Park aide vs activities director

The differences between park aides and activities directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a park aide, becoming an activities director takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, an activities director has an average salary of $44,982, which is higher than the $28,379 average annual salary of a park aide.

The top three skills for a park aide include GRASS, general grounds and various maintenance. The most important skills for an activities director are patients, rehabilitation, and resident care.

Park aide vs activities director overview

	Park Aide	Activities Director
Yearly salary	$28,379	$44,982
Hourly rate	$13.64	$21.63
Growth rate	5%	10%
Number of jobs	41,113	6,845
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 57%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	2	4

What does a park aide do?

A park aide is an administrative or grounds support staff in a park whose duties will vary according to the department in which they are posted. Park aides working in customer service interact with visitors to guide and give information or tour guides. Those working on the grounds may be assigned conservation and recreational duties or cleaning, while those in administration will be responsible for a variety of administrative roles such as working on outreach programs, visitor registration, or revenue collection.

What does an activities director do?

An activities director is responsible for planning engaging events for the participants, considering individual interests and the safety of procedures and resources. Activities directors guide the activity staff on assisting the participants, ensuring that they are comfortable with joining the activities. Since most activities directors work at a healthcare facility or elderly institution, they must also monitor the health of the participants by conducting therapeutic activities and evaluate the participants' progress for every program. The activities director must be a critical-thinker, as well as have excellent communication skills to coordinate with facilities personnel for successful activity completion.

Park aide vs activities director salary

Park aides and activities directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Park Aide	Activities Director
Average salary	$28,379	$44,982
Salary range	Between $22,000 And $35,000	Between $27,000 And $74,000
Highest paying City	Las Vegas, NV	Huntington, NY
Highest paying state	Rhode Island	Mississippi
Best paying company	Washington State University	Microsoft
Best paying industry	Hospitality	Health Care

Differences between park aide and activities director education

There are a few differences between a park aide and an activities director in terms of educational background:

	Park Aide	Activities Director
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 57%
Most common major	Environmental Science	Business
Most common college	Stanford University	University of Pennsylvania

Park aide vs activities director demographics

Here are the differences between park aides' and activities directors' demographics:

	Park Aide	Activities Director
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 56.5% Female, 43.5%	Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 0.8% Unknown, 3.2% Hispanic or Latino, 2.5% Asian, 1.4% White, 90.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%	Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.5% Asian, 5.1% White, 61.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between park aide and activities director duties and responsibilities

Park aide example responsibilities.

Provide leadership and supervision by managing day-to-day operations for a county park facility.
Enter data onto PC and then run daily reports.
process payments and perform routine clerical duties; provide first aid or CPR as needed
Operate all forms of landscaping equipment such as weed eaters, mowers, and BCS sickle bar mower.
General labor includes, lawn mowing, tree trimming, garbage removal, setting and fixing the irrigation system as needed.
Assist with maintaining the park by mowing, trimming, cleaning restrooms, cutting trees, and also maintaining park equipment.

Activities director example responsibilities.

Manage updated JCC social media, including Facebook.
Manage pet therapy/pat visitation protocol.
Attend interdisciplinary care plan meetings and document in MDS and resident medical records as appropriate.
Plan, organize, and run the afterschool
Create reports, handouts, and PowerPoint presentations.
Assist teachers with reading and mathematics lessons and activities.

Park aide vs activities director skills

Common park aide skills

GRASS, 27%
General Grounds, 8%
Various Maintenance, 7%
Golf Carts, 7%
Mowing, 6%
Hand Tools, 6%

Common activities director skills

Patients, 15%
Rehabilitation, 10%
Resident Care, 8%
Customer Service, 7%
Home Health, 7%
MDS, 6%

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Park Aide vs Activities Director

Updated January 8, 2025

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