In a year that saw the highly-anticipated opening of the Poudre River Whitewater Park, the Fort Collins Parks Department managed to quantify the quality of its parks in receiving national accreditation for its spaces, services and programming. 

The Fort Collins Parks Department received recognition from the Commission for Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies to attest to the high standards met, wrote Valerie Van Ryn, lead marketing specialist for the Parks and Recreation Department, in an email to The Collegian.

CAPRA is the only national accreditation for the quality of operations conducted by a parks department. It is meant to measure the quality of operation, management and service to the community, according to the CAPRA website. Currently, there are 176 accredited parks departments.

“This (is) a prestigious award that is well-deserved, thanks to the thoughtful, intentional guidance of our leaders and valuable input from staff throughout the organization, particularly in the Parks, Recreation and Park Planning Departments,” Van Ryn wrote.

The Parks Department has worked on receiving this accreditation for two years, Van Ryn wrote.

The process to receive the accreditation takes five steps from submitting a preliminary application to participating in an in-person hearing at the National Parks and Recreation Association’s annual conference.

We learned a lot going through this process and realize that we can and will improve.” -Steve Lukowski, Parks manager, Fort Collins

In 2017, the Fort Collins Parks and Recreation Department received the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, another award related to parks department management, Van Ryn wrote. After receiving this award, the CAPRA accreditation was the natural next step.

Receiving this accreditation is flattering, but receiving recognition was not the goal of being accredited, wrote Steve Lukowski, the manager for parks in Fort Collins. This accreditation was part of a journey to achieve and continue excellence within the department.

CAPRA accreditation uses 151 standards to determine whether or not an agency is able to provide quality services. Thirty-seven of these standards are fundamental and must be met in order to receive the accreditation. Fort Collins Parks and Recreation met all 37 of the fundamental standards and met 111 out of the 114 remaining standards, Van Ryn wrote.

“By going through these processes, we are evaluated on what we do well and what we can improve on, and it’s the latter (that) we zoom in on,” Lukowski wrote. “We learned a lot going through this process and realize that we can and will improve.”

This accreditation demonstrates that an agency and its staff provide the highest possible levels of service to a community, according to the CAPRA website.

Many people in Fort Collins make use of the parks provided by the City. For instance, there is a group of Ph.D. students that come to City Park and play frisbee when the weather is good, said Jenna Parker, a Ph.D. ecology student at Colorado State University.

It was a large process, but well worth the efforts and outcomes. We’ve used it as an opportunity to continue to grow and improve.” -Valerie Van Ryn, marketing specialist, Fort Collins Parks and Recreation Department

People who visit parks tend to do so on a regular basis in order to unwind, said Nelson Mwangi, a park visitor.

“Parks are a good area for decompression, a place to separate from the City and get a breath of fresh air,” said Danielle Ignacio, a park visitor.

After receiving this accreditation, the Parks Department is beginning to update its master plan, which will serve as a guide for ongoing development and growth in the next eight to 10 years, Van Ryn wrote. One of the fundamental standards required to achieve the CAPRA accreditation is to have such a plan, but it is also important for continued management and growth, Van Ryn wrote.

The process of CAPRA allowed for the parks department to focus on park planning, Van Ryn wrote. The department was able to use national management practices as a guide in order to make changes.

Earning this accreditation is part of an ongoing journey, and it’s not just an award to be displayed, Lukowski wrote. Every year moving forward, the Fort Collins Parks Department will need to submit an annual report to the NPRA, as well as complete the process to get reaccredited every five years.

“It was a large process, but well worth the efforts and outcomes,” Van Ryn wrote. “We’ve used it as an opportunity to continue to grow and improve.”

Corbin Reiter can be reached at news@collegian.com or on twitter @CorbinReiter.