Division Chief / GS 25
Recreation Services
The City of Alexandria is in Northern Virginia bordered by the District of Columbia (Potomac River), Arlington, and Fairfax counties. Once within the original boundary stones that demarked the area of the Nation’s Capital, Alexandria is a part of the greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. With a population of approximately 157,600 Alexandria is the sixth largest city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Unique and historic, Alexandria is a place that is experiencing substantial redevelopment appeal and business growth opportunities because of a high market demand for urban living in a quality environment. About one-quarter of the City’s 15.47 square miles has been designated as a national or local historic district.
The City of Alexandria is an independent city with no county affiliation and derives its governing authority from a Charter granted by the Virginia General Assembly. Virginia is a Dillon Rule state, allowing local governments only the authority expressly granted to them by the Virginia Constitution or by the Virginia General Assembly in the City Charter or in general law. City Council is the governing body, which formulates policies for the administration of the City. The mayor is chosen on a separate ballot and presides over sessions of the Council.
If you are interested in working for the vibrant City of Alexandria, we invite qualified candidates to apply for our Division Chief, Recreation Servicesfor Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities (RPCA).
- The mission of Recreation, Parks & Cultural Activities is to enrich the City of Alexandria by creating meaningful experiences through public spaces, cultural activities, and programming.
- The Department’s vision is to improve the well-being of every person in our community by connecting them to each other and their environment.
Overview
The Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities Department (RPCA) supports the well-being of Alexandria’s residents by ensuring access to a variety of quality recreation, park, and cultural experiences. RPCA holds 1,017.56 acres of park and open space areas maintaining a standard of 7.3 acres per 1,000 residents. Operating responsibilities cover public parks, medians, and rights-of-way, outdoor areas at public schools, libraries, and a city marina. The department operates programs at 12 recreation centers and school sites. Through the cultural activities division, RPCA operates the Torpedo Factory Arts Center.
The Department is comprised of four operating Divisions: Recreation Services; Leadership & Management; Cultural Activities; and Park Services. These four Divisions work to offer the full range of programs, facilities, and parks.
RECREATION SERVICES OPERATING BUDGET
| FY 2023 | FY 2024 | FY 2025 |
Recreation Division | $11,328,967 | $12,752,393 | $14,133,253 |
Personnel | $8,602,403 | $10,024,580 | $10,908,389 |
Non-personnel | $2,726,564 | $2,727,813 | $3,225,257 |
FTE* | 60.89 | 71.09 | 74.09 |
Seasonal Staff | 243 | 275 | 325 |
*Seasonal staff are not counted as FTE but represent a lump sum allocation in the personnel section of the budget. The department contracts for a significant amount of camp and class activities. Many youth sport programs are conducted by affiliate non-profit organizations.
The operating units of Recreation Services include:
Citywide Services & Programs: Fee Classes & Camps Section/Durant Center, Youth & Adult Sports Section, Therapeutic Recreation and the Nannie J. Lee Recreation Center, and Environmental Education/Buddie Ford Nature Center. This unit focuses on a consistent approach to delivering and growing services and programs at locations and centers throughout the City in addition to growth of specialized services and programs at assigned locations.
Recreation Centers & Programs/Out of School Time Programs: All Out of School Time Program locations, including the Charles Barrett Recreation Center & School District sites, Charles Houston Recreation Center Programs and Facility, Mount Vernon Recreation Center Programs and Facility, Leonard Armstrong Recreation Center Programs and Facility, Patrick Henry Recreation Center Programs and Facility, and William Ramsay Recreation Center Programs and Facility. This unit focuses on consistent and improved delivery of the Power-On Out of School Time Program in addition to growth of center-based programs and services.
Aquatics Centers & Programs: Chinquapin Park Recreation Center and Aquatics Facility Programs and Facility, Outdoor Pools Programs and Facilities, and the Minnie Howard Aquatic Facility. This unit focuses on the delivery and growth of aquatics programming, including the support and partnership of Alexandria City Public Schools’ programs at the Minnie Howard Aquatics Facility, in addition to ongoing programs, partnerships, and capital projects at Chinquapin and the Outdoor Pools.
The Division Chiefs report to the Deputy Director of Recreation Services; the Division Chief for Citywide Services and Programs is open for recruitment at this time. The duties of the incumbents will rotate between the operating units over time to fully prepare them for continued advancement to the Deputy Director and Director level.
The Division Chief for Citywide Services & Program’s key work projects FY25-FY26:
- Further develop and implement expanded Therapeutic Recreation model with a focus on decreasing unmet needs and providing adaptive programming throughout the City.
- Leadership and support for Division implementation of the RPCA 2023-2025 Strategic Plan, including:
- Create new programming for underserved areas;
- Increase partnership and volunteer-based programming;
- Increased programs and services in underutilized spaces; and
- Expand recreation program modalities and locations.
- Update annual community outreach strategy to increase awareness of RPCA programs, services, and financial assistance.
- Co-facilitate with peer positions, the update to the Resource Allocation & Cost Recovery Model and Policy through community engagement.
- Evaluate recommended changes and initiate community process for approval of updated Sports Affiliate Policy.
- Grow professional development program and initiate opportunities for Division employees.
- Facilitate collaboration across the division units to ensure division-wide objectives are met.
The Division Chief key performance indicators:
- To plan and implement seasonal program cycles and standards for all programs to maintain public satisfaction with the quality of recreation at 90% or higher based on citizen surveys.
- To maintain a recreation program participation rate of 30% or greater based on citizen surveys.
- To conduct all leadership activities to maintain an employee engagement score that exceeds the public sector benchmark based on the annual workplace survey.
- To achieve a division score of 90% or higher for courteousness of staff based on citizen surveys.
- To maintain a mix and variety of programs to maintain a 90% or greater satisfaction rate as determined by active households.
- To manage financial resources to established annual budget targets for expenditures and revenues.
Key Work Aspects of RPCA and the City of Alexandria:
As a departmental senior leader, the Division Chief will have both a division assignment to carry out a functional area of work and a RPCA strategic team assignment. As a strategic team lead you are in the position of a senior leader of the department. As such, you are tasked with creating an environment of success in the department such that staff are highly engaged to focus on results that support organizational attainment of our mission and strategic plan. Our purpose is to build an organizational cultural “that supports each of us and inspires excellence.”
RPCA Strategic Plan – Each senior leader is expected to implement the mission, vision, values, and the strategic focus areas as determined through business plans and the budget process. It is expected that all decisions will be made considering the values and focus areas.
Statement of Workplace Excellence – Every RPCA staff member has the right to a safe, healthy, efficient, and pleasant working environment where all organization members adhere to the highest standards of behavior, personal integrity, and truthfulness. Each staff member demonstrates full support and acts on deploying workplace excellence.
Shared Leadership Approach - We continually strive to gain the maximum amount of discretionary effort on the part of our staff members. All staff members are collectively responsible for our organizational community and have leadership roles. Everyone is a decision-maker within his or her job. We invite participation in solving organizational issues and constantly improving our operations. We share a leader-to-leader model.
Customer Service Guarantee– We are committed to delivering a consistently superior customer experience to all who participate in our programs or visit our parks and facilities. Service will be:
- Responsive – respond in a timely manner to all residents and customers both external and internal. We own the request we receive and do not shift the responsibility.
- Professional – represent the department in appropriate appearance, decorum, and communication.
- Courteous – Treat everyone with respect. Treat everyone fairly. Treat everyone with dignity. Accountable – Demonstrate a bias toward action. Ensure follow-up and follow-through with appropriate results.
Our most valued assets are engaged, staff members and customers.
High-Performance Organization -RPCA commits to building and sustaining a high-performance organization. This ensures a clear and consistent strategic direction. We continually focus on improving all aspects of the internal and external operation. We also strive through workplace excellence and shared leadership to inspire staff to outstanding outcomes. Every job in the organization has elements of team leadership, management, and task accomplishment. HPO is team-based.
What You Should Bring - Each member of our team is accountable for the outstanding delivery of services. You will bring your expertise on parks and recreation, change management, employee engagement, and leading a high performing organizational culture; you will have a demonstrated ability to work with employees throughout the department and City of Alexandria; your personal mission and values align with those of the organization and can analyze, synthesize, and make data-informed professional recommendations. You will deliver work products that meet the high standards of excellence determined by residents and visitors.
