By Andrew Strecker, Senior Community Reporter
Photo/submitted
Westborough – Jenn Kirkland, Westborough’s new town recreation director, said she was always a “rec kid” and very involved in sports. Growing up in Somerville, Kirkland played basketball and during the summer worked for the city’s recreation camps. She played basketball in college at Fitchburg State University.
After graduating and working in some office jobs, she applied for an administrative assistant position at Westborough Recreation. She thought it was too good to be true.
“It combined my love of sports and recreation with the skills I had acquired from college and my work experience,” she said.
While working under former Recreation Director Alan Grady, who is now the parks and recreation director in Sanford, Maine, Kirkland found that working in recreation could be a career and pursued a master’s degree in sports management. She earned her degree and “just took any opportunity I could to help out, learn, or run a program,” she noted.
Now Westborough’s recreation director, Kirkland most recently was interviewing local high school students for summer program positions at her office in Town Hall and wants to get the word out that registration for summer playground programs is under way for kids ages 3.5 through entering high school.
In addition, Kirkland said that her department is not just kid-focused, but offers activities such as men’s and women’s pickup basketball, volleyball, table tennis, ceramics, yoga, meditation, fitness classes and pickleball. Registration and program details for all Westborough Recreation programs can be found at www.westbororec.com.
