We apply lessons from "Moneyball," Michael Lewis's (2003) best-selling account of the Oakland Athletics's use of "sabermetrics" to find undervalued baseball players to help build a cost-effective team to the context of recreation, park, and leisure studies. Specifically, we coin and apply the term…

This article is intended to provoke thought and discussion about what it takes to be a department chair and what it feels like to be a department chair. To accomplish our purpose, we draw an analogy between test pilots and department chairs based on Tom Wolfe's "The Right Stuff" (1979). We reason that test pilots and department…

Group projects have long been an important element of higher education classes. Class projects involve additional cooperation and coordination among students. Student perceptions are an important factor in evaluating the effectiveness of projects. This exploratory study used a 39-item questionnaire to examine undergraduate student perceptions of…

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.

Integrated Event Design (IED) capitalizes on three distinct courses to achieve a blended course delivery: Event Management, Research and Evaluation (for undergraduate students), and Experiential Education (for graduate students). Through the use of an event management company metaphor that fully integrates the diverse curricular concepts, course…

This article introduces the reader to the Unified Core Curriculum model developed and implemented at the University of Georgia (UGA). Four courses are taught as one course to the juniors coming into the Recreation and Leisure Studies major. An overview of the blended course and sample assignments are provided, as well as a discussion of challenges…

This paper describes the Integrated Core (IC), the University of Utah's version of integrated curricula. We begin with a rationale for the IC, providing a background on the unique student demographics, and University-wide requirements that propelled our design. Our IC focuses specifically on active living, sustainability, and social justice…

This article provides case study examples of how assessment efforts led to and have been enhanced by the creation of integrated curriculum delivery models in parks, recreation, and tourism programs at Clemson University and the University of Utah.

The aim of this study is to assess the perceived benefits of National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) certifications. The NRPA offered three certifications in 2010: Certified Park and Recreation Professional (CPRP), Aquatic Facility Operator (AFO), and Certified Playground Safety Inspector (CPS). The electronic survey sent from authors…

Individuals with disabilities currently represent the largest minority group in the United States, yet recreation undergraduate students often perceive this as a population they may or may not provide services to in their future careers. The activities presented in this paper, Inclusion Knowledge Audits (IKA), are developed to make the connection…

Women represent growing numbers of faculty members in higher education as well as in recreation/leisure departments. The purpose of this study is to describe the career development of women faculty in recreation-related areas and to offer implications for faculty development and the preparation of future faculty. Data were collected from women who…

In order to explore the link between multicultural service-learning (MSL) and the development of multicultural competence, a participatory action research paradigm and constructivist grounded theory were used to qualitatively explore the perceptions of multicultural competence development in 30 recreation and leisure studies majors. Major themes…

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:…

Within contemporary society, technology has taken on an integral role in the way we come to know and understand the world. In recognition of that reality, an increasing number of educators have begun to utilize an emerging technology resource, GPS devices, and a GPS-based activity, geocaching, to help enhance students' global competency. The…

This paper describes a process for guiding students through the writing of a Professional Philosophy of Recreation Paper and a one-page philosophy statement suitable for use in students' professional portfolios. The authors describe how the review of recreation education literature, scholarship on teaching and learning, and assessment of student…