- A Paradigm Shift in Youth Sports and Recreation Is Needed to Include More Youths with Disabilities and Health Conditions Including Obesity into the Mainstream of Sports and Recreation in America
- Access Board Issues New Accessibility Guidelines
- Providing Inclusive Recreation Opportunities: The Cincinnati Model
- Parks and Recreation Budget Cuts "Phase" Accommodation
- Open Spaces: No Bounds to Outdoor Recreation
- Therapeutic Recreation Services
- Physical Activity, Leisure and Recreation for Youth with Disabilities: A Primer for Parents
- Summary of the National Survey on Recreation and the Environment
- Inclusive Fitness Means More Than Accessible Bathrooms and Entranceways
- The Pathway to Inclusion: From Principle to Profit
- Making A Splash: Inclusion of People with Disabilities in Aquatic Venues
- Principles for Adapting Activities in Recreation Programs and Settings
- What to Know Before You Go: The Big Questions to Ask Before Arriving at Your "Accessible" Recreation Destination
- Adoption of the Revised ADA Standards for Accessible Design What it Means to Recreation Facilities
- Best Practice of Inclusive Services: The Value of Inclusion
- Retrofitting an Accessible Whitewater Park
By Kimberly Hannon
One of the many things the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 seeks to do is provide people with disabilities equal opportunity and full participation in everyday activities. The ADA mandates access to public programs and services, including municipal parks and recreation departments. An intergovernmental agency known as Municipal Partners for Inclusive Recreation (MPIR) in St. Louis County, Missouri, has used the ADA to change the way parks and recreation departments participating in MPIR provide opportunities for people with disabilities to participate in existing programs. MPIR has succeeded in achieving equality of opportunity and participation in recreational activities since the early 1990's.
The goal of this monograph is to introduce a successful inclusive recreational program in St. Louis County and highlight the components of the program. This information may assist other recreation providers in providing similar programming opportunities or program modifications to its community members with disabilities.
