January 2014 - Parks & Recreation - 59

Doctor degree from Temple University, a degree in social work from
LaSalle University and a certificate
in conservation leadership from the
Wharton School at Penn.

they also need to be able to see the value
in NRPA, and I believe I can assist in
getting that message out. "
Johnson holds a bachelor's degree in education from the University of Maryland.

Roslyn Johnson
As the deputy director of facility operations for the Prince George's County
Department
of Parks and
Recreation
in Maryland,
Roslyn Johnson oversees
multiple agency
departRoslyn Johnson
ments and is
responsible for communicating with
elected officials and the public, supporting staff professional development,
and maintaining programs, facilities
and parks that are accessible and meet
the needs of the entire community.
During her membership with
NRPA, Johnson has presented at the
Urban Park Conference, Congress
and Legislative Forum multiple times,
and she has volunteered on the Program Committee, Board Nominating
Committee and Public Policy Committee for several years. She has also
been a member of the Urban Directors Network and the Ethnic Minority
Society, and her service includes time
serving as a diversity mentor, young
professional lunch host and key contributor to the Urban Parks Summit.
When asked what she hopes to accomplish during her term on the Board,
Johnson replied, " In order for NRPA to
continue moving forward as a national
leader and expert, its success is going
to be dependent upon recruiting and
appealing to our young future leaders
and their needs. During these tough financial times when so many agencies
have to make some difficult decisions,

Lewis Ledford Assumes Executive
Director Role at NASPD
Lewis Ledford, a five-year NRPA
Board member, recently retired as director of North Carolina's state park
system to become the new executive
director for the National Association
of State Park Directors (NASPD). In
his 37 years with the N.C. Department
of Environment and Natural Resources (NC DENR), 10 of which he served
as director, Ledford helped orchestrate
the state's purchase of Grandfather
Mountain and Chimney Rock and
oversaw more than $170 million in
grants provided to local governments
for parks. Among his other accomplishments, North Carolina's state
park lands increased by more than
50,000 acres under his supervision,
and the park system has broken previous records for visitation levels.
" There are more than 8,200 state
park sites across the country with an
estimated $23 billion economic impact coming from only $2 to 3 billion

in operational costs -
that's a great
return
on
investment, "
says Ledford,
noting that
A m e r i c a 's
state parks
Lewis Ledford
host
more
than 740 million visitors a year. " We're
quite a force when you combine the
work of NRPA and NASPD together.
" At a time when parks are being
cut and budget requests are being
challenged, we need to show the
benefit of NRPA's three pillars,
which are similar to NASPD's principles, " he continues. " We need to
build advocacy in Congress. We
need to be transparent in our actions
more than ever to make the case for
why it's important to protect these
natural icons while staying on the
cutting edge of recreational trends
and environmental education. An
adage I heard years ago captures this
really well: 'Parks are a tonic for the
mind, body and spirit.' "
Danielle Taylor is the Senior Editor of Parks
& Recreation Magazine (dtaylor@nrpa.org).

Call for NRPA Board Nominations
Have you ever thought about becoming a board member or know someone you think
would excel as one? NRPA is looking for both professional and citizen leaders who
are passionate about parks, recreation and environmental conservation. Candidates
should be active leaders who wish to further the mission of the association and have
demonstrated talent and expertise in the field or in their community. NRPA values and
seeks diverse leadership as defined by race, ethnicity, gender, religion, age, sexual orientation, nationality, disability, appearance and geographic location. We also encourage nominations from all types and sizes of park and recreation organizations.
For more information and to apply, please visit www.nrpa.org/About-NRPA/Lead
ing-the-Association, where you can find the Class of 2017 Nomination Book. All nominations must be submitted or date-stamped by February 7, 2014. If you are interested
in serving, know someone who is or have questions about the nomination process,
please contact Executive Assistant Michele White at mwhite@nrpa.org or 703.858.2144.

W W W. N R PA . O R G | J A N UA R Y 2 0 1 4 |

Parks & Recreation

January 2014 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of January 2014 - Parks & Recreation