Calling all NIRSA Sport Club & Intramural Sports Members! 
 
Are you ready to strengthen your connection with your local high school officiating association—but not sure where to start? 

Join us Thursday, January 29th, for an engaging and interactive online webinar co-hosted by NFHS and NIRSA! Our expert panel—featuring leaders from across the country in campus recreation and high school officiating—will share proven strategies, creative ideas, and real-world success stories for building effective officiating talent development pipelines. These pipelines are transforming the landscape of sports officiating—enhancing student leadership and career development, strengthening campus recreation programs, and supporting the continued excellence of high school sports through a steady stream of well-prepared new officials. 

Our distinguished panel includes professionals from Florida, South Carolina, Georgia, Kansas, Minnesota, and Wisconsin who are paving the way for stronger collaboration between campuses and high school associations. 

Registration is free! When you sign up, you’ll also have the chance to submit your questions in advance—so our panel can dive into the topics that matter most to you. 

Don’t miss this chance to connect, learn, and help shape the future of officiating development. 
 
We can’t wait to see you in January! 

Join NIRSA Ideas in Motion Virtual Roundtables! These live, unrecorded discussions are a space for collegiate recreation professionals to connect, share ideas, and tackle challenges together. Held on the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of each month, topics rotate to keep conversations timely and relevant. Join live—engage, share, and grow.

Calling all go-getters and game-changers! Learn about volunteering with NIRSA, the NIRSA Foundation, and the NIRSA Championship Series! Join us to explore opportunities to shape the 2026-2027 leadership year. Learn about the time commitments, workload, and—most importantly—the rewarding experiences that come with being part of these dynamic teams. Your next adventure in leadership starts here, don’t miss it!

Join NIRSA Ideas in Motion Virtual Roundtables! These live, unrecorded discussions are a space for collegiate recreation professionals to connect, share ideas, and tackle challenges together. Held on the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of each month, topics rotate to keep conversations timely and relevant. Join live—engage, share, and grow.

The Student Well-being Institutional Support Survey (SWISS) includes an optional, add-on question set centering on climate for well-being in Campus Recreation programs, services and facilities. This webinar will summarize student responses to that question set and how those responses differ by key student characteristics. Broadly, the webinar will discuss students’ feelings of comfort and safety in the facilities and with the staff, reasons some students do not interact with Campus Recreation, and the impact of Campus Recreation on student well-being and belonging.

Learning Outcomes

As a result of attending this webinar, learners will be able to: 

1. Learn about the most common reasons students don’t come to campus rec programs, facilities, and services; and how to address these reasons
2. Learn about campus recreation’s role in supporting student well-being and sense of belonging.
3. Learn about student feelings of safety and comfort in interacting with campus recreation services, programs, facilities, and staff.

Continuing Education Credits

Participants who complete this program will be eligible for Continuing Education (CE) credits in either the Core Student Affairs Educator Certification (CSAEd™) or Certified Student Affairs Educator-Campus Recreation (CSAEd-CR™).  

NIRSA has been approved by the Higher Education Consortium for Student Affairs Certification to provide CE credit for Certified Student Affairs Educators (CSAEd™). NIRSA is solely responsible for all aspects of this program. 

This webinar qualifies for the amount and types of CE credit listed below: 

• CE Credit value: 1
• CE Credit Type: Core, Campus Recreation Specialty

How to get CE credits for attending this course:

1. Attend the live webinar or watch the webinar recording once published to this page
2. Upon completion, submit a program evaluation at this link
3. Within two weeks of completing the survey, you should receive a certificate of completion via email

Esports can be a varsity-style sport and a social magnet at the same time. In this webinar we unpack what works on real campuses. Our team has visited dozens of campuses across the country in the last few years and seen sports and esports spaces in all shapes and sizes. We will share what works, what does not, and why, including when to invest in competitive arenas, when a casual drop-in lounge wins, and how to keep both active after hours.

Learning Outcomes

As a result of attending this webinar, participants will be able to:

• Distinguish competitive versus casual esports spaces and when each drives the most engagement.
• Apply space utilization tactics that keep rooms active after hours with self-service gear access.
• Build a phased plan that starts small, measures demand, and scales with partners across campus.

The NIRSA Mentor Match Program most recently was a component of the Career Development Committee until that group was dissolved. For a little more than a year it has functioned as a responsibility of the Membership Engagement Coordinator with some volunteer help. This program has provided an extraordinary free professional development opportunity for many students and professionals at multiple levels with a wide variety of experiences but is vastly underutilized by members of NIRSA. The purpose of this Association Information session is to enlighten members about the program, why they should participate, how the program works, benefits realized, and how they can contribute to the program. We will explore ideas for promotion, networking, recruitment, and techniques to enhance the experience for those involved. A variety of presenters with diverse backgrounds and experiences will share their takeaways and insights while we gather valuable feedback and suggestions from participants.

Make the most of your NIRSA 2026 Conference experience by diving into this all-in-one guide for Awards! If you're thinking about applying, this session will help you navigate every step with confidence. We’ll walk through application requirements, deadlines, and FAQs, and share helpful tips and insights from past award recipients about what made their experience so impactful. Learn how to put your best foot forward, avoid common missteps, and hear what stood out in successful applications. We’ll also open the floor for your questions—so bring your curiosity and get ready to feel informed, inspired, and ready to celebrate excellence in campus recreation!

The Association of Pickleball Players (APP), USA Pickleball, and Selkirk are collaborating with NIRSA to grow pickleball at the collegiate level nationwide. Together, the organizations will deliver a robust competition platform – The APP Selkirk Collegiate Series, a NIRSA Championship Series event – as well as national exposure opportunities for programs and players, two grant programs, and educational resources. The APP also offers professional development opportunities for NIRSA members throughout the year across a variety of disciplines: operations, tournament management, officiating, marketing, and more. 

This session will educate NIRSA members on how the APP and USA Pickleball can help grow pickleball on your campus, whether that be starting a program from scratch or helping your existing program thrive, and provide professional enrichment opportunities for NIRSA members.

Learning Outcomes

As a result of participating in this program, learners will be able to:

• Understand the state of college pickleball and how the sport can enhance the health and well-being of your students.
• Understand how your school can compete in regional and national pickleball competitions.
• Know how to unlock funding and access education and resources needed to help your program thrive – or get off the ground.

NIRSA is committed to creating professional pathways through in-depth explorations of functional areas across collegiate recreation. Complementing available resources such as the Campus Recreation Essentials book series, the Recreation 101 Virtual Courses give NIRSA members the opportunity to establish a core, introductory knowledge base tied to specific content domains.

Recreation 101 Virtual Courses are fully online, asynchronous experiences, meaning participants can take them whenever they like and at their own pace. Each virtual course is anchored by roughly four hours of on-demand video content designed and taught by functional area experts. These courses are designed to be evergreen and will be reviewed and updated periodically to showcase best practices that are currently used across in the profession.

Course Description

This virtual course explores the foundations of running meaningful outdoor recreation programs—from the theories and leadership philosophies that guide trips, to strategies for supervising and developing student staff, to practical steps for planning programs and managing resources. It also emphasizes the importance of risk management, helping professionals distinguish between perceived and actual risks, create comprehensive safety plans, and align their outdoor program offerings with industry standards. The four modules in the virtual course provide a holistic understanding of how outdoor recreation can connect to university missions, foster student growth, and deliver safe experiences of value.

Module Descriptions

The Professional Role & Student Development module explores the role that campus recreation professionals play in fostering both student and staff growth through outdoor programs. It highlights the history and mission of NIRSA, the value of professional networks, and the importance of aligning outdoor recreation initiatives with broader university goals. Key topics include student development strategies, communication, boundary setting, building staff buy-in, and providing opportunities for leadership and experiential learning. Presenters emphasize best practices while encouraging professionals to adapt them to fit their unique program needs.

The Principles of Outdoor Leadership module introduces foundational theories and models of leadership development in outdoor settings. The presenters explore concepts such as servant leadership, situational leadership theory, and the conditional outdoor leadership theory, while emphasizing vision, selflessness, and adaptability as key traits among effective leaders. Learners will take away a guide and a discussion starter for shaping departmental expectations and outdoor recreation leadership training.

The Outdoor Rec Programs module provides an overview of common programs offered through collegiate outdoor recreation. It covers outlining goals, defining target markets, and key operational considerations like equipment rentals, climbing walls, trips, bike shops, and ropes courses. The module emphasizes the flexibility of outdoor programs, noting that no single model fits all institutions. It provides tips to attendees on how to tailor their offerings to meet campus needs, available resources, and community interests.

The Risk Management module provides an overview of identifying, assessing, and mitigating risks related to outdoor recreation programs. It emphasizes that while risk cannot be fully eliminated, careful planning, communication, and training can significantly reduce it. Key topics include pre-trip planning, staff and participant communication, emergency response preparation, and the role of institutional policies and resources. The module serves as a practical guide for outdoor leaders to create safer and more effective experiences.

Other Recreation 101 Virtual Courses

In addition to this Introduction to Collegiate Outdoor Programs 101 course, check out the rest of our Recreation 101 lineup:

• Introduction to Collegiate Intramural Sports 101
• Introduction to Collegiate Sport Clubs 101
• Introduction to Collegiate Recreation Officiating 101
• Introduction to Collegiate Esports 101
• Introduction to Collegiate Student Development 101

About the Institutional Bundle Registration Option: Included with the bundle are five free registration codes. Additional attendees after five can register for a 65% savings over regular individual pricing rates. 

*Registration for any of these Recreation 101 courses grants a 25% discount coupon for any Campus Recreation Essentials book.