Fostering a Culture of Inclusivity
The Naperville Park District is committed to fostering, cultivating, and preserving a culture of diversity, equity and inclusion across all parks, facilities, programs and operations for staff and residents/patrons. The District's commitment in this regard is further reflected in several of our agency's Core Values:
Community Enrichment | Accessibility | Personal Growth and Enrichment |
Provide co-sponsored family special events | Promote connectivity of recreational paths or trails |
Promote personal creativity |
Promote cultural diversity and creativity | Provide accessible parks, facilities and programs |
Promote the development of life skills |
Promote community involvement | Promote positive human interactions |
View all the Naperville Park District's core values
We Demonstrate Our Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion through:
Naperville Park District programs at Xilin Association
Partnerships
- Western DuPage Special Recreation Association (WDSRA) member agency
- Partner with Xilin Association for recreation programming space
- Partner with KidsMatter and part of the Collaborative Youth Team (CYT)
- Partner of Riverwalk Adult Day Services
- Supporting partner of DuPage Senior Citizens Council for Meals on Wheels
- Co-hosting organization, in partnership with the YMCA, for the annual Christmas meal program for seniors and families in need
Playing cricket at Commissioners Park
Programs
- Special Needs Nights at Centennial Beach and Santa's Naperville Workshop
- Fee Assistance Program to provide funds for recreation programs for individuals and families in financial need
- Provide support for 50+ annual special events, many celebrating diversity and various cultures
- Support Loaves & Fishes Community Pantry by collecting donations of produce at the Ron Ory Community Garden Plots
- Provide physical and community support to individuals experiencing neurological conditions through programs like Neuroflex Fitness
- Provide mobile audio tours of Knoch Knolls Park, Knoch Knolls Nature Center, and Sindt Woods
- Provide multicultural programs like Cricket, Bollywood Dance, and several types of martial arts
The Park District invites the community to submit new program ideas through our New Program Request Form.
Cutting the ribbon on the newly renovated Timber Creek playground
Operations
- Parks and programs are distributed geographically across the community
- Parks and playgrounds are designed for inclusivity (e.g., ramps, sensory play, braille panels)
- Personnel policies support equal employment, anti-harassment, DEI in the workplace, and transgender employment
- Community survey is conducted every 3-5 years through an independent resource to understand the community's needs/interests regarding recreation
- Employee survey is conducted every 3-5 years through an independent resource to gather anonymous employee feedback to gauge satisfaction and identify potential areas for improvement
- Performance appraisal document provided in Spanish to provide Spanish-speaking staff with a better understanding of the appraisal tool and performance expectations
- Administer and manage the ADA Transition Plan (2025 update scheduled)
- Manage an internal process to evaluate use of imagery in District marketing materials to ensure genuine representation of the community's diversity
Website that features ADA and multilingual support
Community Support
- Participate in the City of Naperville's Embrace Naperville Events
- Member of Dementia Friendly Naperville
- Napervilleparks.org website can be translated into 60 different languages
- Napervilleparks.org website has ADA (accessibility) functionality to address specific user needs
- Non-gender-specific restrooms available at several District facilities
- Process available to provide nonresident/unincorporated households with the opportunity to pay a fee to receive in-Park District resident benefits.
- Bilingual HR and Customer Service support available to support customers and staff
- Job applicants can indicate their preferred pronouns on job applications
- District implemented the State of Illinois Business Enterprise Program for minorities, females, persons with disabilities utilization plan for grant projects
Management Staff
Approximately 56% of the District's directors, superintendents and managers are women: