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App State alumna Marisa Sedlak is a parks and recreation star

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Appalachian State University alumna Marisa Sedlak ’14 ’20 has received national recognition for her work as a parks and recreation professional — the National Recreation and Park Association recently named Sedlak among 30 such professionals under age 30 to watch in 2021. She holds an MPA with a concentration in not-for-profit management and a B.S. in recreation management-recreation and park management from App State. Photo submitted

“From taking whitewater kayaking as a class to backpacking the Linville Gorge, it was all such an amazing experience.”

App State alumna Marisa Sedlak ’14 ’20, recreation activities coordinator for the Town of Beech Mountain’s Parks and Recreation Department, on her Appalachian Experience.

Community engagement with the outdoors

As part of her “30 Under 30 for 2021” honor from the National Recreation and Park Association, App State alumna Marisa Sedlak ’14 ’20 was recognized for creating and implementing the following BMPRD programs to engage her local community with the outdoors.

  • The Volunteer Trail Guide program, through which Sedlak recruits and trains area residents to serve as Beech Mountain trail guides. Volunteers complete lessons to learn about local flora and fauna, as well as Beech Mountain’s history, and must lead Sedlak in a guided hike to graduate from the program.
  • The Beech Mountain water conservation education program, established in summer 2020 and part of the Town of Beech Mountain’s Watauga River Intake Project. Through this program, Sedlak educates community members on the importance of local river systems and their relationship to Beech Mountain.
By Jessica Stump
Posted April 6, 2021 at 1:53 p.m.

BOONE, N.C. — Mountaineer Marisa Sedlak ’14 ’20 is a new parks and recreation star. The National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) recently named the two-time Appalachian State University alumna in its “30 Under 30 for 2021” feature, which recognizes the top 30 parks and recreation professionals under age 30 to watch in 2021.

“From taking whitewater kayaking as a class to backpacking the Linville Gorge, it was all such an amazing experience.”

App State alumna Marisa Sedlak ’14 ’20, recreation activities coordinator for the Town of Beech Mountain’s Parks and Recreation Department, on her Appalachian Experience.

Sedlak, 28, who serves as recreation activities coordinator for the Town of Beech Mountain’s Parks and Recreation Department (BMPRD), was one of three parks and recreation professionals from North Carolina recognized. Honorees were chosen based on the following criteria:

  • The community impacts they have made.
  • Their professional development contributions to the parks and recreation field.
  • The innovative ideas, programs and/or research they have developed in relation to parks and recreation.

Sedlak earned her Master of Public Administration with a concentration in not-for-profit management from App State in December 2020 and holds a Bachelor of Science in recreation management-recreation and park management, offered by App State’s Beaver College of Health Sciences (BCHS).

As a prospective undergraduate student, Sedlak said she chose App State because of “the awesome professors in the recreation department. I would not be where I am today without so much of their help and guidance.” The university’s setting in the Blue Ridge Mountains also factored into her decision to attend.

She decided to pursue her MPA at App State because of the positive word-of-mouth about the program from MPA students and alumni — and because she could earn her degree part time through in-person classes while still working full time.

In her role at BMPRD, Sedlak is responsible for planning and facilitating events and outdoor programs and also serves as director of Camp Buckeye — the department’s seven-week summer day camp for children ages 5–12. Additionally, she greets Beech Mountain visitors and answers questions as a front desk person for the department.

‘Amazing opportunities’ at App State

Through her undergraduate studies in App State’s Department of Recreation Management and Physical Education (RMPE), Sedlak learned the “ins and outs of recreation,” including how to plan recreation programs, she said.

She also gained a head start on earning her North Carolina Environmental Education Certification — a 200-hour professional development program in environmental education that Sedlak said helped her obtain her current position.

As part of her undergraduate research, Sedlak collaborated with a recreation management peer to study the effects of programming on climbing wall attendance at gyms across the country. Assisted by RMPE professor Dr. Erik Rabinowitz, the pair presented their research at a national conference.

Sedlak also served as secretary, vice president and then president of App State’s Recreation Management Association — a club open to all students that provides recreation, social and professional development opportunities.

