October 2011 - Parks & Recreation - 16

E D ITO R'S LETTER

The Power of Information

B

y noW, REaDERs of PARKS & RECREATION should be getting the idea that there

is a new program out there that has the potential to make their professional
lives much easier and, at the same time, advance the field overall. Over the
past six months the editors of Parks & Recreation have been producing monthly articles and blogs on PRORAGIS, Parks and Recreation Operating Ratio and Geographic Information System. Each of our articles described key features and attributes for
how this innovative platform combines operating data and mapping capability to help
agencies compare themselves with other agencies across the country. With our cover
story this month, we tie it all together with a comprehensive explanation of the system
and how it is being used.

We're featuring PRORAGIS so heavily for two
reasons: Not enough people know about it, and not
enough are participating in the survey/data entry
stage. Granted, PRORAGIS is still fairly new, but there
are now enough " success stories " among agencies to
make it all the more worthwhile to shout it out. In her
research for her cover story, Senior Editor Maureen
Hannan found these happy users:
■■ ■Batavia, Illinois (maximizing recreational programming)
■■ ■San Diego County, California (data to support its business plan before the county board of supervisors)
■■ ■Oakland County and Canton Township, Michigan
(master planning for federal grant applications, partnering with neighboring municipalities, and comparative analyses of funding sources)
■■ ■Gaithersburg, Maryland (labor analysis and enhancement)

The list goes on, and we expect the pool of PRORAGIS users to grow so much in the coming months
that the magazine plans its first annual industry-wide
almanac of data for our January issue. Whether you
are a vendor, administrator, or citizen advocate, this
information condensed from PRORAGIS will provide
a useful snapshot of all that the program can do. For
the program to be fully effective, though, will require
contributions from every agency administrator. It's
much like the U.S. census, which is only as good as
the quality and depth of information that goes into it.
You have an additional incentive to pitch in.
As NRPA CEO Barbara Tulipane explains, if this
association doesn't produce such a database now, a
private entity will, and you can expect to pay handsomely for information that currently accrues to you
for free as a benefit of membership. All you need to
do is participate. Visit www.nrpa.org/PRORAGIS/.

Philip hayward
editor

14

Parks & Recreation   O C T O B E R

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October 2011 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of October 2011 - Parks & Recreation

October 2011 - Parks & Recreation - 1
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