Wisconsin Park And Recreation Association, Inc.

What Wisconsin Park And Recreation Association, Inc. does

Wisconsin Park and Recreation Association, Inc. (WPRA) is a 501(c)-style nonprofit professional membership association incorporated in Wisconsin and headquartered at 6737 W. Washington St., Suite 4270, Milwaukee. Founded in 1965, WPRA represents more than 1,600 individuals delivering parks, recreation, and aquatic services across the state, spanning local, county, state, school district, private, and agency settings, along with public boards and commissions, students, commercial firms, and emeritus members. Its mission is to empower members through professional growth, state-level advocacy, and community-development outcomes, and its strategic partner is the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA), through which it channels certification programming.

The association delivers its value through a portfolio of recurring events, programs, and services rather than software products. Flagship offerings include the Annual Conference & Trade Show, the Fall Workshop, the Leadership Academy, regional lifeguard competitions (Region II and Region IV), Section Roundtables, Emerging Professionals Programs, and the CPSI Blended Course (co-sponsored with NRPA, conferring 1.5 CEUs and a three-year certification). Supporting infrastructure includes the WPRA Connect networking platform, the IMPACT Magazine publication, a Career Center, and CEU and certification administration. Member and event operations are run on the MemberClicks association-management platform; there is no proprietary technology stack, no AI/ML capability, no published API, and no mobile application. A wholly owned nonprofit affiliate, the WPRA Foundation, handles fundraising and scholarships.

Revenue derives from three documented streams: recurring professional membership dues; commercial membership and sponsorship (including trade show booths and advertising in IMPACT Magazine and the Membership Directory); and event registration fees (e.g., $40/member and $55/non-member for the Brewers Outing). Specific dues pricing tiers are not disclosed on the public website. The organization operates with a very small staff (reported band of 1-10 employees), is governed by a member-elected Board of Directors (with 2027 elections in process), and conducts its marketing primarily through its website, email newsletter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Geographic scope is exclusively Wisconsin.

Name

Wisconsin Park And Recreation Association, Inc.

Legal name

Wisconsin Park and Recreation Association, Inc.

Website

https://wpraweb.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1965

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Wisconsin Park and Recreation Association is a 501(c) nonprofit professional membership association founded in 1965, representing over 1,600 park, recreation, and aquatic professionals across Wisconsin through education, certification, advocacy, events, and networking programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association Services

NAICS

Business Associations (813910), Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (71)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997)

akta.pro primary industry

Amateur & Grassroots Sport Associations (Community/Youth Governing Orgs) (MPAKAFAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Arts, Sports & Recreation-Based Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAJ)

Keywords

• Parks and recreation
• Professional membership association
• Continuing education
• Certification programs
• Professional networking

Headquarters

HQ city

Milwaukee

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership fees from professional members including park, recreation, and aquatic professionals, commercial firms, and emeritus (retired) members.
2. Commercial Membership & Sponsorship: Sponsorship program offering various levels for companies to reach members throughout the year, including commercial membership, trade show booths, and advertising in IMPACT Magazine and Membership Directory.
3. Event Registration: Fees from various events including the Brewers Outing ($40/member, $55/non-member), and CEU programs like the CPSI Blended Course.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Wisconsin Park and Recreation Association (WPRA) is a state-wide, voluntary, non-profit membership association founded in 1965 that represents over 1,600 park, recreation, and aquatic professionals across Wisconsin. It sells annual memberships and delivers supporting services including an annual conference and trade show, professional workshops, leadership development programs, lifeguard competitions, certifications (such as CPSI), a member networking platform (WPRA Connect), and the IMPACT Magazine publication.

Product overview

Wisconsin Park and Recreation Association (WPRA) operates as a membership-based professional association rather than a technology product company. The organization offers a unified membership program with various supporting services including annual conferences, workshops, professional development programs (Leadership Academy, CPSI certification courses), regional lifeguard competitions, networking platforms (WPRA Connect), publications (IMPACT Magazine), career resources, and CEU certification support. The portfolio is structured around member services with recurring events and programs rather than software products or platforms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• WPRA Connect: Professional networking and information sharing platform for WPRA members
• WPRA Foundation
• IMPACT Magazine

Segments5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWPRA connects members with NRPA resources, including the CPSI (Certified Playground Safety Inspector) certification program. WPRA sponsors CPSI Blended Courses and promotes NRPA Annual Conference to Wisconsin members.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA): NRPA is the national umbrella membership association for park and recreation professionals, directly partnered with WPRA for CPSI certification delivery and conference promotion. WPRA operates as a state chapter within the broader NRPA ecosystem, making NRPA the closest structural comparable.
• SHAPE America: SHAPE America is a national professional association serving health and physical education educators with overlapping professional development, certification, and advocacy functions, serving as a broader-adjacent incumbent to WPRA in adjacent recreation disciplines.

Direct peers

• Illinois Park and Recreation Association (IPRA): IPRA is the direct state-level counterpart to WPRA, serving Illinois park, recreation, and aquatic professionals with the same membership dues, events, certification, and advocacy model. Closest peer in mission, structure, and program mix.
• Ohio Parks and Recreation Association (OPRA): OPRA is Ohio's statewide membership association for park and recreation professionals, operating annual conferences, workshops, and certification pipelines structurally analogous to WPRA's portfolio.
• Minnesota Recreation and Park Association (MRPA): MRPA serves Minnesota park and recreation professionals with membership dues, annual conferences, CEUs, and advocacy — a near-identical operating model to WPRA in a neighboring Midwest state.
• Indiana Park and Recreation Association (InPRA): InPRA serves Indiana park, recreation, and aquatic professionals through membership, conferences, and advocacy — another Midwest state-level peer with the same dues-and-events revenue model as WPRA.
• Michigan Recreation and Park Association (mParks): mParks is the Michigan state association for park and recreation professionals, offering comparable membership tiers, conferences, certification, and awards programs targeting the same member persona as WPRA.
• Iowa Parks and Recreation Association (IPRA): The Iowa Parks and Recreation Association provides the same membership, conference, and professional development model for Iowa-based park and recreation professionals as WPRA does for Wisconsin.

Emerging players

• American Camp Association (ACA): ACA accredits and serves camp professionals — a partially overlapping member persona (recreation professionals serving youth) with the same membership dues, accreditation, and conference model, though focused on camps rather than parks.

Others

• MemberClicks: MemberClicks is the association management software platform powering WPRA's member portal, event registration, and career center. Listed as a peer because it is the underlying technology provider enabling WPRA's membership operations.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses1 record

Competitive moat4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/WPRAweb
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wisconsin-park-recreation-association

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Wisconsin Park And Recreation Association, Inc.