Press Release: Mayor Bowser Announces Expanded Hours at Recreation Centers

News Release — Executive Office of the Mayor and the DC Department of Parks and Recreation

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 

March 9, 2023  

CONTACT: 

Susana Castillo (EOM)

Michael Tucker Jr. (DPR)

DPR Gets Ready for Summer with Expanded Hours at Recreation Centers, New Summer Camp Lottery, and Hiring for More Than 600 Positions

(WASHINGTON, DC) – Today, Mayor Muriel Bowser and the DC Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) announced expanded hours at DPR recreation centers, first at eight high-demand recreation centers and eventually expanding hours at 37 additional recreation centers in April. The first eight recreation centers will begin expanding their hours on Monday, March 27.

“By expanding hours at our recreation centers, we are creating more recreation opportunities for residents of all ages and creating more safe and engaging opportunities for our young people in the evenings and during the weekend,” said Mayor Bowser. “We know that DPR plays a critical role in our community year round, but especially during the summer. This year, we have more summer opportunities, more job opportunities, and a new lottery system to help families avoid the summer camp scramble.”

Expanded Hours at Recreation Centers 

Weekday hours will expand from eight hours to 15 hours and Saturday hours will double from four hours to eight hours. In April, an additional 37 recreation centers will expand operating hours. The old weekend operating hours were 12:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.; the new weekday hours will be 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.  The old Saturday hours were 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.; the new Saturday hours will be 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

The first eight recreation centers to begin expanded hours on Monday, March 27 are listed below.

• Columbia Heights Community Center (1480 Girard Street NW) 
• Emery Heights Community Center (5701 Georgia Avenue NW) 
• Turkey Thicket Recreation Center (1100 Michigan Avenue NE) 
• Edgewood Recreation Center (301 Franklin Street NE) 
• Deanwood Community Center (1350 49^th Street NE) 
• Kenilworth Recreation Center (4321 Ord Street NE) 
• Rosedale Recreation Center (1701 Gales Street NE) 
• Barry Farm Recreation Center (1230 Sumner Road SE) 

New Summer Camp Lottery

During today’s event, DPR also announced that starting Monday, March 13, families will be able to begin registering youth for summer camps through a new lottery system. The new lottery will allow the summer camp registration process to be more inclusive and equitable. In recent years, without a lottery system, camp slots were filled within minutes of opening. The new lottery system will give residents nearly four weeks to submit their camp preferences. After the lottery registration window has closed, the registration system will randomly select participants from those who have registered.

The 2023 DPR summer camps available for sign up include:

• Little Explorers Camp (Ages 3 – 5): For Little Explorers and Discovery camps, caregivers will be able to select up to three camps and locations per child per session. Details on DPR’s income-based reduced rates is available on the summer camp website. 
• Discovery Camp (Ages 6 – 10) 
• Boost Camp (Ages 11 – 13): Boost camps offer specialty enrichment camps with an academic component. Among the specialty camps offered this year are: Rocket Camp, Robotics Camp, Esports Camp, Journalism Camp, Improv Camp and CSI. 
• Therapeutic Recreation Camps (Ages 3 – 16): Therapeutic Recreation camps are offered by DPR to children with and without developmental and intellectual disabilities. Therapeutic Recreation camps will open for registration on March 13, but will not use the lottery system as TR participants must undergo an assessment by TR staff before they can be enrolled.

The summer camp lottery registration will open on March 13 and close on April 5. Residents will be notified by email regarding summer camp placement on April 18, and if selected, payment will be due at that time. Residents can visit DPRsummercamp.com for additional descriptions, locations, and links to register for the summer camp lottery.

“Summer is our biggest time of the year at Parks and Recreation, so we are super excited to offer more hours, more jobs, and more camp opportunities with an improved registration experience,”said Delano Hunter, Director of the DC Department of Parks and Recreation. 

DPR Is Hiring

DPR also announced that they are hiring for the summer, with over 600 positions available. Positions available include summer camp, roving leaders, lifeguards and pool operators, urban park rangers, summer meals program, environmental division, and warehouse and transportation.  

Residents can learn more or sign up to attend a future hiring event at earnwithdpr.com.

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