February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 41

public speaking skills. But whether
you are communicating safety measures
to the public or engaging with
stakeholders to support development
of a new community center,
effective people skills are a must.
The importance of effective people
skills within the organization was
highlighted as well. The majority of
supervisors cited conflict resolution
to be a skill lacking amongst recent
college graduates. This was followed
closely by a lack of effective interaction
with co-workers as well as with
supervisors. This, too, places a significant
amount of responsibility on
park and recreation programs to successfully
prepare students for these
types of interactions. Which leads
me to the following question: How
can we improve student recruitment
in parks and recreation?
Preparing Students
While it
is
true that many of
these programs are disappearing
around the country (tinyurl.com/
yc76bd7y), not all hope is lost. Our
new park and recreation management
program here at Auburn University
is proof of that. And while
we are still in our growing phase,
there has been a tremendous outpouring
of support from recreation
professionals around the state. The
bottom line is: just as the value and
benefits of parks and recreation
isn't going anywhere, neither is the
need for these types of programs.
I believe the answer to the above
question is twofold. One, from an
academic standpoint, we need to ensure
that we are preparing students
to enter the park and recreation profession
with the best possible tools
and skills necessary to succeed and
push the industry forward. This
means recognizing the dynamic nature
of the profession and realizing
that what we taught our students last
year may not be applicable anymore.
Needs change. Wants change. New
interests pop up (pickleball, anyone?),
requiring extensive reevaluation
of how this industry operates
and what it focuses its resources on.
This also requires recognizing
interdisciplinary
the
nature
of
parks and recreation. The field
is more than the parks and more
than the recreation. It's a business,
therefore
requiring graduates to
have acumen in business, finance
and economics. Programs need to
be promoted and marketed, requiring
students to have an understanding
of these practices. Add to the
list aspects of policy, government
affairs and public health, to name
a few, and you start to see how embedded
this industry is with other
fields. Can we cover everything?
Of course not, but as educators
we need to do our best to illustrate
just how diverse the field is and
communicate and collaborate with
park and recreation professionals
on what skills and knowledge
would be most beneficial to impart
on our students.
Second, we need to boost the
visibility of these programs in addition
to the idea of a career in the
field of parks and recreation. Park
and recreation-related majors are
commonly known as " discovery
majors. " Indeed, at both Kansas
State and now here at Auburn,
many of our incoming students
were, and are,
transfer
students
from other programs within the
university. They only hear about
our program in passing or through
marketing initiatives on campus.
Engaging with local high schools
and other groups - something our
recruitment team here in the College
of Forestry, Wildlife and Environment
does extremely well -
would help improve that visibility.
Additionally, as academics we
should seek to engage with park
and recreation professionals from
a recruiting standpoint. As one of
the survey respondents stated, it is
important to " have those who are
passionate about parks and rec visit
with students and share experiences, "
as well as " have more directors
attend career fairs. " The point being,
engage with professionals out
there doing the good work to help
illustrate not only the legitimacy
of the industry, but also help drive
home the fact that we, as park and
recreation professionals, are doing
meaningful work that can have such
positive impacts on communities
and provide a better quality of life.
In the end, the continued, and
even growing, popularity of recreational
activities is a testament to
their importance in our lives. However,
to sustain this trend and ensure
everyone can enjoy high-quality recreational
experiences, it is crucial to
address the staffing challenges often
faced by park and recreation departments.
By communicating and collaborating
with park and recreation
academic programs and improving
job readiness among graduates,
we can support the dedicated professionals
who make our park and
recreation facilities vibrant and welcoming
spaces for all.
SEE ALSO: " Recruiting and Retaining
Young Adults to the Park and Recreation
Workforce, " Kevin Roth, Parks &
Recreation, February 2022, Vol. 57, Iss.
2, tinyurl.com/mpff7fux; " Recruiting the
Next Generation of Park and Recreation
Professionals, " Colton Patak, Parks &
Recreation, May 2022, Vol. 57, Iss. 5,
tinyurl.com/52b2k85e.
Michael Brunson, Ph.D., CPRP, CIG, is Professor of
Practice, Parks and Recreation Management at the
College of Forestry, Wildlife and Environment, Auburn
University (mmb0196@auburn.edu).
PARK S ANDRECRE AT ION . OR G | FEBR U AR Y 2 0 2 5 | Parks & Recreation
41
http://tinyurl.com/yc76bd7y http://tinyurl.com/yc76bd7y http://tinyurl.com/mpff7fux http://tinyurl.com/52b2k85e

February 2025 – Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of February 2025 – Parks & Recreation

February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - Intro
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - Cover1
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - Cover2
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 1
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 2
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 3
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 4
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 5
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 6
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 7
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 8
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 9
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February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 20
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February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 37
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February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 40
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 41
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 42
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 43
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February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 45
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 46
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 47
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February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 49
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 50
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 51
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February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 55
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - 56
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - Cover3
February 2025 – Parks & Recreation - Cover4
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/february-2025
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/january-2025
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/december-2024
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/november-2024
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/october-2024
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/september-2024
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/august-2024
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/july-2024
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/june-2024
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/may-2024
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/april-2024
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/march-2024
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/february-2024
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/january-2024
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/december-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/november-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/october-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/september-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/august-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/july-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/june-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/may-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/april-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/march-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/february-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/january-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/december-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/november-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/october-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/september-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/august-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/july-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/june-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/may-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/april-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/march-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/february-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/january-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/december-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/november-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/october-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/september-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/august-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/july-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/june-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/may-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/april-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/march-2021
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com