IPRA Today - Leadership Academy Applications Now Available

Education is Blooming

Leadership Academy – Applications Available Now
The academy will meet one full day per month for six months (October – March). There are three levels to the academy, and the curriculum at each level will focus on building great leaders to strengthen parks and recreation agencies. Courses will include innovation, accountability, decision making, staff development, financial strategies and many more topics that will focus on the skills that leaders need to be successful at all stages in their career.

As a young professional...you can benefit from Level 1: Personal Leadership, where you will learn skills such as networking and decision making to help you grow as a leader. Level 1 will meet on Thursdays.

As a mid-level professional...you will be able to take advantage of Level 2: Leading Your Team, where the focus will be on developing your team and maximizing results. Level 2 will meet on Wednesdays.

As a senior-level professional...you will be able to engage in Level 3: Leading Your Agency, with an intense focus on developing a positive work culture where excellence is the norm. Level 3 will meet on Tuesdays.

The Office of Recreation & Park Resources and the Recreation, Sport & Tourism Department of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign are the proud sponsors of a certificate of completion for the IPRA Leadership Academy. As one of the first colleges to offer a degree in parks and recreation, they understand the importance of leadership and continuing education in our field. At the completion of each level, individuals will receive a Certificate of Completion from the University of Illinois.

April 10th – Webinar - Delivering World-Class Customer Service
Based on his 20-years with the Walt Disney World Company, along with many years of consulting with organizations around the world, Dennis Snow will provide a "how-to" program for creating a service-driven culture. This program will provide you with strategic tools that can be used to raise the bar of service throughout your organization, resulting in "walk-through-fire" customer loyalty. Participants will learn:

Approaches that help your employees move from a task mindset to an experience mindset.
A process for ensuring your organization’s "backstage" environment never impacts the "onstage" customer experience.
Four specific strategies for wowing customers every time.
A mechanism for ensuring that your organization’s processes are designed through the "lens of the customer."

April 20th – Education Institute - Getting Results Through Individual & Organizational Accountability
IPRA’s First Annual Education Institute is a member only event and one that you can’t afford to miss. Registration deadline is April 6th. The registration fee is only $40 per member and includes continental breakfast, lunch, four hours of education from a nationally recognized speaker, 0.4 CEUs and if that was not enough, the opportunity to network with your colleagues from across the state. Craig Hickman, author of The Oz Principle will focus on "Getting Results Through Individual & Organizational Accountability." Make sure you are not being left behind and that you embrace a culture of accountability for you and your staff! A special thanks to our three co-sponsors: Musco Lighting, Cunningham Associates and Service Wear Apparel.

Task Force Work
Currently there are four task force groups working to improve the services and programs offered to all IPRA members. The four task forces include: Awards; Salary Survey; Diversity and Affiliates. John Curran has appointed members to each task force to review and make recommendations on ways to improve and enhance the way IPRA conducts business. If you would like additional information, please give me a call.

Membership Council
Lastly, the members of the Membership Council met on March 8th and are meeting again on April 5th to continue discussions on consistent operating guidelines for all IPRA sections and other collaborative initiatives. Remember to contact one of the members of the Council if you have suggestions.

Thanks again for all you do!

Best,
Jan Arnold, Executive Director

Ancel, Glink, Diamond, Bush, DiCianni & Rolek, P.C.

536 East Avenue, LaGrange, IL 60525 | Phone: 708-588-2280 | Fax : 708-354-0535