The Sports Turf Managers Association (STMA) is very pleased to announce that it is recognizing its first International Affiliate Organization, the Sports Turf Association (STA) headquartered in Guelph, ON, Canada. The STA was formed in 1987 to promote better, safer sports turf through innovation, education and professional programs. STA and STMA will collaborate and share information and educational resources.
To be an International Affiliate, the organization must be recognized as a business entity in their country and provide proof to STMA annually; develop bylaws or other governing documents; and have a governing Board of Directors. The STA meets these requirements and officially became an STMA International Affiliate Organization on Nov. 5.
In addition to sharing information and resources, STMA will list the STA on its website as an International Affiliate Organization, provide one membership annually to the President of the STA, and will offer to the membership of the STA conference registration and education and training resources at STMA member rates.
STMA President Abby McNeal, CSFM was enthusiastic about the new partnership. “Officially establishing a relationship with the STA will help to connect our memberships and allow us to collaborate on issues common across the profession,” says McNeal. “Our Board of Directors has much respect for the work of the STA, and we know we will learn from them.”
Gord Dol, STA President, concurs. “We believe that this is an important step forward in establishing an information conduit for organizations around the world to share research, knowledge, and experience for the advancement of everyone involved in the sports turf industry.”
About STMA
STMA is the not-for-profit, professional association for the men and women who manage sports fields. Its more than 2,800 members oversee sports fields and facilities at schools, colleges and universities, parks and recreational facilities, and professional sports stadiums. The membership’s goal is to manage natural turf and synthetic surfaces to produce safe and aesthetically pleasing playing surfaces for athletes at all levels of playing abilities. Since 1981, the association and its dozens of local chapters have been providing education, information and sharing practical knowledge in the art and science of sports field management.
About STA
The Sports Turf Association was formed in 1987 by representatives from a broad segment of the turf industry. They recognized the need for a central resource for better education and information for those involved in maintaining sports turf. More than two decades later the STA remains dedicated to the promotion of better, safer sports turf. The STA has over 280 members from across Canada.