People

Tim Ahern owns and leads BCI Burke Company, a playground manufacturing company that has been in the business of creating playgrounds since the 1920s. Although not a member of the original Burke family, Tim has held the same values and traits as his predecessors at BCI Burke.

Paul Ahrens, the son of Claude Ahrens, joined the family business, Miracle Playground Equipment Company, after a year of college. He was a talented inventor like his father and grandfather, John Ahrens. During the 1960's he created, with his father, the Miracle People Mover Train that was used at the 1965 Astrodome opening in Houston, Texas. Disneyland's Adventureland and many large resorts also used the Miracle Train for transporting people.

Dr. Stuart Brown grew up on the southwest side of Chicago, went to parochial high school, and received his BS from Wheaton College. He went on to medical school and took a rotating general internship and then settled on family practice. In order to strengthen his diagnostic skills, he went to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester Minnesota, for a fellowship in internal medicine. He later became the Assistant Dean of Baylor and took a residency in psychiatry.

Dr. Nilda Cosco is a Research Associate Professor and an Education Specialist who is concerned with the impact of outdoor and built environments on the well being of children and their families. She believes that, “Outdoor play in nature is especially stimulating as nature is ever changing, highly sensory, and engaging...Long periods of engagement in freely chosen play activities not only supports attention restoration and creativity but the development of social skills and language, the opportunity of full immersion in the physical environment, and the unexplainable joy of being in touch with others.”1

• 1. Cosco, Nilda. Words on Play. PlayCore. 2011 Brochure. Print.

Bernard (Bernie) DeKoven is a “fun theorist” who designs games, teaches games, writes about games, helps people improve their games, and advocates play and fun.1 He is also an author, workshop facilitator, and presenter.

• 1. “It's Never Too Late – Confessions of a LEGO Game Consultant.” LEGO. < http://parents.lego.com/en-gb/LEGOAndSociety/LEGO®%20Game%20Consultant.aspx > 16 Jan. 2012.

Dr. David Elkind is a child psychologist, educator, speaker, and author who has built on and furthered the works of biologist and child psychologist, Jean Piaget. He has focused on the cognitive, perceptual, and social development of children and adolescents with an emphasis on what constitutes healthy development. His research and writings have included the effects of stress and the importance of creative, spontaneous play for healthy development and academic learning.1

• 1. “Book Description: The Power of Play: Learning What Comes Naturally.” Amazon. < http://www.amazon.com/Power-Play-Learning-Comes-Naturally/dp/0738211109 > 22 March 2012.

Friedrich Froebel was truly a pioneer in early childhood education. He established a new type of school for three and four year old children in 1837, which he called a child’s garden or kindergarten.1 Prior to this there had been no educational training for children under the age of seven. There was no recognition that young children were capable of learning social and intellectual skills.2

• 1. “Friedrich Froebel (1782-1852) – Biography, Froebel’s Kindergarten Philosophy, The Kindergarten Curriculum, Diffusion of the Kindergarten.” Education Encyclopedia. StateUniversity.com. < http://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/1999/Froebel-Friedrich-1782-1852.html > 21 Dec. 2010.
• 2. LeBlanc, Miriam.

Dr. Geoffrey C. Godbey is a teacher, scholar, speaker, author, and consultant concerning the history and philosophies of leisure, leisure and health, leisure and aging, parks and public recreation, and the future of leisure behavior. As a spokesman for the recreation and tourism field, Dr. Godbey had been “placing leisure into larger and larger contexts, thereby giving leisure larger and larger meaning.”1

• 1. Dustin, Dan. “A Tribute to Geoffrey C. Godbey.” Journal of Leisure Research. 1 Jan. 2007. online: Goliath: Business Knowledge on Demand. < http://goliath.ecnext.com/coms2/gi_0199-6282070/A-tribute-to-Geoffrey-C.html > 11 Dec. 2011.

Luther Halsey Gulick gave significant leadership and promotion to the playground and recreation movements of the early 1900s. With most of his time involved in the fields of physical education and hygiene, he liked to take ideas and thoughts, develop them further, put an organization together to bring the ideas to fruition, and then turn the leadership over to others while he moved on to another set of ideas.1

• 1. Butler, George D. Pioneers in Public Recreation. Minneapolis, MN: Burgess Publishing Company, 1965. p. 55.

Teresa (Teri) Hendy earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Art and a Teacher's Certificate from Miami University in 1974. For the next four years she taught Art and Industrial Arts for grades K-8 in the Reading Community Schools of Reading, Ohio. This strong background in child development, education, and fine art has enhanced her ability to design outdoor children's learning environments in the playground industry.