Through these roles, she helped plan, implement and promote events for other recreation management students and worked closely with the club’s adviser and her mentor, Dr. Joy James, an RMPE professor and the director of App State’s recreation management degree program.

During her final semester of graduate study, Sedlak engaged in research focused on volunteer motivation within BMPRD. “This project gave me great insight into why our volunteers participate, ways to recruit more volunteers and ways to keep the volunteers we have,” Sedlak said.

When reflecting on her Appalachian Experience, Sedlak said what stands out the most are the “amazing opportunities” — “from taking whitewater kayaking as a class to backpacking the Linville Gorge, it was all such an amazing experience,” she said.

In 2013, Sedlak received the J. Harold and Hazel W. Moses Endowed Scholarship from the North Carolina Recreation and Park Association and BCHS’ Recreation Management Association Scholarship.

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Community engagement with the outdoors

As part of her “30 Under 30 for 2021” honor from the National Recreation and Park Association, App State alumna Marisa Sedlak ’14 ’20 was recognized for creating and implementing the following BMPRD programs to engage her local community with the outdoors.

  • The Volunteer Trail Guide program, through which Sedlak recruits and trains area residents to serve as Beech Mountain trail guides. Volunteers complete lessons to learn about local flora and fauna, as well as Beech Mountain’s history, and must lead Sedlak in a guided hike to graduate from the program.
  • The Beech Mountain water conservation education program, established in summer 2020 and part of the Town of Beech Mountain’s Watauga River Intake Project. Through this program, Sedlak educates community members on the importance of local river systems and their relationship to Beech Mountain.
Recreation Management (BS) - Recreation and Park Management
Recreation Management (BS) - Recreation and Park Management

The Recreation Management (BS) - Recreation and Park Management degree prepares students to manage parks and recreation agencies and programs.

Learn more
Public Administration (MPA)
Public Administration (MPA)

The Master of Public Administration is a terminal degree program that trains individuals to manage public agencies and programs and to evaluate their effectiveness.

Learn more
Peterson’s recognizes App State as top-20 school for outdoor enthusiasts
Peterson’s recognizes App State as top-20 school for outdoor enthusiasts
June 18, 2019

Peterson’s — the world’s leading educational services company — recently named Appalachian in its “The 20 Best Colleges for Outdoor Enthusiasts” list, highlighting the university’s Outdoor Programs and academic programs that may lead to outdoor careers.

Read the story

About the Department of Recreation Management and Physical Education

The Department of Recreation Management and Physical Education in Appalachian State University’s Beaver College of Health Sciences is an innovative, diverse and forward-thinking academic unit consisting of two undergraduate programs. The recreation management program prepares students for careers as professionals in three concentrations: commercial recreation and tourism management, outdoor experiential education, and recreation and park management. The health and physical education program prepares students for careers as K-12 health and physical educators, school-based activity directors and coaches. Learn more at https://rmpe.appstate.edu.

About the Beaver College of Health Sciences

Appalachian State University’s Beaver College of Health Sciences (BCHS), opened in 2010, is transforming the health and quality of life for the communities it serves through interprofessional collaboration and innovation in teaching, scholarship, service and clinical outreach. BCHS offers nine undergraduate degree programs and seven graduate degree programs, which are organized into six departments: Communication Sciences and Disorders; Health and Exercise Science; Nursing; Nutrition and Health Care Management; Recreation Management and Physical Education; and Social Work. The college’s academic programs are located in the Holmes Convocation Center on App State’s main campus and the Leon Levine Hall of Health Sciences, a state-of-the-art, 203,000-square-foot facility that is the cornerstone of the Wellness District. In addition, the college supports the Blue Cross NC Institute for Health and Human Services and has collaborative partnerships with the Wake Forest School of Medicine’s Physician Assistant Program, the Appalachian Regional Health System and numerous other health agencies. Learn more at https://healthsciences.appstate.edu.

