July 2017 - Parks & Recreation - 58

NRPA Update

Since 1965, the Gold Medal Awards
program has served as a testament to
the hard work and dedication of agencies that strive to meet the needs of diverse communities. The Gold Medal is
a comprehensive award that looks at the
many challenges agencies face and how
they are leveraging resources to meet
those challenges. This awards program
includes seven classes: five classes based
on population, one class for armed forces
recreation and, in odd numbered years,
one class for state park systems.
A panel of five park and recreation
professionals reviews and judges all application materials. Judges are chosen for
their considerable experience and knowledge in parks and recreation on both the
local and national levels.
Excitement is building as the 28 Gold
Medal Finalists prepare for the Grand
Award announcement during the September 26, 2017 Opening General Session at NRPA's 2017 Annual Conference
in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Please join us in congratulating the
2017 Gold Medal Finalists:
Class I (population 400,001 and over) 
* BREC, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
* Johnson County Park & Recreation
District, Shawnee Mission, Kansas
* Minneapolis Park & Recreation
Board, Minneapolis, Minnesota
* Palm Beach County Parks and
Recreation Department - Lake
Worth, Florida

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Parks & Recreation

Class II (population 150,001 - 400,000) 
* Arlington Parks and Recreation
Department, Arlington, Texas
* Grand Prairie Park, Arts and
Recreation, Grand Prairie, Texas
* Metropolitan Park District of
Tacoma, Tacoma, Washington
* Tualatin Hills Park & Recreation
District, Beaverton, Oregon
Class III (population 75,001 - 150,000) 
* Arlington Heights Park District,
Arlington Heights, Illinois
* City of Evanston Parks, Recreation
and Community Services, Evanston,
Illinois
* City of Mountain View Community
Services Department, Mountain View,
California
* Roswell Recreation, Parks, Historic &
Cultural Affairs, Roswell, Georgia
Class IV (population 30,001 - 75,000)  
* Alpharetta Recreation and Parks
Department, Alpharetta, Georgia
* Bismarck Parks and Recreation
District, Bismarck, North Dakota
* Lombard Park District, Lombard,
Illinois
* City of Wheat Ridge Parks and
Recreation Department, Wheat
Ridge, Colorado

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he American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration (AAPRA),
in partnership with NRPA, is pleased to announce the finalists for the 2017
National Gold Medal Awards for Excellence in Park and Recreation Management. Musco Lighting, LLC has been a proud sponsor of the Gold Medal Awards program for more than 10 years.

NATIO
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Congratulations to the 2017
Gold Medal Awards Finalists

Class V (population less than 30,000) 
* Glencoe Park District, Glencoe,
Illinois
* Homewood-Flossmoor Park District,
Flossmoor, Illinois
* Itasca Park District, Itasca, Illinois
* Town of Windsor Park, Recreation
& Culture Department, Windsor,
Colorado
State Park Systems 
* Arizona State Parks & Trails
* Tennessee State Parks
* Washington State Parks and
Recreation Commission
* Wyoming State Parks, Historic Sites
& Trails
Armed Forces Recreation 
* Marine Corps Ground Combat
Training, Twentynine Palms,
California
* MCAS Cherry Point, Cherry Point,
North Carolina
* Fort Carson, Colorado
* Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Kittery,
Maine
July 2017 - Parks & Recreation

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