Illinois Park And Recreation Association

What Illinois Park And Recreation Association does

Illinois Park and Recreation Association (IPRA), founded in 1944 and headquartered in Hinsdale, Illinois, is a nonprofit professional membership association serving park, recreation, and conservation professionals across the state. It operates a member-driven platform offering professional and commercial memberships, continuing education and certification programs, an annual awards ceremony (IPPYS), the IPRA Job Board, a Partner Directory of 97 commercial members across 18 categories, regional chapters, and advocacy resources, anchored by the Soaring to New Heights Annual Conference that draws 4,500+ attendees.

IPRA's core products are delivered through two key technology platforms: GrowthZone powers its membership management, event registration, and website content; PathLMS powers IPRA University, the newly launched Learning Management System (LMS) that organizes professional development courses around members' real-world responsibilities rather than job titles. The technology stack is a third-party, best-of-breed association-management configuration rather than a proprietary build, which is typical for small-staff nonprofit associations but also means limited product differentiation outside of curated content.

IPRA generates revenue through four streams: (1) recurring professional membership dues priced at $245-$265 for Illinois practitioners, $97 for the Advocate tier, and complimentary for students/faculty; (2) conference and event registration, exhibitor, and sponsorship revenue from the annual conference and IPPYS awards; (3) advertising and sponsorship packages across its digital channels, website, and events for commercial members; and (4) CEU and certification program revenue delivered through IPRA University. The organization's go-to-market is community- and event-led, leveraging the large annual conference, regional chapter programming, Lunch and Learn sessions, and the IPRA Connect community hub to engage members.

Name

Illinois Park And Recreation Association

Legal name

Illinois Park and Recreation Association

Website

https://ilipra.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1944

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Illinois Park and Recreation Association (IPRA) is a 1944-founded nonprofit membership association serving Illinois park, recreation, and conservation professionals through professional development, annual conferences, certification, advocacy, and a partner network of 97 commercial members.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Hinsdale

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Professional Membership Dues: Annual membership fees from park and recreation professionals. Tiers include Professional Metro ($265), Professional Non-Metro ($245), Advocate ($97), with complimentary Student/Faculty memberships.
2. Conference and Event Revenue: Registration fees, exhibitor fees, and sponsorship revenue from annual conference and awards events.
3. Advertising and Sponsorship: Digital advertising, magazine advertising, sponsorship packages, and Lunch and Learn opportunities for commercial members.
4. Education and Certification: CEU and certification programs through IPRA University, professional development courses.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

IPRA is a nonprofit professional membership association that delivers membership programs, continuing education and certification (IPRA University on PathLMS), an annual conference and awards ceremony (IPPYS), a job board, a searchable partner directory of commercial vendors, and advocacy resources for park, recreation, and conservation professionals across Illinois. Its commercial membership arm connects vendors of construction, equipment, technology, and professional services to public-sector park agencies.

Product overview

IPRA operates as a professional association offering a unified platform of member services, professional development, and networking opportunities for Illinois parks, recreation, and conservation professionals. The core offerings include IPRA University (a Learning Management System hosted on PathLMS), professional and commercial membership programs, the IPPYS annual awards event, a job board, partner directory with 97 commercial members across 18 categories, and the Illinois Park & Recreation Foundation (IPRF) for scholarships. IPRA's platform is built on GrowthZone for membership management and event registration. The association connects thousands of decision-makers through events, digital platforms, and marketing channels, including the annual Soaring to New Heights Conference reaching 4,500+ professionals.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• IPRA University: Brand-new Learning Management System (LMS) offering professional development courses for park and recreation professionals
• IPPYS (Illinois Park Professionals Yearly Soirée)
• Unplug Illinois
• Illinois Park and Recreation Foundation (IPRF)

Products and services

• IPRA University
• IPPYS (Illinois Park Professionals Yearly Soiree)
• IPRA Job Board
• Partner Directory
• Professional Membership
• Commercial Membership
• CEU and Certification Programs
• Soaring to New Heights Annual Conference

