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NRPA “Quick Guides” share simple ways to advance equity

In 2021 and 2023, the NRPA Research team surveyed park and recreation leaders about their agencies’ diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices, taking inventory of park and recreation agencies’ DEI activities, the professional development opportunities provided to staff, and the challenges organizations face in their efforts to promote DEI practices. The results, detailed in the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Parks and Recreation report, serve as a guide for NRPA’s Equity in Practice (EiP) work. Four themes emerged in 2021 and were shown to continue to be relevant in 2023: targeted support for smaller agencies, building member capacity and competency in DEI, best practices and peer networks, and trusted resources.

A notably different comment came up in the 2023 survey: “NRPA provides a lot of tools and resources currently...[that may] outpace the progress of the average park and recreation agency. I think a sliding scale of resources for those in the beginning stages versus those that are more advanced would be appropriate. Not that the work isn’t needed, but agencies may be dismayed or turned off if they feel they have to take drastic steps to ‘catch up’ and thus may make no change at all. Baby steps are better than no steps at all.”

This response was similar to one of the most common questions we receive from members — “Where should I start?” — and is asking for us to better meet members where they are, especially those with limited capacity or those who are just starting. In response, we committed to creating “how tos,” brief toolkits that focus on implementation and inclusion in common recreational programs.

NRPA Quick Guides

Led by members of the NRPA DEI Network and the wonderful Becky Herz of Orangevale (California) Recreation and Park District, we are happy to introduce NRPA Quick Guides. These “how tos” recognize that DEI is hard work. It takes time, the approach is rarely the same, and it requires us to confront uncomfortable topics and change. If that isn’t enough, the work — and those leading it — may be met by others who don’t understand “why” and lack full agency support.

Quick guides are designed for all park and recreation professionals, but especially for those who may have limited capacity and are looking to make tangible, meaningful changes in their communities and places of work. Regardless of the role within your agency, we know individuals can make profound positive changes. These guides are crowdsourced from the field, sharing the lessons and practices of the NRPA community. For the past year, other professionals in the field worked to gather examples, information and data to help you make the case for change in specific areas where DEI principles can be easily incorporated into existing park and recreation programs.

Addressing Unique Needs

The committee took into consideration that each agency, community and approach is unique. The guides provide ideas and paths to implementation on a variety of topics and have been created by a team of dedicated NRPA members from all over the country who reached out to their extended networks to compile multiple perspectives and solutions. Each quick guide focuses on a specific area to provide a clear and comprehensive resource. The NRPA DEI Network adopted the quick guides project to give members an easy and “quick” place to start. These were created with the vision that park and recreation professionals will find a quick guide that speaks to them, one that falls within their area of influence, or one that addresses an inequity or barrier that exists in their community.

The committee identified six topics to tackle first: event naming, inclusive hiring, marketing/public engagement, inclusive swimwear attire, sports rules, policies and guidelines, and starting a JEDI (justice, equity, diversity and inclusion) committee. The first quick guide, “Developing an Inclusive Swimwear Attire Policy,” was released in August. The next three, “Inclusive Event and Program Naming,” “Reducing Implicit Bias in Hiring” and “Creating a DEI Committee,” will be released in September and October. The last two in this series, “Sports Policies” and “Inclusive Marketing and Promotion,” will be released in early 2025.

NRPA Quick Guide: Developing an Inclusive Swimwear Attire Policy

The “Developing an Inclusive Swimwear Attire Policy” quick guide assists aquatics facility operators and programmers with the development or redevelopment of a swimwear policy that is inclusive and appropriate for your aquatics facility and your community. Narrow requirements for swimwear in a swimming pool can create barriers and limit access to your community based on a variety of factors, including socioeconomic status, religion, culture, gender identity and ability. This guide includes talking points to share with staff and community, explaining the benefits of adopting a more inclusive policy, pictures and posters from agencies that have made these changes and links to sample existing policies from other agencies across the country.

Thanks to Robin Steinshnider, City of Dallas (Texas), for leading this work with Stacie Campbell, City of Pearland (Texas), and Guillermo Navarro, City of Emeryville (California).

NRPA Quick Guide: Inclusive Event and Program Naming

The “Inclusive Event and Program Naming” quick guide is designed to broaden the reach of agencies within the different communities they serve by using more inclusive event titles to show that everyone is welcome and has a space to belong. In using this guide, we hope to encourage organizations across the nation to consider the hidden implications that can live within program and event names and provide support as you take steps toward renaming existing events and developing new programs with inclusive language in mind. This guide includes a list of typical annual and seasonal events, giving each alternative names shared (and used) by professionals across agencies.

Thanks to Deb Smith, retired executive director of Maine Recreation and Park Association, for leading this work with Chelsea VanAssche, Westerville (Ohio) Parks and Recreation, and August Vandiver, City of Pearland (Texas) Parks and Recreation.

NRPA Quick Guide: Reducing Implicit Bias in Hiring

This guide is designed to assist interviewers and hiring managers with developing and refining strategies to mitigate implicit bias, also known as unconscious bias, during interviews. This resource shares practical steps to address them and supports the creation of fair and inclusive hiring practices within agencies.

Thanks to Heather Carter, City of El Cajon (California), for leading this work with Teri deRosier, Cosumnes (California) Community Services District; Tede Price, City of Lee’s Summit (Missouri); Tracey Crawford, Northwest Special Recreation Association (Illinois); Zack Zuchowicz, Oakland County (Michigan) Parks; Jenny Hymans, Five Rivers MetroParks (Ohio); and Elisa Accardi-Harrison, City of Wichita (Kansas).

NRPA Quick Guide: Starting a DEI Committee

This guide is designed to assist park and recreation professionals who are either planning to start or have recently launched a committee focused on advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, justice and accessibility within their agency. NRPA uses Equity in Practice for the park and recreation field; other professions may use various acronyms, like JEDI or IDEA (inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility). Regardless of the title you give your agency’s work, this guide sees the terms as interchangeable and, in its examples and recommendations, considers the varying sizes, resources and locations of park and recreation agencies across the country to provide relevant guidance for all organizational levels. 

Thanks to Solita Riley, New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, for leading this work along with Bronwen Mastro, Bend (Oregon) Park and Recreation District; LaKeisha Dickens, Las Vegas Department of Parks and Recreation; and Zach Zuchowicz, Oakland County (Michigan) Parks.

Join the NRPA DEI Network

NRPA’s DEI Network is a community of park and recreation professionals who collaborate to support DEI initiatives within their agencies. Members share documents and take part in discussions on NRPA Connect. Additionally, the network hosts discussions via Zoom on the second Tuesday of every other month. To learn more and join the DEI Network, click here.

Looking Toward the Future

The DEI Network and Quick Guide Committees already have started brainstorming the next round of topics, with a group outlining a sensory inclusion guide to support professionals in thinking of creative and innovative ways to adjust programs for those who are neurodivergent.

We are constantly looking to and listening to members on how to make sure our EiP resources are relevant to the field and useful to those of you working on the ground in communities. If you have topic ideas or are interested in joining the DEI Network or leading your own quick guide committee, please email DEI_Education@nrpa.org.

Autumn Saxton-Ross, Ph.D., is NRPA’s Chief Education and Equity Officer.