Our roles in parks and recreation have changed. We are faced with economic challenges, changing demographics, differing opinions, and ever evolving philosophies. There have been 10 years to help us address not only these concepts, but how to deal with them in the face of tough decisions. This session will provide an overview of the need for our evolution in overall community relevance, some driving concepts, and then provide summaries of the key positioning ideas and methods for making necessary and pro-active changes as they are needed to ensure our agencies abilities to survive and thrive in the future.
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Certification is important to demonstrate that you have an understanding of the basic competencies needed to be successful in the park and recreation profession. In addition, maintaining the certification shows you have a willingness to continue to learn and grow throughout your career. This workshop consists of four sections and will prepare you to become a Certified Park & Recreation Professional.
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CPSIs are individuals certified to inspect playgrounds for safety hazards and to ensure compliance with national standards set by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) and Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). The CPSI Course is a preparatory tool for the CPSI Certification Examination.
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A bulk of the details regarding the Park Pursuit will be kept confidential until the day of the event. We can tell you this...after meeting at the Veterans Memorial Pavilion in Fishel Park for check-in, you will receive your t-shirts and the clue to your first task. Your team will be challenged throughout the Park Pursuit...testing your knowledge and adding some fun activities we couldn't resist. You must strategically plan your course of action to complete each task. How you complete the task is up to you...will you outsmart your competitors?
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Here are some of our latest job posts - to view the complete listing, click here!

• Assistant Fitness Manager, Dundee Township Park District
• Support Staff Manager, Fox Valley Special Recreation Association
• Part-time Marketing Assistant, Lake in the Hills Park & Recreation Department
• Intrepretive Facility Coordinator, Forest Preserve District of Will County

Have a job to post? It's easy and affordable with IPRA - click here!

 

It is almost here...the beginning of the summer pool season! Come talk with other Aquatics professionals about training, programs, events, and anything else for the summer pool season. We will also hold a Guard Games planning meeting after the Roundtable.
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Topic: Roundtable Discussion, "The new face of the park district business office" Business managers deal with a broad range of topics on a daily basis that can range from health care reform and independent contractors to accounting software and customer service. We cannot be experts in all of these areas, especially as our responsibilities grow and our support staff shrinks. We will discuss how we can better support fellow business managers with improved communication and sharing of information. We will also look at the positions and division of labor in a "typical business office" to learn how we can better manage and delegate our work load.
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Topic: Best Tactics to Pitch Stories to Local Media
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The value of the IPRA salary survey tool depends on getting accurate and up to date information from our members. If you've never participated in the salary survey or have not participated for a while, there have been a number of improvements based on feedback from users.
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