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• PDRMA (Park District Risk Management Agency)coreOthers · 1 January 1996PDRMA is a member-owned risk management agency providing insurance and risk management services to Illinois park districts. IPRA has been a proud member since 1996, demonstrating long-term commitment to supporting member agencies with risk management resources.
• HR SourceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHR Source provides the Park and Recreation Compensation Survey that IPRA members can access. This partnership supports workforce data and compensation benchmarking for member agencies.
• ComEd (Energy Efficiency Program)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerComEd provides energy efficiency programs for public sector organizations including park districts, supporting sustainable operations.
• GrowthZonecoreTechnology or IntegrationGrowthZone provides the association management software platform powering IPRA's website, membership management, event registration, and directory systems.
• PathLMScoreTechnology or IntegrationPathLMS powers IPRA University, the Learning Management System providing professional development courses for members.
• Lamp IncorporatedminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAward Ambassador sponsor for IPPYS 2026 awards event. Building parks and communities.
• Rec TechnologiesminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCelebration Champion sponsor for IPPYS 2026 awards event.
• Cunningham RecreationminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBold Booster sponsor for IPPYS 2026 awards event. Provider of park and playground equipment and safety surfacing.
• SourcewellminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCooperative purchasing organization providing vendor contracts that Illinois park districts can use for procurement.
• Illinois Park and Recreation Foundation (IPRF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIPRF is the charitable arm of IPRA, providing scholarships and supporting the profession through fundraising and volunteer initiatives.
• Unplug IllinoisminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInitiative encouraging Illinois residents to unplug from technology and enjoy outdoor activities. Part of IPRA's community engagement programs.
• JSD Professional Services, Inc.minorGTM or Marketing PartnerPlanning and design firm advertising on IPRA website. Partner for park projects.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• National Recreation and Park Association: National-level professional association for park and recreation professionals in the U.S. NRPA is the broader umbrella body whose state chapters (including IPRA) drive much of the local programming and events, making it the most natural broader incumbent peer.
• American Society of Association Executives (ASAE): National professional association for the association-management industry itself. ASAE awarded IPRA a 2021 Power of A Silver Award and represents the broader incumbent ecosystem in which state-level associations like IPRA operate and benchmark best practices.

Direct peers

• Florida Recreation and Park Association (FRPA): Florida's state-level professional association for park, recreation, and leisure services professionals. Provides membership, training, annual conference, certification, and advocacy — directly paralleling IPRA's structure and offerings.
• Ohio Parks and Recreation Association (OPRA): Ohio's state-level professional association for park and recreation professionals. Operates the same member-services, conference, awards, and continuing education stack as IPRA, making it a directly comparable state peer.
• Pennsylvania Recreation and Park Society (PRPS): Pennsylvania's state-level professional society offering membership, conferences, certification, and advocacy for park and recreation professionals. Closely comparable to IPRA in mission and program architecture.
• New York State Recreation and Park Society (NYSRPS): New York's state-level professional society for parks and recreation, with a comparable member-services model including annual conference, awards, networking, and professional development programming.
• California Park & Recreation Society (CPRS): California's state-level professional association for park and recreation professionals. Operates an almost identical model to IPRA — membership tiers, annual conference, certification/CEU programs, advocacy — making it a directly comparable state peer.
• Texas Recreation and Park Society: Texas state-level professional association for park and recreation professionals offering membership, an annual conference, awards, and continuing education. Mirrors IPRA's service mix and member value proposition at a different state scale.

Regional players

• Michigan Recreation and Park Association (mParks): Michigan's state-level association for parks, recreation, and leisure services professionals. Strong structural analog to IPRA, with a regional Midwest lens and similar conference/membership model.
• Wisconsin Park and Recreation Association (WPRA): Wisconsin's state-level professional association offering member services, training, and conferences for park and recreation professionals. Adjacent regional peer with a near-identical program mix to IPRA.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/IPRAssoc1815
• Facebookfacebook.com/Illinois-Park-and-Recreation-Association-117876985387
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ilparks
• Instagraminstagram.com/ilparks

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Illinois Park And Recreation Association