Department of Park, Recreation and Tourism Resources and the Michigan Travel, Tourism and Recreation Resource Center Funding Priorities

The Department of Park, Recreation and Tourism Resources and the Michigan Travel, Tourism and Recreation Resource Center are in the process of joining in a strategic integration with the departments of Agriculture and Natural Resources Education and Communication Systems, and Resource Development. The new department will align with the CANR Strategic Program Priorities and offer enhanced programs of teaching, research and extension.

Endowed Chair in Recreation Recreation is a maturing field of study that is becoming increasingly important to the lives of Americans. Recreation as a profession touches the lives of millions as people use their free time and discretionary dollars to enjoy life, the outdoors and local parks. The social, economic and management sciences that support scholarship in recreation are constantly changing. An Endowed Chair in Recreation would bring a level of scholarship and recognition to MSU seen only in a few select institutions across the country. There are a number of focal areas for such a position, but one key area would be in youth development. An endowed chair could focus upon youth development, providing leadership across campus in curriculum and outreach related to youth development issues. Such a position could knit together diverse interests ranging from leadership and outreach work with FFA and 4-H to issues of intervention related to youth development.

Environmental Stewardship in Tourism and Recreation The College is developing an environmental stewardship thrust across units and programs. The environmental consequences associated with recreation and tourism development have to be understood and managed. Any stewardship enterprise within the college should include a broad understanding of the stewardship issues associated with recreation and tourism development. While the excellent, restorative Bay Harbor resort development in Michigan illustrates the best of "best practices," it is not at all clear that these practices are fully understood and available to recreation and tourism industry sectors across Michigan. Looking ahead, it is clear that the pace of development stimulated by recreation and tourism will increase. Funds are needed to provide research and training in the recreation and tourism development sectors focused on environmental stewardship. Funds would support faculty positions, visiting faculty, lecture series, training programs and outreach focused on stewardship issues specifically related to recreation and tourism development and management.

Endowed international graduate scholarship fund Over the past 20 years, a sizeable number of faculty members and administrators in recreation and tourism across the Pacific Rim have obtained degrees in the MSU Park, Recreation and Tourism Resources Department. Many can easily recall the difficulty of getting through college and the importance of financial support to their success. Today's international students face even larger financial hurdles. An endowed scholarship to support international graduate students in their first year here at MSU would help to recruit and retain top graduate students.

Endowed graduate fellowships Grants and contracts have been the primary method of supporting graduate students in the department. Such funding is unpredictable and difficult to use for recruitment. An endowed fellowship program would provide steady funding to recruit and retain top graduate students.

Bristor Park Recreation and Tourism Resources Endowment Recreation management is a central element of the department and attracts both undergraduates and graduates to the major and the profession. Research and outreach needs of the profession in this area are increasing at the same time there is a shortage of faculty in this area nationally. An endowed fund would assist in the recruitment of graduates and undergraduates to this sector of the field and support faculty research and outreach in this line of study and instruction.

Michigan Travel, Tourism and Recreation Resource Center Tourism is a large Michigan growth industry. MSU's Tourism Center was established to serve as an information clearinghouse to support this vital Michigan industry's economic growth. While tourism has become the world's leading industry and steady growth is projected into the future, Michigan's tourism industry faces strong global competition. More and better information is a key to the success of tourism businesses in today's rapidly changing tourism market place. To keep pace with Michigan tourism businesses growing demands for information to guide their marketing and other investment decisions requires an influx of new funds to expand the Center's data collection, analyses and dissemination capacity. The industry's financial support is needed to build this capacity. Areas of particular need include:

• Endowed Michigan Tourism Chair - $2,000,000
• Great Lakes Indian Gaming Policy Institute Endowment - $1,500,000
• Michigan Travel Market Research Endowment - $1,000,000
• Endowed graduate assistantships - $500,000