Congratulations to our newly elected leaders!

We hope those of you were not elected at this time will try again in the future. Congratulations to each of the following:

• IPRA Board, North West Region Representative: Erin Folk
• IPRA Board, Central Region Representative: Jarrod Scheunemann
• Administrative & Finance Section Director-Elect: Bob Taylor
• Administrative & Finance Section Treasurer: Linda Miller
• Administrative & Finance Section Membership Council: Jeff Nehila
• Communications & Marketing Section Director-Elect: Megan Pettit
• Diversity Section Director-Elect: Hollice Clark III
• Diversity Section Treasurer: Carolyn Fulgham
• Diversity Section Membership Council: Keith Wallace
• Facility Management Section Director-Elect: Amy Murrin
• Facility Management Section Treasurer: Kara Moss
• Facility Management Section Membership Council: Matt LaPorte
• Park & Natural Resource Management Section Director-Elect: Mat Emken
• Therapeutic Recreation Section Director-Elect: Jorie Meyer
• Therapeutic Recreation Section Treasurer: Heather Sprecht
• Therapeutic Recreation Section Membership Council: Nicole Estrada

As you read this, you may decide this is the right time for you to engage or re-engage in IPRA as a volunteer on one of our committees. If you are interested in joining a committee for 2017, please utilize our new volunteer form to let us know of your interest, as incoming Chair Rita Fletcher will be working on appointments very soon.

I want to thank everyone who attended one of our five Playcore/GameTime educational events in the last few weeks held in Palatine, Tinley Park, Rockford, Collinsville, and Champaign. The events were well attended. A survey will be going out to all attendees seeking your feedback about these events. Whether you attended those events or not, we hope that you will consider applying for one of the grants. These are playground equipment matching grants for agencies who are working through PlayCore or their affiliates. Click here for details. 

IPRA is always looking for ways to connect with students in parks and recreation and related majors all over Illinois. As of November 1, we have 332 student members, up from 204 a year ago. If you know a full-time college student who should sign up, their dues are free and a form is available on our website. For members looking to connect with park and recreation students, I would remind you about the upcoming Sponsor A Student program at the January conference. In this program, an agency attending the Awards Luncheon can sponsor a student for free, to join you at your agency’s table. This is free for the agency and free for the student. The purpose is to allow the student to learn from you and network with you while being inspired by the careers of the award recipients in the hopes that student will rededicate his/her intentions for a lifelong career in parks and recreation. To participate, check the box on the conference registration form.

Again, whether you are volunteering on a committee, running for a leadership position, or sponsoring a student at conference, there are so many ways that you can engage and lead with IPRA. We thank you for all that you do and we are grateful for all that we accomplish together.

Debbie Trueblood, CAE

Executive Director