University News

The Western Illinois University Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Administration will host its annual Professional Development Conference (PDC) Thursday-Friday, April 10-11 on the WIU Macomb campus. The year, the conference theme is "Map Out Your Success" and is open to students of all majors at Western. In addition to the conference program, which will feature alumni sharing their professional success stories, the PDC offers students opportunities to network with alumni.
[Download Print-Quality Image]

WIU RPTA Pro Development Conference April 10-11; 2014 Event Open to All Majors

March 24, 2014

Share |
Printer friendly version

MACOMB, IL – The Western Illinois University Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Administration will host its annual Professional Development Conference (PDC) Thursday-Friday, April 10-11 on the WIU Macomb campus. The year, the conference theme is "Map Out Your Success" and is open to students of all majors at Western. In addition to the conference program, which will feature alumni sharing their professional success stories, the PDC offers students opportunities to network with alumni.

From 5-7 p.m. April 10, the RPTA PDC will start off with a social at Western's Alumni House (just south of Lake Ruth). The conference program is slated from 8:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Friday, April 11 in Horrabin Hall (registration check-in is in the Horrabin Gymnasium). Cost to attend is $10 for students, which includes all events, plus a meal.

According to Mindy Pheiffer, an instructor in the RPTA department and the program manager at WIU's Horn Field Campus, the event will showcase the vast number of professional fields to which an RPTA bachelor's degree is applicable.

"Topics covered at this year's PDC will be focus on eight career map areas, including positions in community recreation, tourism and event management, non-profit administration, natural resource management, outdoor adventure recreation/education, youth and senior recreation services, therapeutic recreation/recreation therapy and entertainment, sport and fitness venue management," she noted. "Alumni who come back to provide us with knowledge about their various career paths will discuss how they got to where they are today in their careers, what skills they needed to be able to get where they are, as well as talk about information they wish someone would have shared with them as college students."

Undergraduates will also be able to explore the possibilities of pursuing a graduate degree in Western's RPTA program, Pheiffer added.

Deadline to register is Tuesday, April 1.

For more information, or to register, contact the RPTA department at (309) 298-1967 or via email at RPTA@wiu.edu. Learn more about RPTA at WIU at wiu.edu/rpta.

Posted By: University Communications (U-Communications@wiu.edu)
Office of University Communications & Marketing