By Dr. George Lowrey

STAND UP AND BE COUNTED

What does it mean to be able to say "I am a registered professional? What is a registered professional? How can I become one? How important is it?" At the present time the answer to the first question is simply that you represent those practitioners in the field who are willing to stand up and be counted among those who insist on documented qualifications for practice in our emerging profession. It means that you have enough pride and confidence in your own accomplishments, knowledge, and expertise to subject yourself voluntarily to examination by your professional peers. It means in the final analysis that you are not merely a job holder but a dedicated and qualified professional administrator or supervisor in a field of endeavor which daily, weekly, yearly becomes more important in this state and nation. The converse is not always true, however, and that is the very purpose of this particular plea.

With the stirrings of social consciousness during the latter part of the 19th century American cities began to provide parks and playgrounds for citizens use in the rapidly growing urban complexes of the day. Although the need for workers to supervise these areas was recognized early such efforts were largely uncoordinated and with little direction. With the establishment of the Playground Association of America in 1906 and its subsequent provisions for training a new profession was born.

The "Normal Course in Play" developed by Henry S. Curtis, and later the National Recreation School and efforts of the WPA during the great depression to train professional workers for leisure service agencies laid the foundation for college and university programs in this field subsequent to World War II. The development of professional preparation has been rather rapid during the last 25 years with the convergence of the play leader, the park oriented worker and the conservationist into the combined curricula for Parks and Recreation reflected in most education programs throughout the country. Unprecedented growth of urban and suburban areas and the complexities of public, semi-public and private provisions for leisure services demanding high quality personnel has brought us rather quickly to the threshold of becoming an established profession with all rights and responsibilities inherent in that final step.

Codes of Ethics

Whether Parks and Recreation meets all of the criteria of a profession or not, most vocations tend to gravitate toward professional behavior. The most obvious manifestations of this are the development of codes of ethics to guide practitioners and the devising of some means of controlling who shall practice in the profession. The authority for control should rest with the profession itself and the usual order for achieving this is first through voluntary registration plans, eventually state certification, and ultimately licensing regulations. Most established professions such as medicine, law and teaching are regulated by licensing provisions of one type or another. Regardless of the terminology the net result is that those who wish to practice that profession must present proof of their competence to effectively carry out the duties and responsibilities. As a profession becomes more important and necessary to the public greater significance is placed upon assurance of a minimal level of expertise in those who serve that public.

Voluntary registration is the first rung in the ladder and we can now answer that second

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question. A registered professional in Illinois is one who has voluntarily laid his qualifications "on the table" so to speak and passed an examination devised by the Personnel Standards Committee of the IPRS. He is one of those far sighted individuals who realizes the ultimate need for this kind of professional response and is willing to voluntarily set the example and establish his vocation as one requiring a fairly high level of qualification.

What are those qualifications? As with most professions they center around education and experience with some sort of proof of special knowledge or skill. There are some who still argue the relative merits of education and experience and there are obvious limitations to both of them. All education is not of the same quality nor is all experience. Nevertheless, the acquisition of either is preferable to their absence. They do represent a certain level of qualification and careful analysis of what kind of education and what kind of experience is most helpful. The examination is commonly given to offset the variances presented by education and experience. A well constructed examination is a keen indicator of level of knowledge which when combined with education and experience effectively authenticates a person's professional status.

The most common barrier to an effective voluntary registration plan is apprehension about the examination. Many people cannot believe an examination can really test qualifications. The key to this is how well does an examination discriminate. In other words can the exam select only those with the proper qualifications. The presently used administrators examination has been validated experimentally. It was given to a group of administrators including businessmen, bankers, industrialists and recreators. The recreators consistently outscored the others because of their specific knowledge concerning parks and recreation problems. Thus on the basis of score on the test we were able to select the recreator even though administration is a basic skill cutting across many fields. The examination is basically objective and thus less subject to grade bias.

How can you become registered? Every member of the society will receive a copy of the revised registration plan and an application blank this year. We intend to keep the opportunity before you in the Journal and the newsletter. It is a voluntary program so you must make the decision to join your fellow registered professionals.

How important is registration? As we strive to change our image from the whistle tooting ball-bouncer, and green thumb grass tender to the broader, just as important manager of resources and community leader with responsibility for literally millions of dollars of public assets and funds the value we place on competence is of prime concern. The eventual image in a leisure - centered society of "guardians of human balance" will call for the highest of qualifications.

Dr. George A. Lowrey is on the Staff at the University of Illinois, Department of Recreation and Park Administration.

Illinois Parks and Recreation    19    May/June, 1971