February 2019 - Parks & Recreation - 25

PHOTO COURTESY OF PARK DISTRICT OF OAK PARK, ILLINOIS

Along the way, the fellow has specific deliverables, and at the end
of the program the fellow receives
help with identifying job opportunities and making contacts as appropriate. This program not only
is a great career development opportunity for young professionals,
but also provides our leadership
team with the perspective of a recent graduate and a glimpse into
the future leaders of the industry.
Jamaal Hines, who completed
our inaugural fellowship program,
provided us with the following
feedback:

to expand on my professionalism,
versatility, leadership and organizational management skills in a way
that would have been unattainable
in an entry-level position. Moreover, it has set me on an expedited
career development pathway, as it
has exposed me to areas to which
I would not have otherwise been
exposed. Furthermore, this experience will help me to work more effectively with all departments once
I land a full-time position. I believe
this opportunity has now put me a
step ahead of the competition, and
for that, I am extremely grateful!

Jamaal Hines

A Fellow's Reflection
Regardless of your field of study,
there are three areas of priority that
are emphasized during one's journey through postsecondary education: professional development, job
attainment and career prosperity.
While professors and other influential figures in the lives of college
students spend an ample amount
of time promoting professional
growth, leadership, occupational
awareness and interview preparedness, there is no guarantee that your
degree will secure a professional position in your desired career
field. To be a standout applicant in
today's job search processes, one
must possess a suitable amount of
both educational achievement and
occupational experience.
Often, just having a bachelor's
degree or even a master's degree
is not enough to land an entry-level position. Like me, many
recent graduates are left wondering, " How am I supposed to
gain experience if entry-level positions won't provide any hands-

on job knowledge or applicable
skills training? " With both a
bachelor's and a master's degree,
I was overlooked by multiple employers for applicants with more
years of experience in the field.
Fortunately, the Recreation Fellowship at the Park District of
Oak Park offered the opportunity to develop my skill set and
gain the experience needed to
boost my marketability.
With the cross-departmental
training and the multifaceted nature of the fellowship, I gained an
equal amount of experience within
both recreation programming and
facility management at all levels of
the organization, instead of being
bound by one job title and one list
of corresponding responsibilities.
As a result, I've gained a much
greater understanding of how all
the departments work together in
the functionality of a community
recreation organization.
This fellowship has enabled me

Continuing to Grow Professionals
As we wrap up our first year of the
fellowship, I can attest that the process takes the time and dedication
of all the professional staff. It also
highlights the importance of teaching not only the skills to do the job,
but also an understanding of the
" why " of the things we do for our
community. With the knowledge
and experience from the first year,
we have realigned the amount of
time spent in some of the departments to ensure the fellow is in a
department when key activities
are occurring. We have also added
more frequent check-ins with the
fellow's supervisor.
The park district is again offering
this opportunity for 2019-2020, and
I hope other agencies may be interested to learn how they too can
make a lasting impact on the profession. For more information about
the fellowship, contact Jan Arnold
at jan.arnold@pdop.org.
Jan Arnold is the Executive Director for the
Park District of Oak Park (jan.arnold@pdop.org).

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February 2019 - Parks & Recreation

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