Location

New York, NY, USA

Program Description

This program is a three-credit course that consists primarily of a visit to New York City. New York City is a leading global arts capital. It is home to some of the world’s most innovative public art, design, and building, and the City inspires contemporary artists and architects from around the world. The course provides an overview of the municipal parks and recreation industry by visiting some of the world’s most iconic parks, recreation (and sports) sites. The course gives the students the opportunity to immerse themselves in big city culture while learning about the history of the urban parks movement and how urban parks can help alleviate social problems.

The class will travel by subway, walking and two days spent on bikes.

Park and recreation sites we will visit include: Central Park, Bryant Park, the High Line, Brooklyn Bridge Park, Battery Park, Hudson River and East River Parks/Greenways, and Washington Square Park.

Additional sites we hope to visit include While the primary focus of the course will be on parks and recreation, we will also take in related sites, including Coney Island, the Yankee Stadium to see the Yankees play the White Sox, the Jackie Robinson Museum, the Tenement Museum, the Stonewall National Monument, and the African Burial Ground National Monument.

Trip Dates: June 15th – June 20th. Prior to the trip, students will complete five asynchronous assignments to prepare you for your time in NYC!

Other highlights of the program include:

• As mentioned earlier, attending a Yankees game (worth mentioning twice)
• Attending a Broadway play.
• Experiencing some of the best New York City cuisine there is.
• Biking Manhattan and Central Park.
• The lasting friendships you build with faculty and students in the sport and recreation management industry.
• You are in the heart of Manhattan visiting iconic sport, recreation, parks and tourism sites.

Location Description

The trip portion of the course will take place in New York City. Students (and faculty) will stay in Pace University dorm rooms and travel throughout Manhattan by foot, subway, bus and bicycle.

Director

Stephanie West | westst@jmu.edu | Hart School

Accommodations

Accommodations will be provided for students and faculty in the form of dorm rooms at Pace University in downtown Manhattan.

Students will be in double or triple rooms (Note: the third room in a triple will be an upper bunk).

All meals from dinner on the first night through breakfast on the last day will be included as a part of the program. Students with dietary restrictions should have no problem accommodating those restrictions.

Additional Items to Consider

Students are encouraged to have a smartphone on which they can download the NYC metro app for easy access to use the subway and bus.

There will be asynchronous material and assignments due over the two weeks prior to the trip (first two weeks of June)

Applicant Criteria

Applicants must have a GPA minimum of 2.0.

Open to all majors and class levels, including graduate students and non-JMU students

Application Process

This list serves as an application preview. To apply, students will need to complete the following:

• Study Abroad Online Application ($25 fee)
• Short Essay

Further details and instructions about these application requirements will be available upon log-in.