Students gain new perspectives of recreation industry in Florida

Students gain new perspectives of recreation industry in Florida

As winter break set in, 10 Northwest Missouri State University students traded in the cold weather for Florida temperatures as part of the University's Exploring Recreation Resources course.

The seven-day interdisciplinary experience exposed students to a broad range of topics, including ecology, design, marine biology and therapeutic recreation. Participating students earned one to three academic credits.

Associate Professor of Recreation Dr. Joel McCormick instructed the course to expose students to career environments and connect course concepts to real-world experiences.

"It just makes everything hands-on and experiential learning, which I think is probably the most important type of learning," McCormick said. "You can read a textbook and forget it later on, but if you live the experience, you understand it by doing it, and it's going to stick with you a lot longer."

Students participated in a variety of experiences, including swimming with manatees and exploring beaches. The team engaged with several large-scale tourism and entertainment venues, including Walt Disney World, The Walt Disney Studios and the Harn Museum of Art. They also explored historical sites in St. Augustine, Florida.

"It was really interesting, since it made us think about all the work and job opportunities that are available in the world of tourism and parks," said Kayli Fitzmaurice, a junior digital media major with a visual imaging emphasis from Olathe, Kansas. "I liked that we were able to talk with some of the people within the fields. They really gave us a great glimpse into the thought, the planning, and how much work and upkeep there is in some recreational fields."

After graduating from Northwest, Fitzmaurice hopes to pursue a career in user experience, user interface or media design. With that goal in mind, Fitzmaurice gained new perspectives on how design concepts are embedded in public spaces.

"This trip gave me a better understanding of what design can look like and where it can be used," Fitzmaurice said. "Design is everywhere and used for everything, which is something I was able to experience while on the various tours. Everything from a park map to the uniforms to the menus all have to be designed. It was fun to see design be displayed in so many different ways."

For other students, a key stop on the trip was Give Kids The World Village, an 89-acre, nonprofit "storybook" resort, where children with critical illnesses and their families are treated to weeklong, cost-free vacations.

"This trip as a whole influenced my understanding by helping me learn some new areas of recreation that I hadn't thought of before," Lacy Carlson, a senior human services major from Maryville, said. "But specifically, the Give Kids The World Village visit gave me a real-life example of a non-profit organization as well as helping my classmates and I learn about how the organization is a part of the therapeutic recreation field."

After each site visit, the team discussed their observations, reflecting and sharing their experiences. The faculty-led discussions allowed students to articulate how real-world recreation settings reinforced Northwest course content and exposed them to other career paths.

"One takeaway I have from this experience is how diverse the field of recreation really is," Carlson said. "While I didn't major in recreation, I can still apply this to my academic career by making sure I understand how diverse my field really is and just how many job opportunities there are."