1. MRPA AWARDS BROCHURE
PETER C. O’BRIEN HUMANITARIAN AWARD
MELISSA BATTITE, CPRP
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF RECREATION
BROOKLINE RECREATION DEPARTMENT
Melissa Battite is currently the Assistant Director of Recreation with the Town of Brookline. Melissa has
been working in the Park and Recreation industry for nearly 30 years, earning her degree in Recreation
and Leisure Studies at Southern Connecticut State University and moving to Boston in 1993. Melissa has
created, developed and implemented a variety of services and programs that support a high quality of life
in Brookline community.
Melissa developed and fostered partnerships that are now a part of the fabric of the community. She has a
proven history of creating services that yield community impact with a particular passion for social equity.
Her focus on inclusion is evident in her work. She began a Special Olympics chapter nearly 10 years ago,
now serving over 200 athletes and volunteers annually. This provides children and adults the opportunity
to participate in team sports while maintaining healthy and active life styles. The participants are engaged
in year round activities including dances, trips, dinners, as well as nutrition, computer, employment, and
fitness classes. She demonstrated the need for such services which led to the creation of a Recreation
Therapy program with a full time CTRS dedicated to inclusion and adaptive services.
Melissa has established and nurtured a Summer Partnership with the school district and mental health
center that impacts hundreds of families each summer. She created a camp system that compliments
the school district summer programs. The campus model has created a summer model that is more accessible to the community,
by providing children in the district’s extended school year and summer school programs the opportunity to join camp mid-day. This
approach allows over 100 children receiving the academic support needed to prevent regression, the option to join a fun, safe and
healthy camp experience with peers. The benefits of this campus model provide much more than a half day program. This approach
to collaborative programming allows families the choice to have wrap-around care without the burden of choosing between their
child’s academic needs and a full day program typically needed during the summer months. Through her leadership, the partnership
has a much broader and deeper mission. Collaboration has expanded to include summer facility use (indoor & outdoor),
transportation, nursing, aquatics, registration, and staff training. In 2012, Melissa introduced a summer lunch program in Brookline
as an added amenity to the camp program. In addition to having a healthy lunch option available, this has created additional summer
jobs and extended the free and reduced lunch program for our most vulnerable community members. Over the past 18 years,
Melissa has secured summer enrollments with four private day camps yielding over $200K in camperships and this summer will
include youth internships. In 2015, 110 days of camp and a $5K donation was secured through her work.
Melissa has created, and continually grows, the partnerships with the public schools, universities and private schools in and around
Brookline. She has implemented a cost share system for the recreation facilities where the Recreation Department, schools and
private sports organizations and parent groups work together to prioritize the replacement and purchase of equipment that benefit
everyone. Brookline has been able to secure funding for several projects that otherwise would have taken years to implement. This
cost share model has yielded close to $15K during the fall of 2015 alone. This funding supported the aquatics center, timing system,
and outdoor skating rink scoreboard. Brookline was also an NRPA Fund Your Park participant, in which over $20K was raised
towards the renovation of a family changing room at the Aquatics Center.
Melissa has spent over 22 years as an active member of MRPA, serving on the Executive Board in several roles and is the current
President of MRPA. She has also served on multiple conference committees and various subcommittees. Melissa has focused on
the long term services of the organization that supports membership benefits, branding and succession planning for the long term
sustainability of MRPA. She is also an active member of NRPA, currently serving on the Administrators Network Leadership Team,
leads the monthly Virtual Roundtables and participates in the NRPA Mentor program each year. Her professional development,
networking and involvement continue to shape her as a professional and person. She is extremely grateful for all of the amazing
support and relationships that she has made over the years through both organizations. She attributes much of her continued
passion for the Park and Recreation industry directly to her involvement and exposure to so many wonderful people and opportunities.
Melissa has received several recognitions through her career including the 2000 Recipient of the MRPA Young Professional of the
Year Award, 2004 NRPA Step Up to Health community, the 2006 Community Health Award from the Friends of Brookline Public
Health and is a 2010 graduate from the NRPA Director’s School. In 2011, she received the MRPA Community Professional of the
Year and most recently received the 2015 President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition Community Leadership Award.