APPOINTMENTS.

Patricia Cartwright, a 16-year veteran of the NRPA staff, has been promoted to the new position of Director of Membership and Information Resources. Previously coordinator of Membership and Development, her new role will include all oversight of membership activities and the fledgling demands of information resources. She will also serve as the primary staff officer for coordinating and maintaining a computer support system for NRPA. "Information Technology is a powerful tool, bringing together membership and information resources under one division to increase quality membership services. This new division will expand technical resources in assisting our members with the delivery of quality leisure services in their communities."

Lawrence (Larry) A. Zehnder was announced as the new director of the Southeast Regional office by NRPA Executive Director R. Dean Tice at the recent National Congress in Phoenix, Arizona. Mr. Zehnder, a seasoned practitioner and member of NRPA for over 26 years, has served administrative positions with the cities of Athens, Tennessee; Charleston, South Carolina; Norfolk, Virginia; and most recently in Chattanooga, Tennessee prior to joining the NRPA staff. He is a graduate of Clemson University's Parks, Recreation and Tourism management program.

David Austin has been elected president of the Academy of Leisure Sciences, a national organization of 80 education professionals who study leisure behavior and are selected on a basis of scholarly achievement. Austin, a professor of recreation and park administration at Indiana University, has been a faculty member for 24 years. This is the third national professional organization he has headed. He is the past president of both the American Therapeutic Recreation Association and the Society of Park and Recreation Educators. He holds a Distinguished Fellow Award from each of those organizations and is also a fellow of the Academy of Leisure Sciences.

Michael Hecker, CPRP has been named the Director of Parks and Recreation for the City of Mason, Ohio. Michael came from the City of Unalaska, Alaska, Parks, Culture, and Recreation Department, where he was employed as the director of parks, culture, and recreation responsible for 21 full time employees and a $3.8 million budget. Michael departed Alaska finishing his term as Chair of the NRPA Pacific Northwest Regional Council. In his new position, he will be in charge of 240 developed park acres, a $3.7 million budget, recreation programming, and a new multimillion-dollar community center that is scheduled to open by the beginning of 2003.