Starting in 1983, Teri began consulting in the playground industry on a part time basis. In 1988 she started Site Masters Inc, a business owned by women based in Cincinnati, Ohio. As president and owner, Teri has been an active consultant on design and safety issues for schools, parks, and the courts for the past 20 years.

Patty Smith Hill (1868-1946) was a leader in the Kindergarten movement and an advocate of the value of free play in the education of young children. Although the theory and methods of Friedrich Froebel were accepted in most kindergartens at the time, Hill studied the work of other leading educators, such as G. Stanley Hall, John Dewey, and Francis W. Parker, and challenged the practice of following Froebel’s methods explicitly. Her work established the foundation for the modern kindergarten in America today.

Paul Hogan, as a young man, served in the Massachusetts State Guard, the US Merchant Marines, and finally two years in the 11th Airborne Division. After military life, he began civilian life as a carpenter and eventually became partner in Hogan & Lynch Construction Company, Inc. in 1956. They specialized in small and complicated military contracts. In 1958, he volunteered at his children's nursery school and was assigned the playground, which he found decrepit and unsafe. This began Paul's interest in designing, constructing, and improving playgrounds.

Johan Huizinga was a Dutch historian who lived from 1872 to 1945. His book, Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play Element in Culture, published in 1938, suggested the instinct for play as the central element in human culture and examined the role of play in law, war, science, poetry, philosophy, and art. He saw all human activities as playing where “…the great instinctive forces of civilized life have their origin: law and order, commerce and profit, craft and art, poetry, wisdom and science. All are rooted in the primaeval soil of play.”1

• 1. Liukkonen, Petri. “Johan Huizinga (1872-1945).” Pegasos. < http://kirjasto.sci.fi/huizin.htm > 6 Oct. 2011.

Tom Kalousek began working for the Bensenville Park District in Illinois after completing a Bachelor of Science degree in Geography/Geology. He supervised maintenance there and subsequently at the nearby Arlington Height Park District and the Elmhurst Park District. During this time Tom began a long association with the Illinois Park and Recreation Association (IPRA).

Barb King graduated from Iowa State University in 1968 with a degree in Food Science. She was known for her work in creating sustainable, healthy lifestyles not only for children and their families but for the community. Barb King was a co-founder and a major influence in the growth of Landscape Structures until her death in 2008.1

• 1. “Our History” Landscape Structures Inc. < http://www.playlsi.com/Learn-About-Us/Our-History/Pages/Our-History.aspx > 13 Aug. 2010.

Ken Kutska began his illustrious career in parks and recreation at age 16, when he was a summer youth sports program leader who handled park maintenance between the youth programs. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Parks and Recreation Administration in 1971 from Western Illinois University.

Ken's first post-graduate job was with Elmhurst Park District in DuPage County, Illinois. Here he spent over three years “learning the ropes” and making connections on local and state levels that would assist him later. He also continued to attend Western Illinois University for graduate courses in Facility Management and Public Administration.

Joseph Lee began life in 1862 as the son of a wealthy Boston family, and through a lifetime of leadership, research, writings, and philanthropy, he became known as the “Father of the Playground Movement.” Concerning a child's need for play he believed: “There must be creation, song, wonder, inquiry, and adventure. If these are slighted we shall have committed once again the ancient crime against childhood, of which practically all education has been guilty – the crime of not letting the child live as well as learn.”1

• 1. Butler, George D. Pioneers In Public Recreation. Minneapolis, MN: Burgess Publishing Company, 1965. pp. 1-16. (p. 10)

Fran Mainella earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Connecticut in 1969, and began to teach Physical Education classes for grades 6-12 in Rockville, Connecticut. After seven years of teaching, coaching, designing curriculum, and earning a Master’s degree from Central Connecticut State College, Fran entered the arena of recreation.1 She was first hired in 1977 as an Assistant Center Director of the Tallahassee Parks and Recreation Department in Florida. Though only there for a year, Fran worked with integrating and operating the community center programs for young children through senior citizens.

• 1. “Professional Experience.” Resume. Copy at Playground Professionals. 6 April 2011.

Dr. Maria Montessori was one of the most influential pioneers in education for children in the 20th century, and her methods have continued to be utilized in Montessori schools around the world. Her discoveries in working with children led to teaching methods that allow for child-directed learning with the teacher facilitating the environment to aid in the child’s interests with the message to “follow the child.”1

• 1. “An Inroduction to Montessori Philosophy & Practice.” The Michael Olaf Montessori Company. < http://www.michaelolaf.net/1CW312MI.html > 4 Aug. 2011.

Tom graduated from Portland State University in 1982 with his Bachelor of Science degree in Finance/Law and Marketing. He was a sales manager for 12 years for Columbia Cascade, which is a recreational facilities and services industry. While at Cascade he helped to develop an above ground, modular wooden play structure and the playground systems, Timberform II and Pipeline.1

• 1. “Commitment to Play.” People Profile. Today’s Playground. October, 2003.

