How CMU's RPL program became a family tradition

Community, mentorship, and unique opportunities. These were reasons cited by Alexis Gostlin (née Straub) and her two sisters, Chloe Straub and Sarah Spearing, on why they chose majors in the Recreation, Parks, and Leisure Services Administration (RPL) Department at Central Michigan University. Gostlin, a 2017 graduate, majored in event and recreation management, while younger sister Straub graduated in 2019, majoring in outdoor and environmental recreation and minoring in event management. Spearing, the youngest sister, is expected to graduate in 2028, majoring in recreational therapy and rehabilitation.

While talking about why each of them chose to study within the RPL Department, all three agreed that the close-knit, family environment that RPL offers its students is one-of-a-kind. “Finch is home,” Gostlin said. “I always smile when coming into that building.”

While Gostlin was working at Michigan Technological University four years post-graduation, she says RPL Chair Tim Otteman was visiting the area with family and messaged her to catch up and see how she was doing. “The faculty truly care about their students and go the extra mile for them,” she said.

Gostlin was first introduced to the RPL during a presentation in her class, Exploring Education: Teaching as a Profession, which showcased other programs within the College of Education and Human Services. She eventually singed as an event and recreation management major and even interned for Mt. Pleasant Parks and Recreation where she worked on events such as the Man vs. Mountain 5k, Daddy Daughter Date Night, youth sports, and the PEAK program.

As for Straub, studying RPL was not part of her original plan at CMU, as she intended to pursue broadcasting and cinematic arts with a leadership minor. After visiting Adventure Seminars her freshman year to do some rock climbing for her Leadership Studies 101 class, she says something just “clicked,” and from there on she started climbing on a regular basis, enjoying the fun, the challenge, and the people that came with it. Eventually she signed as an outdoor and environmental recreation major after learning about it from her peers.

Straub currently works as an Expedition Program Specialist at the Chesapeake Bay Outward Bound School. “In my current role, we often say that anyone can learn how to tie a bowline knot or light a WhisperLite stove,” she said, “but the people skills and what it means to be a proficient facilitator is the real hard work.” Staub credits her RPL instructors, along with her 30-week internship at Outdoor Adventures by Boojum in Twentynine Palms, California, for teaching her these skills and providing her with the knowledge to make her well-prepared to work at Outward Bound.

Straub echoes her sisters’ sentiments when asked what her favorite part about being involved in RPL is. “The community at Finch Fieldhouse. I found great friends, mentors, and advocates for my career path in the tiny classrooms of Finch.” She remarked that the folks in RPL are fun, loving, and passionate about the work they do, and that she is grateful for the tight-knit outdoor and environmental recreation classes.

Spearing, who is currently earning her undergraduate degree, majoring in therapeutic recreation, plans to work as a recreational therapist in a behavioral health setting after graduation—ideally working with children with mental health and/or physical disabilities.

Like both her sisters, Spearing loves the RPL community as well as the unique opportunities it offers to its students to learn and grow in the field of recreation and event management. “I feel very connected to everyone in my major classes,” she noted. “Everyone in the RPL program is so passionate about what they do, and it is very inspiring.”

Although Spearing is only in her second year as an undergrad, she says that CMU has become like a second home to her. All three sisters hail from Oxford, Michigan, but chose CMU for its feel on campus and the opportunities it provides its students. “Since I had visited both of my older sisters at CMU when I was younger, I always felt drawn to CMU and its community,” Spearing said, adding that she knew CMU would be the perfect place to step outside her comfort zone away of from home and find who she truly wanted to be.

CMU holds a lot of memories for the two alumni. For Gostlin, she looks back fondly on Homecoming, specifically in 2016, where she served as a Homecoming Ambassador. When it comes to RPL, her favorite memory is the sock hop at the Commission on Aging she helped plan for one of her classes, where all three CMU acapella groups performed for the seniors there and collected socks to give to the homeless population as admission to the event.

For Straub, her favorite memories of CMU include Coordinating the Mt. Pleasant Dachshund Derby with her Plan Recreation Program and Events classmates, dancing with friends to fun music in Adventure Seminars to pump themselves up for class, being on the Residence Housing Association Board, and sitting at Ponder doing homework are all key memories she looks back on.

When asked what advice they would give to students considering an RPL major, both Gostlin and Straub would encourage them to get involved in any way they can. Gostlin is one of the founders of the Association of Recreation and Event Professionals (AREP) RSO, where members gain firsthand experience in the recreation and event management field, along with developing a professional network. She mentions that being a part of AREP was an invaluable experience for her, and how it’s cool to see it still going strong 10 years later.

Straub encourages students to explore, connect, and ask questions, saying there are so many different paths an RPL degree can lead to. “Take RPL 101 (Pursuit of Happiness: Examining Leisure Social Structures), learn what those paths are, and try out a club or event that is RPL aligned to see if that’s what you’re truly passionate about.”