WEDNESDAY
March 25
8:00 - 10:00 am
Keynote: Fueled by Positivity and Impact
Get ready to laugh, reflect, and reignite your purpose! In this high-energy and action-driven keynote, Dr. Dexter Shorter reminds recreation and parks professionals that their work is more than a job. It’s a powerful source of joy, healing, hope, and connection within communities across Pennsylvania. Through humor, real-life stories, and a healthy dose of inspiration, you'll be challenged to see your routine efforts as life-changing acts of impact. Come with an open mind and leave fueled with passion and pride in the difference you’re making in the lives of others every day.
WEDNESDAY March 25
8:30 - 9:45 am
Playground Inspection & Maintenance: Preserve, Promote, Protect
Sustainable maintenance programs are essential to positive outdoor play experiences for children at their school and community playgrounds. This session is designed to create awareness, maximize the value of playground investments, and create safer outdoor play destinations that promote healthy risk-taking and fun! Routine maintenance and visual inspections are key to preserving play and recreation environments, and properly identifying and addressing potentially hazardous conditions supports safer opportunities to engage in the lifelong benefits of play.
Speaker: Josh Hartley, Regional Sales Manager - GameTime
Environmentally Sensitive Trail Maintenance & Construction
Environmentally Sensitive Maintenance (ESM) is a term used to describe a suite of principles and practices that are designed to create a more environmentally and financially sustainable public trail system. They are long term practices designed to reduce erosion and maintenance within the trail corridor. Long-term environmental benefits are achieved by attempting to “restore natural drainage” to a state similar to how it was before the trail existed. In contrast to traditional “stormwater systems” that are designed to collect and convey large volumes of runoff, ESM practices focus on diffusing flow at the source, encouraging infiltration and reducing concentrated flow volumes.
Speaker: Eric Nevel, Field Operations Specialist - Penn State University
WEDNESDAY
March 25
2:30 - 3:45 pm
Leading through Empathy
This interactive session explores the vital role empathy plays in effective leadership, especially within the context of local government and community services. Participants will learn how empathetic leadership fosters stronger teams, enhances communication, and builds trust with both internal staff and the communities they serve. Through real-world examples, self-reflection, and practical tools, attendees will examine how to lead with greater emotional intelligence, navigate challenging conversations, and apply an equity lens to everyday leadership decisions. Whether you manage teams, work with the public, or influence organizational culture, this session equips you to lead with authenticity, compassion, and impact.
Speakers: James Mickle, Manager - Berry,Dunn, McNeil, and Parker LLC; Lakita Fraizer, Manage - Berry,Dunn, McNeil, and Parker LLC
AI for Recreation: Lessons from Uber and OpenAI
AI is everywhere, but how should we actually use it in our recreation departments? Come learn practical applications for AI beyond ChatGPT. With insights from Silicon Valley giants like Uber and OpenAI, we’ll cover how innovative parks & rec departments across the US are putting AI to work within city policies. From implementing AI agents for scheduling to developing personalized marketing, this session will offer concrete strategies to harness AI’s potential - without requiring a degree in software engineering.
Speaker: Birju Kadakia, CEO and Co-Founder - Rec Technologies Inc
The Power of Partnerships: Collaborating Outside Your Aquatics Bubble
Break out of the aquatics silo and discover the power of collaboration! This session explores how partnerships with other departments and community organizations can enhance programming, share resources, and build stronger, more inclusive services. Through real-world examples and interactive discussion, participants will learn practical strategies to identify, initiate, and sustain impactful collaborations beyond the pool.
Speakers: Cait Waxler, Public Safety and Aquatic Specialist - American Red Cross; Lauren Fry, Public Safety and Aquatics Specialist - American Red Cross
Designing playgrounds for neuro-inclusion
Inclusive or all abilities playgrounds have become a standard in our communities. The increased prevalence of ADHD and Autism have given attention for the need to be neuro-inclusive in the design of play spaces that will serve the needs of all children and inspire children of a range of abilities to play together. But how is this accomplished? In this session you will learn about neuro-inclusive design strategies for playgrounds based on research with children who experience neurodiversity.
Speaker: Suzanne Quinn, Manager - KOMPAN Play Institute
Has Your Facility Been Loved to Death?
You have a facility that has been well used and loved by your community. With this "love," facilities often face challenges such as aging infrastructure, increased usage demands, and evolving community needs in order to maintain participation. This session will explore strategies for revitalizing and modernizing older facilities to enhance functionality, sustainability, and user experience. Attendees will gain insights into best practices for maintenance, updates/renovations/expansions, and long-term planning to ensure their facilities remain valuable community assets.
Speakers: Scott Caron, Senior Associate - Ballard King and Associates; Darin Barr, President - Ballard King and Associates
Tomorrow’s Leaders: Youth Workforce Development in Parks & Recreation
This presentation will highlight the experiences of park and recreation agencies working with youth in park and recreation based workforce development. Working from the principles of NRPA’s Youth Workforce Development Framework, Barbara Kapustin, Program Manager at NRPA, will facilitate conversation on successes, challenges, and new ideas for workforce development programming in parks and recreation. The principles of the framework include: building on existing programs, advancing skills-based learning, adapting to an evolving workplace and developing partnerships and finding funding. This framework and presentation pull from the knowledge and experience of park and recreation staff from across the country, alongside individuals from corporate, nonprofit, and academic backgrounds.
