The Park and Recreation Professional's Handbook offers a thorough grounding in all areas of programming, leadership, operations, administration, and professionalism. It integrates foundational concepts, the latest research, and real-world examples to present readers with a complete picture of all of the skills needed for success in the field.

Working outdoors, getting exercise, playing games, and serving your community, all while earning a salary, what could be better? This comprehensive guide to the field of parks and recreation prepares readers for three individual career paths: recreation worker, park maintenance worker, and park ranger. It offers several "day-in-the-life" stories from these careers, stressing the great variation of jobs available in this career and the range of education, from high school diploma to graduate degrees, required for different jobs. Readers can also learn about education, job-hunting, and advancement, and a few part-time jobs that can help them break into the field.

Leadership in Recreation and Leisure Services presents cutting-edge guidance and helps students apply their newfound knowledge as they prepare to enter the rapidly changing leisure services field. This text presents fresh insights on leadership from the most prominent voices in the field today. The contributors present a comprehensive look at modern leadership, identify the challenges future leaders will face, and reveal how future leaders can best prepare to meet those challenges. Leadership in Recreation and Leisure Services provides • a detailed look at the collaborative approach to leadership in leisure services that represents a new direction in the field; • insight into classical leadership as well as innovative and modern leadership theory and best practices; and • an understanding of the roles and functions students will fulfill as they enter the profession. The material, designed for undergraduate recreation and leisure services leadership courses, is presented in three parts. Part I explores personal leadership issues, including communication skills, negotiation strategies, and leadership styles. Part II delves into professional leadership, examining topics such as group dynamics, supervision practices, and team leadership. Part III explores organizational leadership, including internal and external leadership and professional development. The authors present new theories of leadership from research in the field of recreation and leisure. Several learning aids—including chapter-opening scenarios, key terms, glossary, references, and chapter-ending questions for reflection and discussion—appear throughout the text. In addition, each chapter features a Leisure Leaders sidebar that profiles a leader in the field who addresses preparation for the job, a peek at day-to-day work, and advice for aspiring leaders. And a Best Practices sidebar showcases an organization whose innovative leadership has led to positive organizational outcomes. Leadership in Recreation and Leisure Services helps students understand the range of leadership skills they need to develop for successful careers.

Certified Park and Recreation Professional Exam Secrets helps you ace the National Recreation and Park Association's Certified Park and Recreation Professional Exam, without weeks and months of endless studying. Our comprehensive Certified Park and Recreation Professional Exam Secrets study guide is written by our exam experts, who painstakingly researched every topic and concept that you need to know to ace your test. Our original research reveals specific weaknesses that you can exploit to increase your exam score more than you've ever imagined. Certified Park and Recreation Professional Exam Secrets includes: The 5 Secret Keys to CPRP Success: Time is Your Greatest Enemy, Guessing is Not Guesswork, Practice Smarter, Not Harder, Prepare, Don't Procrastinate, Test Yourself; A comprehensive General Strategy review including: Make Predictions, Answer the Question, Benchmark, Valid Information, Avoid Fact Traps, Milk the Question, The Trap of Familiarity, Eliminate Answers, Tough Questions, Brainstorm, Read Carefully, Face Value, Prefixes, Hedge Phrases, Switchback Words, New Information, Time Management, Contextual Clues, Don't Panic, Pace Yourself, Answer Selection, Check Your Work, Beware of Directly Quoted Answers, Slang, Extreme Statements, Answer Choice Families; Comprehensive sections including: Why Certify?, Score, Outdoor Recreation, General Observations about Outdoor Participation, Benefits of Outdoor Recreational/Leisure, Adventure Recreation, Tournaments, Workforce Planning, Getting Started by Building Support, Recreation by the Numbers, Visitors to Federal Recreation Sites, Organizational Structure, SMART Goals, Individual Differences in Organizations, Attitudes & Behaviors, The Perceptual Process, Volunteerism in the Outdoors, Training & Development, Managing Work Motivation, Business and Its Environment, Professional Education, Accounting, Budgets, Types of Contracts, Marketing, Communication in Organizations, and much more...

Introduction to Recreation and Leisure, Third Edition, presents perspectives from 52 leading experts from around the world. It delves into foundational concepts, delivery systems, and programming services; offers an array of ancillaries; and helps students make informed career choices.

Managing Sport Facilities, Fourth Edition With Web Study Guide, merges the historical and theoretical foundations of the sport facility industry with real-world challenges and insights to create an engaging, modern guide for effective sport facility management. This updated edition provides a comprehensive knowledge base for the wide-ranging duties of sport facility managers and prepares students to enter the field ready to confront the responsibilities they will face on the job. Joining field expert Gil Fried for this fourth edition is Matthew Kastel, a practicing stadium manager with over 25 years of experience. Together, the authors blend extensive research and insights from the professional industry with everyday occurrences at sport facilities. With an increased focus on in-depth, real-world examples of issues facing facility managers today, this edition takes a detailed look at different types of facilities, including stadiums, arenas, fitness centers, parks, and multiuse facilities, and it addresses the various challenges that each presents. Contributions from industry professionals provide an inside look at their facility’s unique issues and concerns, from systems and operations to maintenance and green practices. To emphasize practical applications of the content, a new web study guide includes seven Day in the Life videos that follow the daily routine of a facility executive and offer students an inside look at real-life facility management. Additional tools further enhance learning and are accompanied by activities and assignments that guide students in applying the concepts: Video clips of interviews with industry professionals provide multifaceted career insights and advice. Gil’s Sportsplex, an in-depth sport facility case study, covers strategic planning, construction, financial analysis, and more. Sample blueprints highlight the construction and anatomy of a sport facility. A list of Internet resources for each chapter encourages further learning. Also new to this edition is a chapter on midevent management, which covers strategies for managers to use during events as issues arrive so they are prepared for all phases of a facility event. Throughout the book, examples capture the essence of being a facility manager. Opening chapter scenarios introduce industry executives and show how the material applies to daily activities. Facility Focus sidebars provide facts about facilities and strategies for facility success, while Behind the Scenes sections present unique concerns and strategies to make facility managers more successful professionals. Students will develop practical knowledge, which will prepare them to make decisions in all areas of facility management, including building design and construction, operations, marketing, legal issues, finance, and event management. Managing Sport Facilities, Fourth Edition, teaches the foundational and application skills necessary for facility managers to respond effectively to new challenges. It is an essential resource for guiding students to success in a sport facility management career. Note: The web study guide is included with all new print books and some ebooks. For ebook formats that don’t provide access, the web study guide is available separately.

With conributions from eminent scholars worldwide, this handbook is a "state-of-the-science" summary of the body of knowledge about cultural intelligence--an individual's ability to funtion effectively in situations characterized by cultural diversity--and its relevance for managing diversity both within and across