The Educational Implications of Changing Job Responsibilities and Staffing Patterns in State Park Planning

Abstract

This paper reports on a nationwide research project aimed at documenting the work responsibilities and staffing patterns of state park planners. Results indicate decreasing staff size and diversifying work responsibilities for state park planners. In addition, a general neglect of documenting planning processes, evaluating plans and updating plans exists within state park planning units. Select educational implications of these findings are explored in this paper. Adopting a stronger outdoor recreation planning emphasis within recreation management curricula is proposed to ensure that students are adequately prepared for entrance into the outdoor recreation planning field In addition, students seeking the emphasis should be exposed to an interdisciplinary education which should include exposure to a variety of planning theories, planning techniques, research skills and communication skills often taught in general planning and social science curricula.

Key words:

• State park planning
• outdoor recreation planning
• recreation curriculum

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ron Nickerson

Biographical Information

Ron Nickerson, is a Senior State Park Planner with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and a Ph.D. student in Forest Recreation at the University of Minnesota. His research interests include benefits-based management, curriculum design, policy development and planning.

Ingrid Schneider

Ingrid E. Schneider, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor at Arizona State University in the Department of Recreation Management and Tourism. Her research interests include visitor behavior, recreation conflict, stress, as well as multicultural recreation and tourism.