NRPA Conference is less than a month away. We are very excited to see Fort Riley and Johnson County representing Kansas at the NRPA Gold Medal Award Program in October. To learn more, visit http://www.nrpa.org/goldmedal/. Good luck to both agencies!

Congratulations to Chanute, Wichita, Leawood and Cheney for being chosen to receive grants from our Healthy Communities Funding Initiative. Thank you to all who applied, and a special thanks to Gametime and Playcore for bringing this opportunity to Kansas. We are looking forward to seeing how these projects bring health and wellness to our local communities.

Congrats Johnson County Park and Recreation District - JCPRD for being a 2016 National Gold Medal Award finalist for Excellence in Park and Recreation Management!  nrpa.org/Press-Releases/2016-Finalists-Announced-National-Gold-Medal-Awards-Parks-Recreation

2016 Young Professionals Lunch and Learn

 Thursday, April 28, 2016
11:30-1:00PM

NEW LOCATION!!!
Emporia Recreation Commission
313 W 4th Avenue
Emporia, KS 66801
(Planet Sub lunch provided if you RSVP.)

                       
2016 Summer Hiring Trends

Professionals: Join us a learn recruiting strategies and network with fellow professionals.
Students: Join us and discover protential summer jobs & internships and meet protential employers. 

RSVP to Sean Thomas at sthomas@cityofshawnee.org.

Click here to learn more about being a Young Professional Committee member.

Save the date! The KRPA Golf Tournament will be held August 26, 2016. More information to come.

The 2016 Midwest Regional Park and Recreation Conference is in Omaha, Nebraska from April 11-12 at the Ramada Plaza Hotel and Conference Center. To register for the conference, visit webtrac.cityofomaha.org and search 2016.

Ramada Plaza Hotel & Convention Center: $79.00 nightly rate, Nebraska Recreation & Park Group Rate. Call 402-393-3950, ext 0 to book rooms. Must book by 03/11/16 for group rate.

We have two great workshops happening this spring for one weekend in Manhattan, KS. You will not want to miss them.

NAYS:
The National Alliance for Youth Sports (NAYS) will conduct a special Academy for Youth Sports Administrators in Manhattan on February 29, 2016.  

Arm your professional staff with the information, resources and tools necessary to ensure safe and positive youth sports for your programs as well as the programs offered by volunteers/parents within your community. 

NAYS one day training allows participants to complete on-site training and then the certification process online.  The mission of NAYS seeks to make the sports experience safe, fun and healthy for ALL children, promoting the value and importance of sports and physical activities in the emotional, physical, social and mental development of youth.  More information is available on this training at www.nays.org/academy

Pre-Registration is Required. Register here. This course will be offered on Monday, February 29th.

Concussion Summit:

One of the biggest topics in 2015 about sports was concussions. It's been addressed in movies, the media, the pros and the amateurs. Maybe you are wondering what is our role in concussion prevention and youth recreation sports? We are very excited to host a Concussion Summit in Manhattan, KS on March 1, 2016. We will have leading professionals in the athletic and medical field discussing what is a concussion, what is common protocol, concussion resources and ideas for policies to implement in your community. The location for the concussion summit is the Kansas State University Football Stadium (2201 Kimball Ave, Manhattan, KS 66502.) Cost for Concussion Summit: $20 member and $30 nonmember

Click here to register.

The Kansas Recreation and Park Association, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City have partnered in the awarding of six state healthy community awards.

 Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas sponsors the BlueCHIP Award in every Kansas county except Johnson and Wyandotte.  Those two counties fall under the jurisdiction of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas City.  Collectively, the two organizations have demonstrated their support of both parks and recreation in Kansas and of encouraging healthy lifestyles by supporting and sponsoring this meaningful award.

 To learn more, visit https://krpa.wildapricot.org/Blue-Chip-Award.

The deadline to apply for a BlueCHIP Award is December 4th.  For additional information on the process, email the KRPA Office.