Residence Requirements:

CANDIDATES MUST HAVE BEEN LEGAL RESIDENTS OF ERIE COUNTY FOR AT LEAST ONE MONTH IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING THE DATE OF THE WRITTEN TEST AND MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENTS OF ERIE COUNTY AT THE TIME OF APPOINTMENT. There is one  vacancy at the Town of Grand Island  ($38,356 - $42,988  annual 2020 salary) and one vacancy at the Town of Amherst ($36,265 - $49,232 annual 2020 salary)

Preference may be given to successful candidates who have been residents of the municipality in which the appointment is to be made for one month preceding the date of the certification of the eligible list and who are residents of the municipality at the time of appointment.  Non-residents may be required to become a resident of the appointing municipality if local law so states.

Examples of Duties:

A Recreation Leader (Senior Citizens) acts as a group leader in the conduct of one or more of the less complex aspects of an organized recreation program dealing with senior citizens;

Conducts one or more group recreation activities for the elderly, (of a general or social nature) such as sports, dancing, singing, or routine arts and crafts ;

Assists school, adult education groups, church groups, and other public and voluntary agencies in planning and organizing recreation programs for elderly;

Organizes the group according to interest; gives individual or group instruction; schedules contests and special events ;

Schedules events and use of facilities and equipment; supervises group to insure safety of participants; may act as a referree or umpire;

Maintains records and prepares reports on activity; may render first aid and assist with the instruction in other areas;

Assists at various special events such as boat rides, musical reviews, dances, trips, shows and other recreational activities for the elderly.

Qualifications:

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:  Candidates must meet one of the following requirements on or before the date of the written test:

A.) Completion of two (2) years or sixty (60) semester credit hours of study at a regionally accredited or NYS registered two or four year college or university specializing in physical education, recreation or related field and one (1) year of experience in conducting organized recreational activities for the elderly; or

B.) Graduation from high school or possession of a high school equivalency diploma and three (3) years of experience in conducting organized recreational activities for the elderly; or

C.) An equivalent combination of training and experience as defined by the limits of (A) and (B).

Notes:

1. Verifiable part-time and/or volunteer experience will be pro-rated toward meeting the experience requirements.

2. Your degree and/or college credit must have been awarded by a regionally accredited college or university or one recognized by the New York State Education Department as following acceptable educational practices. A grade of "D" or better is necessary for a course to be credited as successfully completed. If your degree and/or college credit was awarded by an educational institution outside of the United States and its territories, you must provide independent verification of equivalency. You can write to this Department for a list of acceptable companies providing this service; you must pay the required evaluation fee.

Notice to Candidates: Transcripts will now be accepted by the Department of Personnel ONLY at time of application.
All subsequent transcripts must be submitted at time of interview.

The New York State Department of Civil Service has not prepared a test guide for this examination. However, candidates may find information in the publication 'General Guide to Written Tests' helpful in preparing for this test. This publication is available on line at:https://www.cs.ny.gov/testing/testguides.cfm.

Subjects of Examination:

Subjects of Examination: A test designed to evaluate knowledge, skills and /or abilities in the following areas.

Preparing written material
These questions test for the ability to present information clearly and accurately, and to organize paragraphs logically and comprehensibly. For some questions, you will be given information in two or three sentences followed by four restatements of the information. You must then choose the best version. For other questions, you will be given paragraphs with their sentences out of order. You must then choose, from four suggestions, the best order for the sentences.

Principles and practices of leisure recreation
These questions test for a knowledge of the basic concepts and common practices employed in the planning and implementation of leisure-time recreation programs in athletics, social activities, and avocational interests. Questions may cover such areas as program/activity planning for the major user groups, program/activity planning for people with special needs; operation of recreation areas, recreation center buildings, and specialized recreation facilities (pools, tennis courts, etc.); and scheduling of activities.

Working with people to facilitate recreation and/or leisure activities
These questions will test for the knowledge and abilities necessary to work with individuals of all backgrounds in the context of providing recreation and leisure activities. Questions may cover such areas as: human behavior and development, handling difficult situations, engaging and motivating participants, building rapport with participants, working with volunteers, and planning appropriate activities for participant group.

NOTICE TO CANDIDATES: Unless otherwise noted, candidates are permitted to use quiet, hand held, solar or battery powered calculators. Devices with typewriter keyboards, "Spell Checkers", “Personal Digital Assistants", "Address Books", "Language Translators", "Dictionaries", or any similar devices are prohibited. You may not bring books or other reference materials.

**IMPORTANT APPLICATION FEE - READ CAREFULLY**

A $20.00 filing fee is required for this exam. The required fee must accompany your application. Send or bring check or money order made payable to Erie County Personnel Department and write the examination number(s) on your check or money order. Do not send or bring cash, as the County cannot be responsible for cash payment. As no refund will be made, you are urged to compare your qualifications carefully with the requirements for admission and file only for those examinations for which you are clearly qualified.