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UNIVERSITY OF IOWA
Recreation management track offered, unique in country
Reporter: Gigi Wood
gigi@corridorbiznews.com
Become the Donald Trump of parks and rec.
A new University of Iowa program allows students the possibility to do just that. The Department of Interdepartmental Studies began a new major track in the fall called recreation management. The plan of study includes an emphasis on the business of running a parks and recreation department or professional sports team.
“I think our unique piece is that business component that we’re able to dovetail into the degree,” said Ken Mobily, a UI leisure studies professor involved with the new major. “I don’t think most universities have the ability to deliver three business classes that support recreation-management expertise.”
With more business training, parks and recreation departments are more robust, he said.
“Even nonprofit organizations have to have a cash flow and have to be able to be efficient and effective, be good stewards of the taxpayer dollar and market their products and services in the best way,” Mr. Mobily said.
There are 35 students majoring in recreation management; the department expects an average of 100 when more students become aware of the program. When students were signing up for classes last spring, no advertising had been done to promote the major.
“We went for a soft launch,” said David Gould, interdepartmental studies coordinator. “Our focus was on getting it up and running and make sure it was running well. When students signed up for it they only heard about the classes through word of mouth.”
The new area of study meets many of the recommendations for the student of the 21st century, he said. Classes are cross disciplinary, focus on working within groups and on improving communication.
Amukela Gwebu was hired last year as a lecturer for the recreation management program. He said it is unusual to find such a program under the umbrella of liberal arts and sciences; because of it students can learn the sociological and business aspects of recreation management, as well as receive hands-on training.
“(The degree) gets students ready to work in a parks and rec environment and they have some option in terms of classes and internships they can take,” he said. “We also train students for athletic administration (jobs).”
Leadership, management and ethics are among 15 class topics to choose from.
“We try to teach to give kids tools to make decisions in those areas where there is no policy manual that you can look at and give them the moral reasoning tools to do that and come out unscathed at the end,” Mr. Gwebu said.
Recreation management students are competing with arts management majors, another new UI area of study, to create an event for the UI Welcome Week in the fall. The hands-on project is a valuable resume builder, he said. CBJ
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