About the Department of Government and Justice Studies

Appalachian State University’s Department of Government and Justice Studies offers undergraduate programs in political science and criminal justice, and graduate programs in political science and public administration. Housed in the College of Arts and Sciences, the department has over 600 undergraduate majors and more than 70 graduate students. Learn more at https://gjs.appstate.edu.

About the College of Arts and Sciences

The College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) at Appalachian State University is home to 17 academic departments, two centers and one residential college. These units span the humanities and the social, mathematical and natural sciences. CAS aims to develop a distinctive identity built upon our university's strengths, traditions and unique location. The college’s values lie not only in service to the university and local community, but through inspiring, training, educating and sustaining the development of its students as global citizens. More than 6,400 student majors are enrolled in the college. As the college is also largely responsible for implementing App State’s general education curriculum, it is heavily involved in the education of all students at the university, including those pursuing majors in other colleges. Learn more at https://cas.appstate.edu.

About Appalachian State University

As the premier public undergraduate institution in the Southeast, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives as global citizens who understand and engage their responsibilities in creating a sustainable future for all. The Appalachian Experience promotes a spirit of inclusion that brings people together in inspiring ways to acquire and create knowledge, to grow holistically, to act with passion and determination, and to embrace diversity and difference. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Appalachian is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System. Appalachian enrolls nearly 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and graduate majors.

“From taking whitewater kayaking as a class to backpacking the Linville Gorge, it was all such an amazing experience.”

App State alumna Marisa Sedlak ’14 ’20, recreation activities coordinator for the Town of Beech Mountain’s Parks and Recreation Department, on her Appalachian Experience.

Community engagement with the outdoors

As part of her “30 Under 30 for 2021” honor from the National Recreation and Park Association, App State alumna Marisa Sedlak ’14 ’20 was recognized for creating and implementing the following BMPRD programs to engage her local community with the outdoors.

  • The Volunteer Trail Guide program, through which Sedlak recruits and trains area residents to serve as Beech Mountain trail guides. Volunteers complete lessons to learn about local flora and fauna, as well as Beech Mountain’s history, and must lead Sedlak in a guided hike to graduate from the program.
  • The Beech Mountain water conservation education program, established in summer 2020 and part of the Town of Beech Mountain’s Watauga River Intake Project. Through this program, Sedlak educates community members on the importance of local river systems and their relationship to Beech Mountain.
Recreation Management (BS) - Recreation and Park Management
Recreation Management (BS) - Recreation and Park Management

The Recreation Management (BS) - Recreation and Park Management degree prepares students to manage parks and recreation agencies and programs.

Learn more
Public Administration (MPA)
Public Administration (MPA)

The Master of Public Administration is a terminal degree program that trains individuals to manage public agencies and programs and to evaluate their effectiveness.

Learn more
Peterson’s recognizes App State as top-20 school for outdoor enthusiasts
Peterson’s recognizes App State as top-20 school for outdoor enthusiasts
June 18, 2019

Peterson’s — the world’s leading educational services company — recently named Appalachian in its “The 20 Best Colleges for Outdoor Enthusiasts” list, highlighting the university’s Outdoor Programs and academic programs that may lead to outdoor careers.

Read the story

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Appalachian Today is an online publication of Appalachian State University. This website consolidates university news, feature stories, events, photo galleries, videos and podcasts.

The migration of materials from other sites is still incomplete, so if you cannot find what you're looking for here, please refer to the following sources:

  • Additional feature stories may be found at Appalachian Magazine
  • Podcasts may be found at Appalachian Magazine
  • Photo galleries and videos published prior to Jan. 1, 2015 may be found at Appalachian Magazine
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Archives

Appalachian Today is an online publication of Appalachian State University. This website consolidates university news, feature stories, events, photo galleries, videos and podcasts.

The migration of materials from other sites is still incomplete, so if you cannot find what you're looking for here, please refer to the following sources:

  • Additional feature stories may be found at Appalachian Magazine
  • Podcasts may be found at Appalachian Magazine
  • Photo galleries and videos published prior to Jan. 1, 2015 may be found at Appalachian Magazine
  • A university-wide Google Calendar may be found at Events at Appalachian
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