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A tradition of excellence.
California State University, Long Beach graduated its first recreation student in 1953, just four years after the legislature created the university. An independent Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies was created in 1965 under the guidance of Dr. David Gray. National accreditation of the program by the National Recreation and Parks Association/American Association for Leisure and Recreation Council on Accreditation has been awarded continuously since 1982. Award Winning Teachers. Each of the tenure track faculty in the Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies has received an award for excellence in teaching:
Award Winning Students. According to the California Parks and Recreation Magazine, at the state conference held in March 2003, “The California Park and Recreation Foundation Scholarship Fund Committee gave away $22,500 in scholarships to 24 deserving undergraduate recreation majors… CSU Long Beach students received 50% of the awards.” Two graduate scholarships were also awarded, and one of the graduate scholarships also was awarded to a CSU Long Beach student. Alumni Achievement. Alumni for CSULB’s Recreation and Leisure Studies department quickly rise to positions of leadership within their profession and frequently serve in elected leadership positions within professional organizations. For example, Kristi McClure (’97) was elected president of the California Parks and Recreation Society District X in 2003. Bryan Spragg (’01) was elected president of the California Parks and Recreation Society Ethnic Minority Association in 2003. (The California Parks and Recreation Society is an organization with over 4,200 members). These are recent examples demonstrating rapid professional recognition. The list of alumni who have served on the state board of this organization is too long to include; each year at least one state board member is an alumni of our program. |
