Hello everyone. I am currently in the process of starting a Director’s Alliance for Director’s that lead minority park district’s, director’s that lead small park district’s, and minorities that are leaders in the field of park and recreation throughout Illinois that currently serve as park district director’s/assistant directors. I feel it is very crucial for us to get together and begin to meet so we can discuss the variety of issues that plague us as leaders and issues that hinder the possible success and future growth of minority park district’s. In speaking with a number of director’s that lead our minority park district’s I have found that we are all facing similar issues that may one day lead to the disappearance of minority park district’s or the decline in recreation opportunities in areas that have large minority populations. I have pondered in my mind a variety of ways we can begin to uplift our communities and increase the quality of programs for our communities but I feel as though we need to gather together as a group to discuss our issues and support each other as we move forward to improve our park districts. If you have any additional comments or would like further information please feel free to leave a post or contact me directly. IEMS will host our first Director’s Alliance meeting on Tuesday, April 29th at 1:30pm. The location will be posted sometime next week.

Just a reminder that the EMS Section Meeting is tomorrow Thursday, April 10, 10am at the IPRA Headquarters.
IPRA is located at 1815 S. Meyers Road, Suite 400, Oakbrook Terrace, IL 60181
If you get lost call the office at (630) 376-1911.

Or copy and paste this link into your browser for directions.
http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&client=safari&rls=en&resnum=0&q=1815+S.+Myers+Road+Suite+400+Oakbrook+Terrace,+IL+60181+Phone:+(630)+376-1911+Fax:+(630)+376-1919&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wl

Following the buzz that surrounded Barack Obama and his Pastor’s racially charged remarks, the Chicago Tribune published a great article on the front page which focused on the the dialogue of race and the associated discomfort that takes place as we address these issues. The article surmises that there is no avoiding both the issue and the discomfort.

The issue is being discussed daily, and as IPRA members, we must strike while the iron is hot. What can EMS and IPRA do to continue this discussion and bring about the changes within our field to better address the recreational needs of all members of community. For too long we have ignored those who were not in the majority whether they were a minority race, religion, or ethnic group. The fact that Illinois Senator and Presidential Candidate Barack Obama is speaking about it, is an opportunity to extend the dialogue on how we address these issues.

Copy and paste this link in your browser to see the full article.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-trice_race_bdmar23,0,4235995.column

The Illinois Ethnic Minority Section (EMS) announced the winners of the 2008 IPRA Conference Pre’pared’ness Factor Challenge. Winners of the challenge attended one or more of the four informative sessions during the annual conference at the Hyatt. Winners will receive a pair of high-end sunglasses courtesy of EMS.

The EMS session theme revolved around the question; “Does your agency reflect the community in which it lives?” The sessions were a great opportunity for agencies to reflect upon the future population of their communities and how to prepare and execute successful outreach plans.

Winners of the IPRA Conference Pre’pared’ness Factor Challenge were:
- Marianne Birko WSSRA
- Gloria Cudia, Outreach Coordinator Rockford Park District
- Leslie Zizumbo, Rec Supervisor North Berwyn Park District
- Diane Carson, Forest Preserve District of Will County
- Myrnalis “Liz” Rios, Operations Assistant Rockford Park District

Congratulation once again and stay tuned for the next EMS function!

For information and presentation material from the EMS sessions, visit the EMS blog at ems.ILipra.org.

Welcome to the new home for IPRA’s Ethnic Minority Section professionals! As you’ll soon find out, this new blog (read: interactive Web site) will allow for so much more learning and interaction among members than the old static Recreation page.

With this new site, you as the EMS Section members, have the ability to become Contributors and post your own questions, news, learning experiences, meeting updates, workshop reminders, etc. You no longer have to wait for IPRA staff to update little nuggets of information - the power is in your hands!

Once you’ve published a post others in the section have the ability to comment on them and provide feedback. This begins the interaction and learning. Think of this blog as the EMS ListServ on steroids! Same great concept but now every post will be archived by category for later reference. You also don’t have to worry about email addresses - and bad emails too.

The success of the EMS Section blog is really up to you, the member. If nothing ever gets posted and no one ever comments it’ll become a static page like the one you’re used to. Take control of your EMS communications and get the word out.

To get started as a Contributor, simply click on the Login link at the top of the page…click on Register…enter a Username you’d like to use and you’re email address…and a password will be sent to you within 48 hours. Now you can Login with your information and begin writing and publishing your thoughts. Easy huh?

We’re hear to help so let us know if you’re having any issues. Have fun!