Jim Brademas, associate professor,
emeritus, retired, living in Tucson, AZ. He received his BS and MS degrees in
1954-55 from the Department of Recreation & Park Administration, University
of Illinois under the mentorship of Charles K. Brightbill and Allen V. Sapora.
He received a Fulbright grant and served as the Director of the YMCA Leadership
Training School in Athens, Greece from 1955-56. On his return to the U.S., he
was appointed the first Superintendent of Recreation for the newly formed
recreation department at the Rockford, Illinois Park District where he had
conducted experimental recreation programs the two previous summers. In 1960 he
accepted the position of vice-president, director of community organization for
City Planning Associates (CPA) a city planning and urban renewal consulting firm
working in 150 cities in the U.S.. In 1969 he became vice-president, director of
operations for Barnaby's, Inc. a newly formed restaurant franchise company with
head quarters in Chicago. In 1972 he returned to CPA as president. In 1974 he
was appointed Chief of the Office of
Recreation & Park Resources, Department of Leisure Studies, University
of Illinois, a position he held for eight years. He received his Ph.D. in 1976
at the age of 46. His work and writings at the university centered on management
issues, particularly personnel administration. He has completed three
sabbaticals in Greece. For the past six years Brademas
has been responsible for the department's internship program. He also started
the Illinois Rural Recreation Development Project (IRRDP), a highly successful
program designed to introduce summer recreation programs in communities of under
5,000 population. Brademas retired in December 2000 after 26 years on the
faculty.