PRCR Report on Multicultural Outreach Programming - Executive Summary

The Arlington County Department of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources (PRCR) serves the abundant cultures that come together to make Arlington a diverse world-class community.

• Our goal is to provide all ethnicities equal access, opportunity and comfort level for using Arlington parks and programs.
• Periodically PRCR measures resident usage and perception of Arlington parks and programs to develop strategies to reach our goal.
• In 2003, the Parks and Recreation Citizen Survey identified park and program perception and usage based on general ethnicities (see chart on page two).
  • Across ethnicity, Arlington residents have a positive perception of Arlington recreation and cultural programs ranging from 76% of Asians viewing programs as good to excellent to 96% Hispanics viewing programs as good to excellent.
  • Across ethnicity, Arlington residents have a positive perception of Arlington parks ranging from 72% of Asians viewing parks as good to excellent to 86% Hispanics, Blacks and Whites viewing parks as good to excellent.
  • Across ethnicity, there is high usage of Arlington parks ranging from 73% of Asians surveyed to 78% usage among Blacks.
  • There is a wide variation of usage across ethnicities for recreational and cultural programs. Only 32% of Hispanics say they use an Arlington recreation or cultural program while 48% of Whites says they use them. There is parity as to why residents don’t use programs. Most say they don’t use programs because they don’t have an interest in them or they don’t have time.
• Current PRCR strategies to serve multicultural residents include maintaining a diverse workforce; adjusting fee structures; coordinating registration methods for both classes and facilities; including multicultural activities in daily programs; recognizing the role of family; utilizing mobile outreach programming; celebrating cultures through special events; involving residents; developing partnerships; and expanding resources.
  • PRCR staff includes a higher percentage of Hispanic men and women and black men and women than in the Washington area workforce. (Chart p. 3)
  • While PRCR does not systematically measure program participation by ethnicity, it does when the program goal is to reach or measure ethnic populations. Programs developed to target multicultural residents have been successful. For example, of 5,923 participants in 53 PRCR programs, African-Americans and Hispanics constituted a larger percentage than their proportion to the County population as a whole. (Chart p. 8)
  • The number of multicultural partners has grown from 8 in 1999 to 23 in 2006. (Chart p. 10)
• Anecdotal evidence suggests that these strategies are succeeding in increasing multicultural participation. PRCR will develop another Parks and Recreation Citizen Survey in FY08 to determine if current strategies are enhancing park and program access, opportunities and perception across ethnicity.
• Success will be based on parity of usage and positive perception across ethnicity.

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