribution above nominal tion (By Mail rate, advertiser’s proof copies, and exchange copies) and (3) Paid Distribution Outside the Mail Including Sales outside Through Dealers and Carriers, Street Vendors, Countthe Mail) er Sales, and Other Paid Distribution outside USPS® (4) Paid Distribution by Other Classes of Mail Through the USPS (e.g. First-ClassMail®)

70 Parks & Recreation

Average No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months

No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing Date

14,575 13,606

15,511 13,518

0

0

0

0

412

673

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c. Total Paid Distribution (Sum of 15b (1), (2), (3), and (4)) d. Free or (1) Free or Nominal Rate Outside-County Copies Nominal included on PS Form 3541 Rate (2) Free or Nominal Rate In-County Copies Distribu- Included on PS Form 3541 tion (By Mail (3) Free or Nominal Rate In-County Copies mailed at other classes through the USPS Leg. and Outside First-Class Mail Included on PS Form 3541 the (4) Free or Nominal Rate Distribution Outside Mail) the Mail (Carriers or other means) e. Total Free or Nominal Rate Distribution (Sum of 15d (1), (2), (3), and (4)) f. Total Distribution (Sum of 15c and 15e) g. Copies not Distributed (See instructions to Publishers #4 (page #3)) h. Total (Sum of 15f and 15g) i. Percent Paid (15c divided by 15f times 100) 16. Electronic Copy Circulation a. Paid Electronic Copies b. Total Paid Print Copies (Line 15c) + Paid Electronic Copies (Line 16a) c. Total Print Distribution (Line 15f) + Paid Electronic Copies (Lines 16a) d. Percent Paid (Both Print & Electronic Copies) (16b divided by 16c x100)

14,018 0

14,191 0

0

0

0

0

34

0

34

0

14,052 100

14,191 100

14,152 99%

14,291 99%

0 14,018

0 14,191

14,052

14,191

99%

100%

I certify that 50% of all my distributed copies (electronic and print) are paid above nominal price.

14. Issue Date of Circulation Data Below: September 2015 17. Publication of Statement Ownership. If the publication is a general publication,

publication of this statement is required. Will be printed in the November 2015 issue of this publication.

18. Signature and Title of Editor, Publisher, Business Manager, or Owner: Gina Cohen, Publisher, October 12, 2015 I certify that all information furnished on this form is true and complete. I understand that anyone who furnishes false or misleading information on this form or who omits material or information requested on the form may be subject to criminal sanctions (including fi nes and imprisonment) and/or civil sanctions (including civil penalties).

Request free information from the manufacturers of the products found in this issue.

I prefer to receive the information via

Mail

Phone

Email______________________________________________

Name________________________________________________________________ Phone__________________________ Address______________________________________________________________________________________________ City_________________________________________________State________________ZIP_________________________ Does your agency partner with nearby military installations to offer expanded programs or resources? If so, how?

reader service

YES! I would like free product information!

____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Please email your answers to dstorm@nrpa.org.

Check the product(s)/company(ies) that you would like information from: AQUATICS

Aquatic Recreation Company....... 18 877.632.0503 www.arc4waterplay.com Pentair Commercial....................... 21 800.931.7133 www.pentaircommercial.com Vortex............................................. 15 877.586.7839 www.vortex-intl.com Water Odyssey............................... 35 512.392.1155 www.waterodyssey.com ATHLETIC/EXERCISE EQUIPMENT Go Ape............................................ 69 415.553.0769 www.goape.com Greenfields Outdoor Fitness............3 888.315.9037 www.greenfieldsfitness.com Jr. NBA............................................. 19 www.jr.nba.com Soccer 5 USA................................... C2 305.393.5230 www.soccer5usa.com BUILDINGS/TENTS/SHELTERS Easi-Set Buildings.......................... 68 866.252.8210 www.easisetbuildings.com Shade Systems Inc............................1 800.609.6066 www.shadesystemsinc.com/sails GROUNDS MAINTENANCE Bishop Enterprises Inc................... 68 615.233.5173 www.turf-aire.com

