November 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 15

Park and Recreation Pioneer Leaves a
Legacy in South Carolina
T
he field lost a pioneer park
and recreation leader with the
passing of Anne Springs Close in
August 2021. Close, a noted conservationist
and philanthropist, was
a past chair of the NRPA Board of
Directors and a NRPA Life Trustee.
Jodie Adams, another past member
of the NRPA Board of Directors,
first met Close when first
considering joining the board. " She
was a tremendous role model for
our field's
practitioners and citizens
who served on their local park
boards/commissions, " Adams says.
Close was the daughter of Elliott
Springs, a decorated World War I
pilot, author and successful businessman.
After college, she would
return to her hometown and live on
her family's property, close to the
South Carolina border with North
Carolina.
Out of her family's business ventures
came the Springs Close Foundation
and Leroy Springs and Company,
Inc. Close stepped up as chair
of the board for both organizations,
expanding her father's efforts to
provide park and recreation opportunities
to communities by donating
money to projects designed to
improve the lives of local people,
according to her biography by The
American Academy for Park and
Recreation Administration (tinyurl.
com/27epurm3).
As development around Charlotte,
North Carolina, encroached
on her family's property, Close
reached out to The Nature Conservancy
and a planner for greenways
to develop a land-use plan
that would place 2,100 acres of the
property in a conservancy while
retaining
4,000 acres for development,
according to her Legacy
obituary (tinyurl.com/srmsw6h).
The Anne Springs Close Greenway,
which opened in 1995, stands
as a natural buffer to urban sprawl,
giving those in the nearby communities
a place for outdoor recreational
activities.
" Anne made a great positive impact
on all who knew her, as well as
all who have benefited from her efforts
on connecting people through
trails for all, " says Fran Mainella,
past member of the NRPA Board
of Directors.
For more information about
Close's inspirational life, visit nrpa.
org/InMemoriam.
Member Benefit: Background Screening Best Practices
ackground Investigation Bureau
(BIB) and NRPA's partnership
helps park and recreation
agencies conduct better background
screenings. Here are a few things to
keep in mind to help prevent risk:
B
What is your background
check costing you?
Not all background checks are the
same. The best approach is to ask,
" Are we getting the best quality
screen for a fair price? "
How healthy is your data?
Most information received by states
is through county records. Ideally,
the information would be correct
and complete; however, in many
cases, the records are either missing
data or inaccurate. You'll need to assess
what screening methods you are
using to get the best data from every
state relevant to your applicants.
Are you getting the full story?
When records are missing or pertinent
information from a record is
lost, such as final dispositions, it becomes
challenging to make effective
hiring decisions. Making sure you're
receiving the best data possible from
as many sources as possible ensures
you're getting the full story.
What is the turnaround time?
While
the
majority
of
quality
background checks are completed
in less than 72 hours, most delays
experienced are related to jurisdictions
being searched. For example,
a court runner is physically going
to a courthouse. While this is a
highly effective process, it can lead
to longer turnaround times because
of court access hours, staff or technology
available. It's important for
you to know of any jurisdictions
you may be accessing regularly that
could cause common delays.
If you would like more information
on how your agency can develop
the best background screening
methodology,
visit bib.com.
NRPA members will gain immediate
peace of mind knowing that
your volunteers and employees
are well-vetted using some of the
most powerful and advanced background
checks available.
PARK S ANDRECRE AT ION . OR G | NOVEMBER 2 0 2 1
| Parks & Recreation
15
http://www.tinyurl.com/srmsw6h https://tinyurl.com/27epurm3 https://tinyurl.com/27epurm3 https://www.nrpa.org/inmemoriam https://www.nrpa.org/inmemoriam http://www.bib.com
November 2021 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of November 2021 - Parks & Recreation
