CAPRA

Commission for Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies

A Sign of Excellence
In 2006, the Richland County Recreation Commission (RCRC) became the first and only park and recreation agency in South Carolina to achieve CAPRA Accreditation. There are currently 100 other agencies, nationwide that have the CAPRA distinction.

The process of obtaining and maintaining our accreditation is rigorous and timely but going through this process provides assurance to residents of Richland County that RCRC is a responsible manager of public resources and funds and that we provide programming that responds to the needs of the community and maintain safe and clean facilities and employs qualified, competent staff.

What is CAPRA?
The Commission for Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies was developed by the National Recreation and Park Association. There are over 10,000 agencies across the country and in order to assure these agencies provide quality services the Commission provides a credible “checks and balances” to maintain the quality of services that are provided.

CAPRA is comprised of 10 major categories: Agency, Authority, Role and Responsibility; Planning; Organization and Administration; Human Resources; Financial Management; Program and Service Management; Facility and Land Use Management; Public Safety, Law Enforcement and Security; Risk Management and Evaluation and Research.

Within these categories are 144 standards of which an agency must meet 100% of 36 fundamental standards and 85% of the remaining 108 standards.

In October 2006, there were 155 standards and RCRC met 100% of the fundamental standards and 95% of the remaining standards.

It is important to note the small group of agencies from around the country that are accredited. There are only 33 states that have accredited agencies and currently, RCRC is the only one in South Carolina. Find out more about the other states and agencies with accreditation by visiting the National Recreation and Park Association’s CAPRA page.

Reaccreditation
Every 5 years, agencies must apply for reaccreditation to remain an accredited agency and in July 2011, RCRC applied to become reaccredited.  A CAPRA visitation team made up of three Park and Recreation professionals from around the country, reviewed our policies and procedures, programs, facilities management, safety and administration as part of our reaccreditation process. The CAPRA reaccreditation announcement will be made in November 2011 during the NRPA’s National Congress in Atlanta, GA.