October 2022 - Parks & Recreation - 48

EQUITY
also
Over the past few months, NRPA
has been conducting
focus
groups and individual interviews
with members and professionals
about the state of DEI initiatives
in their agencies and communities.
Through this discovery
process,
most participants noted that they
have been exposed to most of the
foundational concepts of DEI but
are looking for training opportunities
that go beyond that. One focus
group participant noted, " We need
to move on from why this is important
to what we can do about it. "
Park and recreation professionals
value professional learning.
In 2021, NRPA found that park and
recreation leaders note a strong desire
to share best practices in DEI as
they establish or build upon existing
efforts at their agencies. Specifically,
survey respondents want more conversations
with their peers on " what's
being done across the country " when
it comes to DEI, such as exchanging
agency policies and making recommendations
on DEI subject matter
experts and speakers. When survey
respondents were asked what was
needed from NRPA, agencies requested
access to educational and
professional development opportunities;
subject matter experts and consultants;
and a library of resources,
including best practices, webinars and
toolkits. During our focus groups and
interviews, one participant highlighted
that leaders want to learn from the
practitioners who are one step ahead
of them on their DEI journey. They
want to " see the path " and learn how
to better transfer their knowledge into
the application of skills.
During
the
past
18
months,
we've been working hard to fill
these gaps, and in response, have
developed our latest initiative:
Equity in Practice (EiP).
Equity in Practice: NRPA's
Plan to Support the Field
in Achieving Equitable
Outcomes
To put it simply, to create a future
where everyone has fair and just access
to quality parks and recreation,
we need to act. Equity requires practice,
patience and a commitment to
progress. Because of this, NRPA is
creating new opportunities for park
and recreation professionals to put
equity into practice through a variety
of learning experiences where members
can increase their knowledge
around centering equity and practice
the necessary skills to advance equity
in our communities. NRPA's new
EiP initiative has three goals: (1) Provide
a curated learning experience for
our members that meets them where
they are and builds upon core skills
to advance DEI; (2) Create a sustainable
learning model that equips
individuals or teams within agencies
to develop long-term, meaningful
equity programs; and (3) Go beyond
awareness-based DEI education to
elevate equitable change that's specific
to the goals and challenges of
parks and recreation.
The EiP initiative provides members
with several different learning
and engagement opportunities,
which are designed to assist every
single professional, regardless of role,
capacity or influence with promoting
equity in their community and agency.
Our EiP initiative can be broken
down into four types of offerings:
a resource library, peer networks,
monthly online learning events, and
our latest certificate program.
EiP Resource Library
One piece of the EiP initiative includes
NRPA's newest resource
library, the EiP Resource Library
(nrpa.org/EquityResource
Library), which is a set of vetted
48 Parks & Recreation | O CTOBER 2 0 22 | PARK S ANDRECRE AT ION . OR G
and carefully curated resources
available to NRPA members. Designed
to help park and recreation
professionals with any DEI-related
issue, the newly launched EiP Resource
Library has toolkits, policy
examples, book recommendations,
articles, research, webinars and other
activities to support individual
learning of equity concepts across
park and recreation functions.
Housed on our website, anyone in
the field can search, filter and discover
new ways to learn about and
implement equitable solutions.
DEI Peer Networks
A second portion of the EiP initiative
includes new ways to engage
members through peer networks.
The State Affiliates DEI Committee
Network (a peer network for members
of state associations working to
advance equity at the state level) and
the DEI Leaders Network (a peer
network for members leading DEI
work within their agencies) utilize
bimonthly calls and an NRPA Connect
channel to facilitate learning
and sharing amongst professionals.
These network calls are held on alternating
second Tuesdays of every
month at noon ET.
Monthly Online Learning Events
Members now can dive deeper
into equity issues through monthly
" talks " and " clinics. " Formerly
known as a webinar, a " talk " is a
presentation by a subject matter
expert or a panel of professionals
sharing best practices across the
field. A " clinic, " while still virtual,
is a more hands-on approach
to
learning,
events
inviting participants
to actually practice a specific skill
with guidance from an instructor.
These
allow participants
to interact and dialogue with the
facilitator, as well as with other
http://www.nrpa.org/EquityResourceLibrary http://www.nrpa.org/EquityResourceLibrary
October 2022 - Parks & Recreation

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