The day-to-day grind of academics can be challenging for many college students. A 2020 report by the American College Health Association showed over a third of undergraduate students in the U.S. were classified as overweight or obese and nearly half reported feelings of loneliness. While a lack of physical and emotional wellness can have a deep impact on students’ abilities to excel, there are solutions like outsourcing operations.
The “pwock” of the pickleball paddle. A jog around the indoor track. A hot yoga class with fellow students. All these experiences and more can be found in campus recreation facilities throughout the country. While these venues are doing the critical work of driving healthy outcomes, many have been left understaffed in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and a shift toward online learning.
To combat this and maintain healthy communities on college campuses, more educational institutions are partnering with campus recreation facility companies to outsource operations and maximize results.
When executed properly, there are numerous benefits of partnering with a campus recreation center operations company. Below, we highlight the most notable ones:
Ease of Operations
Whether it’s programming, intramurals, maintenance, cleaning or back-of-house functions — such as accounting or managing staff — there are a myriad of activities that allow a campus rec center to operate properly. The right operational partner not only has experience in these areas, but they’re also adept at hiring and training student and full-time staff to ensure best practices are implemented. Some campus rec management companies are supported by offsite teams that offer financial and legal guidance.
Plan for the Future
Not only is your college community growing, but in many cases your population is evolving. To meet their current and future needs requires an intentional approach to planning. A college recreation center management company helps facilitate this process for schools through market research, feasibility studies and tools that measure student engagement.
Save Money
While working with an operational partner may seem costly, when operated properly it can be quite the opposite. Through their experience working with numerous campus recreation centers, they can achieve operational efficiencies that can greatly reduce costs. Through their relationships, campus recreation operators can negotiate optimal pricing for equipment, supplies and services. Additionally, through expertise in staff training and retention, the cost to replace staff consistently is greatly reduced.
When seeking an operations partner for your campus recreation facility, it’s critical to find one with experience working with facilities with similar amenities, expertise in creating operational efficiencies and, most importantly, a heart for serving students. At the end of the day, creating a healthy environment for your students is key, and a great campus rec facility operator can make that much easier.
Johnny Crosskey is the content director at The Sports Facilities Companies. For more information, visit sportsfacilities.com or email jcrosskey@sportsfacilities.com.
