National Recreation And Park Association, Incorporated

National Recreation and Park Association, Incorporated (doing business as NRPA) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Ashburn, Virginia that receives federal grants to fund youth mentoring, workforce development, and community service programs delivered through park and recreation agencies nationwide. NRPA operates exclusively as a grant recipient; it holds no federal contracts and has no subcontract footprint.

NRPA's recent federal grant portfolio centers on youth mentoring and civic engagement programs. The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) is the dominant funder, accounting for five awards that support evidence-based mentoring initiatives targeting at-risk youth in out-of-school time settings. A $777,318 grant awarded October 1, 2026 funds the 2026–27 Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service Program (CFDA 94.014) through the Corporation for National and Community Service, running through September 30, 2029, with a required 70 percent statutory match. An October 1, 2024 OJJDP award funds expansion of NRPA's Mentoring in Parks and Recreation initiative to engage up to 20 local park and recreation agencies across 10 states, providing group mentoring services to at-risk youth integrated into afterschool, summer, sports, STEM, and workforce development programs, with priority for historically underserved and marginalized communities including youth in military families, rural communities, and those disproportionately impacted by crime and violence. A $2.34 million Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration grant awarded September 30, 2023 supports workforce development and career readiness for youth ages 14–21 in rural North Carolina and 20 additional rural communities nationwide, serving 2,200 youth total. Two additional OJJDP awards from October 1, 2022 fund youth mentoring programs addressing juvenile delinquency prevention and opioid and substance misuse prevention in Appalachia, New England, and high-overdose-mortality states, collectively serving 9,000 youth through 35 local park and recreation agencies with capacity building, mentor training, and family engagement services.

NRPA has served eleven distinct federal agencies across 22 awards spanning from 2003 to October 2026, with combined dollars obligated of $30.5 million against combined potential value of $14 thousand. Award volume is sparse — one to two awards per year from 2021 through 2024, with one award in 2026 — and only one award reaches ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months. The Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Agriculture Agricultural Marketing Service round out NRPA's recent customer base with grants in health promotion and agricultural programs respectively. NRPA's grant work emphasizes youth development, mentoring framework delivery, diversity and equity integration, and subgrant management to local implementing park and recreation agencies across rural, suburban, and urban geographies.