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Small changes to the new RSD make a big difference in user-friendliness

New features make the 2007 edition of the Recreational Sports Directory easier to use than ever before

Sometimes tiny adjustments can make a big difference. Moving the pin up one notch on the leg extension can turn an impossible weight into an optimal one for strength training. And getting that piece of gravel out of your shoe makes another mile a lot easier.

The Recreational Sports Directory (RSD) has been published in some format for 41 years now. Every year, we work to make it better, adding information or improving functionality. This year, you may notice a few small changes that add up to make the 2007 edition the most comprehensive and easy-to-use RSD yet.

For starters, we’ve largely eliminated the use of parentheses in college and university names and attempted to list each institution in a manner consistent with its preferred public identity. This means that what previously appeared as “California State Polytechnic University (Pomona)” now appears as Cal Poly Pomona; that “Louisiana State University (Baton Rouge)” becomes simply Louisiana State University; and that “State University of New York (Cortland)” can now be found under SUNY Cortland.

You will still see some parentheses where more than one college or university uses a given name. This allows the Gordon College in Georgia and the Gordon College in Massachusetts to be differentiated at a glance.

Another “small but big” change involves something not known for its flexibility: the alphabet. Earlier editions of this directory have omitted “College of” or “University of” when alphabetizing institutions; so, for example, the University of Alabama was filed under A. This approach resulted in a few interesting placements. UCLA was listed under C, and the aforementioned State University of New York (Cortland) appeared under N. In the latest edition, the very first letter of the institution’s name determines its placement. SUNY Cortland is under S. UCLA is under U, along with all the “University of”s, in the largest U section in the history of the RSD—large, but easily navigated.

Finally, we’ve tried to anticipate when users of the RSD might have trouble finding what they need, and provided cross references to help. If you look under S-T for Saint Mary’s College, you will find a suggestion to check S-A as well.

If these improvements work the way they should, they will be practically invisible. We bring them to your attention to illustrate that, like you, we are always striving to evaluate, to improve, and to deliver the best to the people who count on us.

Institutional Members will receive one free copy of the 2007 RSD by mid-January, along with any pre-orders that were placed by November 10. Additional copies of the directory can be ordered through the NIRSA Education & Publication Center (NEPC) while supplies last. NIRSA Professional, Student, and Institutional Members can purchase the 2007 RSD for $30 by entering the Institutional Member discount code when ordering. (The discount code can be found by logging in to the NIRSA Members Only page. The correct price will be displayed in the shopping cart.) Associate Members and nonmembers can purchase the RSD for $75 from the NEPC as well.