Accreditation is a critical process in maintaining standards of consistency and excellence in the academic preparation of students for their chosen profession. While academic programs, professional associations, and credentialing organizations all recognize the importance of programmatic accreditation in recreational therapy professional…

Emotions influence the process of personal development and are an important factor in learning. Reflecting on and understanding one's emotions within an experiential personal development course can contribute to self-knowledge and future professional growth as leisure educators. This study maps the emotions experienced by the participants on a…

Day camps are a powerful context for youth development. The American Camp Association and Leave No Trace have been integral in supporting youth development by identifying outcomes associated with participation in outdoor recreation. Recreation majors in the programming class used the camp as a service-learning component of the class that offered…

Out-of-school time (OST) settings are powerful contexts for youth development when programs and services are intentionally designed. "Youth Development Principles and Practices in Out-of-School Time Settings" increases the capacity of students and professionals to facilitate youths' optimal transition to adulthood through maximizing the…

Service learning is a well established pedagogy within higher education. Specifically, service learning allows students to engage in "real world" activities to practice skills and reflect upon their own competence. To enhance the effectiveness of service learning, instructors need to consider a multitude of learning influences. This…

This article briefly outlines the history of living-learning communities (LLC) in colleges and universities. It details conceptualization, design, implementation and assessment of such programs. Model recreation and leisure LLC are highlighted and discussed.

Institutions of higher education are increasingly being held more accountable for assessing student learning both in and out of their classrooms along with reporting results to their stakeholders. The purpose of this study, which examined assessment of student learning outcomes in undergraduate park and recreation academic programs, was two-fold:…

This paper is a case study. It tells the story of the process that the Council on Accreditation for Parks, Recreation, Tourism and Related Professions beta test site created its learning outcomes assessment program. A planning process was used that has evolved from quality management philosophy and practice: DMADV. Use of DMADV required precise…

There has been a great deal of debate regarding the value of program accreditation. Two research questions guided this study: 1) are students enrolled in accredited parks, recreation, and leisure programs more academically engaged than students enrolled in non-accredited programs, and 2) do students enrolled in accredited parks, recreation, and…

In 2004, the U.S. Department of Education's Policy and Program Studies Service contracted with SRI International and its partner, Policy Studies Associates, to undertake an evaluation of the 21st Century Community Learning Centers. The following evaluation questions informed this study: (1) What is the nature of activities in centers that are…

This report identifies the different settings in which summer programs for disadvantaged youth most commonly take place--schools, parks and recreation departments, community--and faith-based organizations, and child-care programs-- and examines the limitations and opportunities presented by each in building better programming. It reviews broadly…

This is the report of a 1990 review of Recreation, Parks, and Leisure Studies programs at the University of Florida (UF), Florida State University (FSU), and Florida International University (FIU). Among the conclusions are that these programs are essential to the lifestyle of Florida residents and the continued economic growth of the state.…

This article considers the concept of accreditation as a proper method of evaluating public park and recreation systems. Arguments for accreditation are presented, and the system used to evaluate college park and recreation curricula and administration is described. (MT)

In 1982-83, a study was conducted of Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute's Recreation Leadership program to determine if program objectives were being met, to measure program success, and to identify aspects needing improvement. Surveys were sent to 36 students who graduated before 1978, yielding a 44% response rate; to 31 students…

The final report of the project on community-based recreation for the handicapped details training activities, materials and evaluation findings. A chart lists approximately 40 primary training activities with information on date and location, faculty resource person, number attending, number of requests, and number of evaluations. The primary…