Bobcat............................................. 17 877.745.7813 www.bobcat.com/anyjob6 Club Car.......................................... 11 800.258.2227 www.clubcardealer.com/carryallpromotions Superthrive.................................... 18 800.441.8482 www.superthrive.com ICE RINKS Nice Rink......................................... 39 888.642.3746 www.nicerink.com LIGHTING Musco Lighting®................................9 800.825.6030 www.musco.com MAINTENANCE PRODUCTS/SERVICES Tree Stabilizer................................ 70 800.691.1148 www.treestabilizer.com PARK PRODUCTS/SERVICES Dogipot........................................... 31 800.364.7681 www.dogipot.com Livin The Dog Life™........................ 69 800.931.1562 www.livinthedoglife.com Lockers.com................................... 25 800.562.5377 www.lockers.com Most Dependable Fountains............5 800.552.6331 www.mostdependable.com Pilot Rock........................................ 33 800.762.5002 www.pilotrock.com

Polly Products................................ 69 877.609.2243 www.pollyproducts.com Stageline Mobile Staging.............. 10 800.267.8243 www.stageline.com Victor Stanley....................................7 800.368.2573 www.victorstanley.com Willoughby..................................... 10 800.428.4065 www.willoughby-ind.com PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT Cemrock.......................................... 29 520.571.1999 www.cemrock.com Cre8play.......................................... 23 612.670.8195 www.cre8play.com Landscape Structures®............ C3, 69 888.438.6574 www.playlsi.com Playcore.......................................... C4 877.762.7563 www.playcore.com Themed Concepts.......................... 25 855.724.3270 www.play4change.org SIGNS/SCOREBOARDS Berntsen ......................................... 68 877.686.8565 www.berntsen.com Scoremaster................................... 70 888.726.7627 www.scoremaster.com SURFACING Sof SURFACES................................. 13 800.263.2363 www.sofsurfaces.com

Mail the completed form to Dana Storm at NRPA, 22377 Belmont Ridge Road, Ashburn, VA 20148-4501 or email to dstorm@nrpa.org.

(ISSN 0031-2215) is published monthly by the National Recreation and Park Association, 22377 Belmont Ridge Rd., Ashburn, VA 20148, a service organization supported by membership dues and voluntary contributions. Copyright ©2015 by the National Recreation and Park Association. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Opinions expressed in signed articles are those of the writers and not necessarily those of NRPA. Issued to members at the annual subscription price of $30, included in dues. Subscription: $36 a year in the U.S.; $46 elsewhere. Single copy price: $4.50. Library rate: $48 a year in the U.S.; $58 elsewhere. Periodical postage paid at Ashburn, Virginia, and at additional mailing offices. Editorial and advertising offices at 22377 Belmont Ridge Rd., Ashburn, VA 20148. 703.858.0784. Postmaster, send address changes to Parks & Recreation, 22377 Belmont Ridge Rd., Ashburn, VA 20148.

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Parks & Recreation

71

Park Bench

Cabin Fever Reliever As temperatures continue to fall across most of the country, people are turning to their indoor park and rec facilities to stay active and find relief from cabin fever. In Ohio, the Westerville Community Center serves as the main hub for patrons looking for fun, indoor activities when the weather is undesirable. “The Westerville Community Center blends all the traditional services and programs of a park and recreation department with many regional-specific favorites and local lifestyle pursuits,” says Randy Auler, Westerville’s Director of Parks and Recreation. “At 96,000 square feet, there’s space for an indoor water park, track, gymnasium, fitness room, indoor climbing wall, locker rooms, program rooms, indoor playground, and child-care and public meeting areas.

Offering approximately 2,000 programs a quarter, many in these spaces, the center is widely used by its patrons.”

According to Auler, weather is a big predictor for how busy the center gets, with colder months traditionally contributing to more “cabin fever reliever”-inspired programming. Of all of the amenities, the community center’s most popular may be the indoor playground, nicknamed the “Tree Top,” which serves as one of the welcoming attractions to the more than 800,000 visitors to the center each year. “With unpredictable weather in Central Ohio, this playground was designed to bring the best features of an outdoor park playground inside for a year-round climate-controlled environment for families to enjoy,” says Auler. “Tree Top is a multilevel playground featuring multiple ladder-style climbing elements, 12 activity panels, a fireman-style pole, curly slide and two climbing walls. Rubber flooring serves the dual purpose of softening landings as kids play and enhancing safety as they jump and tumble.” Moreover, for the parents and other adults, there is a seating lounge next to the playground for centralized viewing not only of the playground, but also of the indoor pool and adjacent 29-foot climbing wall. With more than 100 kids using the Tree Top playground daily, this centerpiece feature of Westerville Community Center stays busy year-round.

— Catrina Belt, Editorial Intern for Parks & Recreation magazine 72 Parks & Recreation

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Research, Products, and Resources to Create Family Approved Recreation Spaces

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PARKS&RECREATION NOVEMBER 2015 ◆ THE MILITARY ISSUE