Tom Peeples, a consultant on playground design and safety issues, has assisted in developing and promoting playground safety standards through his involvement with ASTM International (ASTM), the National Playground Contractors Association International (NPCAI), and the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA).

His experience with parks and playgrounds began in 1979 when he started working for the City of Boulder Parks and Recreation/Water Department. With duties concerning maintenance of city parks and playgrounds, water lines, and sewer lines, Tom gained valuable experience in all aspects of park and playground construction, installation, inspection, and maintenance.1

• 1. Private correspondence from Tom Peeples to Playground Professionals. 12 Sep. 2011.

Caroline Pratt (1867-1954) was an innovative educator who as part of the progressive movement, Pratt developed teaching methods that focused on play as an alternative to what she felt was the “repression of formal education” of that time.1

• 1. “History of City and Country School.” City and Country School. < http://cityandcountry.org/about-us/history/ > 30 Nov. 2011.

Dr. James H. Rimmer is a researcher who has had a long career in developing and directing health promotion programs for people with disabilities. As an author and professor, he has written on various subjects relating to health promotion, physical activity, secondary conditions, and disability,1 and he has been characterized as “the nation's leading voice on physical activity and disability.”2

• 1. “James H. Rimmer, PhD.” UIC Institute for Health Research and Policy. < http://www.ihrp.uic.edu/researcher/james-h-rimmer-phd > 14 Dec. 2011.
• 2. Shepard, Bob. “Rimmer to lead joint health promotion-rehabilitation science research.” UAB News. 14 Dec. 2011.

Dorothy Singer is a research scientist, professor, consultant, and author who focuses on early childhood development, the effects of television on youth, and the importance of imaginative play.1 She believes that “play is crucially important to children's intellectual, social, emotional, and physical development” and is seeking to “reintroduce play and joyful learning into our schoolrooms and our living rooms.”2

• 1. “Dorothy G. Singer.” A Mandate for Playful Learning in Preschool. < http://www.mandateforplayfullearning.com/about.html > 15 Nov. 2011.
• 2. “Play=Learning Conference.” Play=Learning. < http://udel.edu/~roberta/play/press.html > 15 Nov. 2011.

Michael Spock began his career as the Director of the Boston Children's Museum in 1962. His unconventional educational background led him to approach revitalizing the museum with an experiential and informal platform. He began with a What's Inside? exhibit where children could see and explore the insides of ordinary objects, such as a toaster, baseball, or a drop of rainwater. At that time non-directive, open-ended exploratory exhibits were not common.1 That exhibit lasted five years and led the national transition to hands-on children's museums across America.

• 1. “Sidebar: What's Inside?” Boston Children's Museum. < http://bcmstories.com/stories-menu/chapter01-menu/103-sidebar-whats-inside > 5 Aug. 2011.

As a lifetime student of play, Brian Sutton-Smith is one of the foremost play theorists of his time. With over sixty-five years observing, researching, and teaching in the fields of educational psychology and play theory, his work has resulted in more than 350 books and articles that are stored at the Brian Sutton-Smith Library and Archives of Play located at The Strong in Rochester, New York.1

• 1. “Brian Sutton-Smith Biograpy.” Brian Sutton-Smith Library & Archives of Play. < http://www.libraryandarchivesofplay.org/about/bio > 5 April 2011.

Aldo van Eyck, who was born in the Netherlands and educated in England, started working for the Department of City Development at Amsterdam Public Works in 1947 when he was 28 years old. World War II was over and Amsterdam was largely dysfunctional with little available housing for families with children, even less for the coming postwar baby boom children. For Amsterdam's children, the only existing play spaces were private and only for the wealthy.

Lev Semyonovich Vygotsky was a Russian psychologist who was born in 1896 in Belorussia, now known as Belarus. He received a law degree from the University of Moscow but also studied literature, linguistics, sociology, psychology, philosophy, and the arts. After graduation he returned to his hometown of Gomel to teach literature and philosophy. While there, Vygotsky set up a research laboratory at the Teacher’s College of Gomel and began to practice clinical psychology.1

• 1. “Vygotsky, Lev.” New World Encyclopedia. < http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Lev_Vygotsky > 25 Feb. 2011.

Penny Wilson is a professional Playworker who works for the Play Association Tower Hamlets – PATH, a non-profit organization based in the East End of London that supports play in an overcrowded, poor, increasingly urban setting.

Penny Wilson grew up in the South East of England, where she enjoyed the freedom of playing on the rolling hills of the South Downs and beside the sea. The playful experiences of her childhood would influence her work in advocating for play for over 25 years.1

• 1. Biography from the US Play Coalition Conference on the Value of Play, held February 2011.