In honor of the State Park Centennial Celebration, TPWD’s Community Outdoor Outreach Program (CO-OP) has awarded the largest sum of grant funding in the program’s history and is supporting a record-breaking number of organizations connecting under-represented audiences to Texas State Parks.  More than $2.8 million will create 55 grant-funded partnerships to help communities in promoting the value of recreation and conservation across Texas.    

CO-OP grant recipients are as diverse as the communities in Texas they serve.  Funding supports a range of projects: students monitoring water quality along the Rio Grande at Big Bend Ranch State Park, deaf youth engaged in nature study with the aid of ASL interpreters, communities of color hiking at Fort Davis State Park while connecting with the cultural history of Buffalo Soldiers and breast cancer survivors discovering the healing power of fly-fishing in our rivers.  Each project removes barriers for Texans to connect with nature and the mission of TPWD, learning to hunt, fish, camp or paddle and beginning a lifelong path to conservation stewardship.  For a complete list of 2023 CO-OP grant recipients, check out our latest press release.  Please visit our website or contact grant staff to learn more about CO-OP. 

The Local Park grants program provides 50/50 matching grants to eligible local units of government, for the acquisition, renovation, and new development of public parkland. 

Local Parks staff is planning a series of Grant Writing Workshops to cover all the elements needed for a competitive project application. Offered at sites around the state, the workshop will provide application support and assist potential applicants with grant program requirements and priorities, an overview of the application process, review the scoring criteria, help with budget planning, and answer questions from applicants.    

You are invited to participate in a survey conducted by Texas A&M University in partnership with TPWD to assess outdoor recreation needs in your community, determine funding priorities, and identify outdoor recreation management challenges faced by park and recreation service providers. The data we collect will assist TPWD with the development of the Texas Outdoor Recreation Plan (TORP), which provides TPWD a roadmap in the allocation of resources for the provision of outdoor recreation opportunities and the conservation of the state’s natural amenities. The feedback you share through will be instrumental for guiding the state’s priorities. Your participation is important and very much appreciated.  Your identity will not be linked to your responses and is kept confidential. We only report findings in aggregate. The survey will take approximately 20 minutes to complete. 

 Please click here to take the survey.

The Recreation Grants Branch of TPWD is seeking outstanding candidates for these positions:  Grant Contract Specialist, Recreational Trails Grant Coordinator, and coming soon Boating Access and Target Range Grant Coordinator. 

Learn more and apply on-line https://tpwd.texas.gov/jobs/ click on FIND JOBS 

Meet Michael Sanford, Recreation Grants newest member.  

Michael is a native Texan who moved to Austin in the early 2000’s.  He has years of internal and external audit experience with the State Auditor’s Office, the Public Utility Commission, and the private banking industry.  Michael has enjoyed the transition to Texas Parks & