About Us


SWPRTI Awards Banquet

The Southwest Training Institute is a non-profit organization that is administered by volunteers from the Parks and Recreation field. The organization is governed by its Officers and a Board of Directors.

The Officers, Board of Directors, and Committee Chairs meet three times per year and their meetings are open to all members of the Institute. The current year President appoints Committee Chairs for the upcoming Institute.

Our Mission:
"To present and promote educational opportunities to students, professionals, and lay supporters of the broad field of parks and recreation."

Institute Officers...

The office of President is a three-year commitment:
The first year (President-Elect) starts with responsibility of planning the program for the upcoming Institute. Our President-Elect is Mendy Putman, Colorado Springs Parks and Recreation. The second year (President) is responsible for the overall leadership of the Institute. Our President is John Webb, City of Tyler Parks and Recreation. And the third year (Past President) involves helping the new President transition into the leadership role. Our Past-President is Cindy Olson, City of Plano Parks and Recreation.

The Secretary is responsible for documenting all minutes of meetings and coordinating registration. Our Secretary is Jill Beam, City of Dallas Parks and Recreation.

The Treasurer maintains all budget and accounting functions related to the operation of the Institute. Our Treasurer is Gary Zimmerman, City of Richardson, Texas and our Past-Treasurer is Susie Snider, Lake Murray State Park. The Past-Treasurer's term expires at our mid-year meeting in 2010.

Board of Directors...

The Board of Directors along with the President-Elect shares the responsibility of putting together the educational programs for the Institute. Each Board Member also serves as a liaison to one or more Institute Committees. Each Board of Director serves a three-year term. These terms are staggered in pairs with a new pair of directors being elected each year.

Our Current Board of Directors:

     Vickie Hamrick, City of Plano Parks and Recreation, Term Expires 2013
     Randy McFarlin, City of Ada, Oklahoma, Term Expires 2013
     Juan Ortiz, City of Denton Parks and Recreation, Term Expires 2012
     Richard Keithley, Lake Texoma State Park, Term Expires 2012
     Brian Bristow, City of Allen Parks and Recreation, Term Expires 2011
     Jim Mays, City of Denton Parks and Recreation, Term Expires 2011