Sports Management of Campus Recreation by Tyler Nelson

Squash Court at CRCE

Intramural Soccer Field

CRCE

Ice Arena

Illini Grove

ARC

Introduction:Campus Recreation isn't just for going to the ARC, lifting, and trying to hit on girls. It provides fitness classes, intramural activities and even wellness classes. It is highlighted by the Activities and Recreation Center (ARC), which is the largest freestanding on-campus recreation center in the nation.

Background: Campus Recreation is the on-campus recreation provider for the staff and students of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.Their office is located at ARC suite 1430 201 East Peabody Drive Champaign, Illinois. It manages seven on-campus facilities. The indoor facilities include ARC, CRCE, as well as the Ice Arena. The outdoor facilities include the Outdoor Center Fields, Complex Fields, and the Illini Grove.

Employment Opportunities: Campus Recreation is a great job opportunity for the students of the University of Illinois. Like most other agencies they require applicants attend an information session, submit a application, resume, and cover letter. After the initial process some applicants are selected for interview. This past fall hiring session there were over one thousand applicants!

Current Trends: One of the current trends of Campus Recreation is Student Feedback. For example when the ARC was being built there was a survey put out asking students what they wanted, a large majority of students wanted natural sunlight. Because of this request the

ARC features many large windows that allow for natural sunlight.

Definition of Leisure: Although Campus Recreation doesn't have an official definition it does a Vision Statement "There is a place for everyone at Campus Recreation." The main benefit of Campus Recreation is that it looks to meet everyone's needs regardless of their physical limitations.

Synopsis: Campus Recreation offers many programs that make them a sports management agency. One example includes intramural flag football that is ran through campus recreation. Another would be a group fitness class offered at either the ARC or CRCE. Don't worry basketball fans, there are even intramural basketball leagues at ARC and CRCE during the winter. There are also Open Rec opportunities offered at almost every single on campus location, Open Rec allows for people to enjoy their leisure without structure. Working in a campus recreation program would be a major plus if you are planning to work in the sports management field in the future. It would allow you to Network, and gain valuable on-the-job experience. Campus Recreation does an excellent job of delivering various leisure opportunities to the people at the University of Illinois.