Sometimes it seems like the gulfs that divide people—people of different cultures and beliefs, people from different backgrounds or locales, people with different levels of education or economic status—make it impossible to reach across and find commonality. But in this industry, where the whole point is helping people find their way into activities that support their wellness, their happiness, their sense of community—it doesn't take long to see how we are more alike than different.

As a college student majoring in Recreation and Park Administration (with an emphasis in Therapeutic Recreation) at Illinois State University, Carolyn Nagle's first "real" job in the recreation industry was directing the first summer day camp program for the Limestone Township Park District in Illinois.

Building on a base of swim lessons, municipal aquatic facilities have grown their offerings to provide far more. Here's how design teams have innovated to bring more to community pools and aquatic centers.

Kristyn Wong-Tam was raised in a working class, immigrant family where money was hard to come by.

A recent study revealed that people do, indeed, pee in pools. But the National Swimming Pool Foundation says that's no reason to stop swimming, and offers ways that coaches and facility managers can tackle this problem.

As swimming continues to grow as a preferred method of exercise, commercial aquatic facilities see an increasing number of users year after year. Facility operators and managers need to keep abreast of the best ways to keep the pool, deck area and locker rooms as safe as possible for all patrons.

If you find yourself sitting serenely on a park bench, taking in the surroundings, the last thing on your mind is probably the park bench. But there are people who have given a lot of thought to that bench, along with all the other furnishings that make a park a pleasant place to be.

From inclusive playspaces that give kids of all abilities a chance to play alongside one another to custom-designed playgrounds that take a locality's history, culture or geology into account and beyond, playground designers and manufacturers continue to raise the bar.

Parks are an essential part of a well-planned neighborhood, and as such, they require careful attention to planning and design. Collaborating with residents and other stakeholders and accommodating the interests of multiple generations are two keys to success.

In this first of a two-part series, an aquatic expert walks us through some of the best things to do before the season begins to get an aquatic operation off to a smart start.