The internship experience with.the Phoenix Parks and Recreation Department provided opportunities to observe administrative and supervisory techniques, practice and observe leadership responsibilities, and examine written material relating to policies, procedures, and planning. Administrative and supervisory techniques were observed at meetings held by the parks and recreation superintendent, the recreation superintendent, and section supervisors. In addition, each of these persons, and others, were interviewed regarding their personal views on administration and supervision. Two weeks were spent in a leadership role with the department's recreation program for retarded children. Both individual and group leadership was practiced. Leadership in action was observed by visiting many recreation programs at parks and schools. Leadership problems were discussed with several of the recreation division's staff. A large part of the last two weeks of the internship was spent examining records and files at the parks and recreation department's offices in the city hall. Particular attention was paid to the financial operations of the department, personnel procedures, and long range planning. When the internship was over and the material for the diary compiled, twenty-nine criteria for a successful municipal recreation program were selected from a textbook and compared to the author’s opinion of how well the parks and recreation department met the criteria.

This Diary has been written in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a Master’s Degree in Public Administration, with public recreation being the selected major field. The internship experience was done with the City of Phoenix Parks and Recreation Department from June 6, 1967 to August 18, 19&7. Orientation to the department’s organization structure was of primary importance during the first weeks of the program. This required obtaining a degree of familiarity with all aspects of the department's operations, and a general knowledge of the personnel relations within the structure. Specific knowledge pertaining to recreation skills and training was used while participating in a special project assigned by the department. Also, in working with highly qualified staff personnel, this project afforded an opportunity to acquire many new recreation skills. Keeping a daily accounting of time during the internship permitted the inclusion of many significant experiences which might otherwise have been omitted. Finally, an integration, of the theory and practices experienced during formal education with those of actual practice must be completed to result in a full realization of the total educational experience.