New Recreation Leadership Development program equips Woodland teens with job skills, industry insights

Last month, Woodland Community Services Parks and Recreation Department staff concluded its first-ever Recreation Leadership Development program, an eight-part educational series teaching high school and college students work-related topics such as job applications, interviews, event planning and learning about parks and recreation opportunities.

The final session was on April 24 where staff and volunteers were awarded certificates of completion. Many of the participants got their first jobs in the Community Services Department as a member of the youth/teen or aquatics staff.

Dallas Tringali, community services program manager, helped create and run the program. He noted that the goal was to give participants a glimpse into the parks and recreation industry while equipping them with valuable skills needed to succeed in any line of work.

Tringali said he’s been involved in recreation since he started volunteering in summer camps when he was 13. This is his 19th year working for Woodland and noted he’s proud of everything he and his department have accomplished.

He explained that of the 75 staff and volunteer members in the department, 24 of them participated in and finished the program each earning a stipend of around $400. Tringali noted that each participant is expected to return to work for summer programs this year.

“We may not get to pay them the amount that we want to pay them, but the fact that they get paid to have fun and make kids’ lives fun, I think that’s the real payoff for a lot of our staff,” Tringali emphasized.

Furthermore, another goal of the program is to retain local talent who might be interested in working for Woodland.

“We have to compete with every other organization that offers jobs to young people,” he said. “It’s something they could put on their resume and that they might be able to leverage for higher pay either here or somewhere else. So we’re just making a more competitive worker. Wherever these students go, they’ll be a strong worker.”

Cody Raubach, 16, participated in the program after volunteering for other programs such as Summertime Fun Club for the last few years.

The Woodland High School student said he appreciated the “nitty-gritty” details the program went into regarding getting a job, how to conduct oneself in a job environment and how to become a “prized employee.”

“One of my biggest takeaways was just to take that jump… to really become a leader and… being as confident as you can,” he remarked. “Confidence is the best-looking outfit you could ever have. It helps with everything in life and that’s really what I’m taking away.”

For more information, visit cityofwoodland.gov/155/Community-Services.