Inclusive Recreation program
Undergrad minorRecreation is for everyone — make sure everyone is included.
UWL offers an inclusive recreation minor for those who want to be invested in making sure that recreation is inclusive for individuals of all abilities by reducing structural barriers, as well as interpersonal barriers that may exist.
UWL’s Inclusive recreation minor is an excellent complement to fields such as Recreation, Sports Management, Social and Human Services, Psychology, Business and other majors. It provides academic preparation to help professionals who are who are not therapeutic recreation specialists provide inclusive recreation programs.
The inclusive recreation minor is not a comprehensive recreational therapy curriculum and does not lead toward national certification.
Careers in inclusive recreation
Studying inclusive recreation is a proactive way to approach your future career, knowing that you will work with a diverse group of people.
Those who say they don’t plan on working with individuals with disabilities in their career will find that they will. One in six adults has a disability. And nearly everyone is likely to experience some form of disability – temporary or permanent – at some point in life, according to the World Health Organization. And to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, public agencies offering recreation programs must accommodate people with disabilities.
By having an inclusion philosophy, students can learn how to develop adaptations to better serve everyone in the community and follow the law.
Pairs well with fields such as
- Recreation
- Amusement parks/tourism
- Physical education
- Fitness
- Health and wellness
- Sport management
- Social and human services
- Business
- Psychology
What is inclusive recreation?
Those involved in the inclusive recreation field help a community or space adapt so everyone has an equal opportunity to feel welcome, comfortable and develop to their fullest potential. This way the responsibility of adapting is placed on the space or community instead of people with disabilities.
Recreation and leisure is one way people can express who they are. If people encounter barriers in the process of recreating, it is much harder to find their authentic self in that space. If we truly value diversity within a community and everyone’s contributions, then inclusion in these activities needs to be fully embraced.
What distinguishes UWL’s Inclusive Recreation minor?
The minor is housed within UWL's Recreational Therapy program, one of the few programs in the country of this type. The robust program allows students to choose from a wide variety of elective courses to apply to their Inclusive recreation degree from forest therapy to mental health to physical education. Students also receive a strong core foundation in areas of inclusion, recreation, facilitation and design.
Recreational Therapy Program has been nationally accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Parks, Recreation, Tourism, and Related Professions (COAPRT) since 1988. It has also earned national recreation from The American Therapeutic Recreation Association and the Academy for Gerontology in Higher Education.
The program has close connections to community volunteer opportunities throughout the year that provide a variety of opportunities for students to engage in adapted sports and leisure activities with community members such as accessible and inclusive camps for youth, adaptive fitness programs, and organizations that exist to enrich the lives of people with and without disabilities.
Many faculty conduct research and provide opportunities for students to join them. Courses have also been established with research and/or community engagement projects.
Students can choose from several student organizations related to the minor including The R.E.C. Club, Best Buddies and Therapeutic Recreation Club.
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