Speaker: Barbara Kapustin, Program Manager - NRPA
How to Make $80,000+ Annually through Charity Bingo Nights
Discover how a well-run Charity Bingo can generate over $50,000 for your organization and raise another $30,000+ for other local non-profits. Learn proven strategies to boost attendance, attract volunteers, and create a fun, community-driven event that delivers real results.
Speaker: Angela O'Connor, Parks & Recreation Director - Chartiers Township
WEDNESDAY
March 25
4:00 - 5:15 pm
Train Wrecks and Dumpster Fires in Aquatics
Aquatic professionals regularly face unexpected challenges—from difficult patron interactions and facility malfunctions to critical incidents involving staff. This session will examine real-world case studies to explore what went right, what went wrong, and the lessons learned. Through a combination of storytelling, video analysis, and group discussion, participants will gain valuable insights into effective response strategies, risk management, and staff training practices in aquatic environments.
Speaker: Todd Roth, Aquatic Supervisor - Centre Region Parks and Recreation
NRPA is coming to Pennsylvania!
The NATIONAL Recreation and Park Association Annual Conference is coming to Philadelphia in 2026: September 29 - October 1! This session will be a crash-course covering all things NRPA: how to get involved, what to expect, when/what to do, how to maximize your time, etc.
Speakers: Michael Biedenstein, CPRE, AFO, Senior Manager of Membership - National Recreation and Park Association; Bill Salvatore, Director of Parks and Recreation - Cheltenham Township; Rob Jackson, Director of Special Programs and Program Division Chief of Staff - Philadelphia Parks and Recreation
Hazard Tree Analysis - Look Up!
This session will discuss how to keep workers safe when dispatched to handle a down tree, monitoring trees in public use areas, and trees on roadways. It will include a brief on personal protective equipment (PPE) necessary for the individuals responding, followed by hazard analysis of the work area prior to commencing the tree project.
Speaker: Mike Powell, Extension Educator - Penn State Extension
Learn How to Create Amazing Teambuilding Programs
Getting staff to work together can be challenging. The true art of teambuilding is a carefully thought-out sequence of initiatives designed to create a desired outcome. To fully appreciate the nuances of basic facilitation, this fun, interactive session is designed for anyone who wants to learn effective ways to increase group or task productivity. We will go over terminology, categories of initiatives, how to match up activities with group goals and what constitutes proper sequencing.
Speaker: Greg Cronin, Park Manager - Loudoun County Parks and Recreation
Try-It's to Trails! (More People on Bikes!)
Get more kids on bikes! (And adults too!). Through an interactive (on bikes!) session you’ll learn how to turn a small space into a fun riding experience that can kick start a love for the great outdoors and change lives and communities as it grows. We’d love to work with you on our mission to build mind, body, character, and community and to engage participants in trail stewardship through PA Interscholastic Cycling League teams.
Speaker: Mike Kuhn, Director - Pennsylvania Interscholastic Cycling League
Strategies for Success: Developing Grassroots Tennis & Improving Tennis Infrastructure
Tennis participation is surging to unprecedented levels, with 25.7 million Americans hitting the courts in 2024 – marking a 46% increase since 2019. With the growth of tennis and other racquet and paddle sports, park agencies face increasing demand for quality facilities. This session equips you to meet that demand! Learn how to tap into grant funding and leverage local experts to streamline the development and operation of public tennis facilities. From planning and design to maintenance and operations, this session provides a practical guide to streamline every stage of your infrastructure projects.
We will share real-world case studies, actionable insights, innovative approaches to facility upgrades, and practical tips for tennis programming and showcase different aspects of how tennis can be delivered in today’s parks – whether it’s hiring a non-profit organization, such as a National Junior Tennis & Learning (NJTL) chapter or Community Tennis Association (CTA), or providing tennis directly through your parks and recreation department. After all, tennis is the world's healthiest sport!
Speaker: Renee Lentz, Director of Community Development - United States Tennis Association/Middle States; Deb Loggia, Tennis Advocacy and Parks Coordinator – United States Tennis Association/Middle States
Process Based Restoration as a Cost-Effective Tool for Waterway Management
This presentation outlines how low-tech process-based restoration (LTPBR) offers natural area managers affordable, scalable tools for waterway management. It highlights key principles—working with natural processes, mimicking nature, and flexible application—alongside cost savings through minimal equipment, local materials, and phased projects. Ecological benefits include improved water quality, habitat, floodplain reconnection, and biodiversity. Applications range from erosion control to climate adaptation, emphasizing LTPBR’s role in building resilient, self-sustaining waterways while reducing long-term maintenance costs.
Speaker: Stephen Myers, Senior Project Manager - Civil & Environmental Consultants, Inc.