NIRSA Strategic Framework
2024-2027

Industry Insights Report

NIRSA engaged Association Laboratory to conduct the fourth iteration of a survey that gathers data about the environment within which campus recreation professionals work. The results were used in the strategic framework planning process and formed the basis for the Industry Insights report. The report highlights key findings and potential impacts for the profession.

The report was made possible through funding from the NIRSA Foundation.

Our Value Proposition

NIRSA provides the best resources for learning, networking and advocacy so that campus recreation professionals can inspire healthy people and healthy communities worldwide.

NIRSA Strategic Values

Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion

Global Perspective

Health & Wellbeing

Leadership

Service

Sustainable Communities

2024 NIRSA Annual Meeting of Members

The NIRSA Annual Meeting of Members will be held on Wednesday, April 3 at 12:00pm Eastern/9:00am Pacific.

2024 NIRSA Annual Meeting of Members

The 2024 NIRSA Annual Meeting of Members was held on Wednesday, April 3, 2024.

Foundations

Members feel that NIRSA represents their professional home where meaningful connections are made and intentional development is obtained. NIRSA responsibly stewards its resources.

Member Value Strategies 

  • Promote the value of NIRSA and its overall benefit portfolio to encourage member engagement and assist with recruitment and retention efforts.
  • Provide welcoming and collaborative environments to share emerging and best practices.
  • Provide a positive and developmental volunteer experience.

Shared Expectations for Belonging Strategies 

  • Build NIRSA programs and services on the foundation of justice, equity, diversity, inclusion, and respect.
  • Foster an environment of belonging for all staff, members, and stakeholders.
  • Honor shared and individual experiences, values, beliefs, and identities through meaningful representation.
  • Celebrate and acknowledge the diversity of the NIRSA community and encourage others to do the same.
  • Create a culture and environment where people feel valued and celebrated as their whole selves.

Stewardship Strategies 

  • Ensure long-term financial viability of NIRSA to meet member needs.
  • Conduct ongoing cost/benefit analysis of NIRSA’s operations, programs, services, and initiatives to identify areas for adjustment based on agreed upon success metrics, industry benchmarks, and available resources.
  • Evaluate current and new programs for the feasibility of untapped revenue generation.

2024-2027 Goals and Strategies

Members feel that NIRSA represents their professional home where meaningful connections are made and intentional development is obtained. NIRSA responsibly stewards its resources.

Goal: A Robust Pipeline of Supported and Motivated Professionals

Campus recreation is an impactful career path in which professionals and students acquire the skills necessary for growth and success in our evolving industry.

Strategies

  • Implement changes to current programming by career stage and monitor to ensure it continually meets the workforce education needs of stakeholders.
  • Create and maintain inclusive educational materials for a variety of new pathways for campus recreation positions.
  • Establish best practices for recruiting diverse talent and explore relationships with industry partners for workforce recruitment efforts.
  • Convene members around workplace structure and policies to better meet the needs of today’s employees.
  • Update NIRSA’s core competencies to ensure the education portfolio is always relevant.

Goal: Advocacy

Campus leaders, students, and stakeholders understand the impact of campus recreation professionals, programs, and facilities.

Strategies

  • Provide resources to equip professionals to effectively communicate the impact of, and advocate for, campus recreation.
  • Curate relevant research that demonstrates the impact of campus recreation.
  • Cultivate partnerships and position members to advance the field.

Goal: Wellbeing

Wellbeing is recognized as a multifaceted, complex system; the wellbeing of campus recreation professionals is supported, and student wellbeing is the center of their work.

Strategies

  • Incorporate systems change, equitable wellbeing, and impactful storytelling into current wellbeing literacy and education materials.
  • Promote NIRSA and member activities that support wellbeing.
  • Provide resources and pathways that help leverage member expertise and support the advancement of wellbeing on campus.
  • Commit to being proactive innovators and relentless collaborators who are constantly seeking to foster relationships and partnerships to advance wellbeing.

2021-2024 Strategic Priorities

NIRSA will continue to be a driving force in an integrated approach to health and wellbeing.

NIRSA actively advocates for Health and Wellbeing in Higher Education: A Commitment to Student Success and promotes shared understanding through the Inter-association Wellbeing Definition.

The Health & Wellbeing Task Force developed resources for members, including the multimodal Promising Practices, the Wellbeing Briefing, and a Recreation for Wellbeing course.

Promising Practices highlights integrated wellbeing initiatives and campus-wide efforts that are driven by campus recreation staff and leaders. The Wellbeing Briefing aims to communicate collective work in the wellbeing field, share research, and connect members to existing resources. The Recreation for Wellbeing course is an eight-week learning journey anchored by four live, 90-minute learning modules with opportunities for asynchronous learning, engagement, and interactive dialogue with peers throughout the course.

To help understand how the landscape of wellbeing in higher education is evolving, and to inform benchmarks for campus recreation’s impact in this space, NIRSA’s Health & Wellbeing Task Force administers a survey every two years. The results help the Association tell the story of how campus recreation continues to be a driving force in this work.

NIRSA will strive for inclusive excellence through an anti-racist and equity lens.

NIRSA retained diversity strategists 122 Consulting Group to conduct a climate study that assessed NIRSA’s culture, climate, and structures and to determine areas in which the association supported inclusion and areas where there were barriers preventing equity for all.

In the fall of 2021, NIRSA members were extended two avenues for participation: individuals were invited to share their perspectives through a climate survey and through smaller focus group meetings.

The JDEI Organizational Climate Assessment: Executive Summary and JDEI Climate Study Report were made available in May 2022.

NIRSA committed to a range of action steps based on the recommendations in the JDEI Climate Study Report. Learn more in our JDEI Climate Study Insights Webinar.

A Climate Study Implementation Team was appointed in 2022 and co-chaired by NIRSA Board At-Large Director Victoria Lopez-Herrera, Past President Cara Lucia, and Executive Director Pam Watts.

The Implementation Team designed and executed an inclusive process to determine NIRSA’s shared norms and language, as recommended by the Climate Study report. What emerged was Shared Expectations for Belonging, which were adopted by the NIRSA Board in 2023 and embedded in the 2024-2027 Strategic Framework. Learn more about the recent work and future plans.

NIRSA will reimagine learning, education, and networking.

The Association introduced a new learning management system in 2021. With new content added monthly, learners can access a wealth of timely, competency-based educational content live or on demand.

The 2022-2023 NIRSA Board reviewed the portfolio of learning and education products. They reviewed available data and discussed observable trends in the industry that impact training, development, job skills, competencies, and advancement in the field. The data and discussions were synthesized to provide direction for the development of learning content, the future of paused events, and what new learning products should be developed in response to changes in the field. The initial recommendations were approved June 2023 and will be implemented over the next three years.

Ideas in Motion roundtables, caucus conversations, and live webinars & discussions are all accessible opportunities for members to connect with professional peers without incurring travel expenses.

Networking has been a cornerstone of the Association since its inception. The pandemic upended some practices and ushered in new ideas for effective networking. At NIRSA conferences and institutes, planners experimented with a variety of new and evolved networking opportunities and continue to keep an eye on emerging trends.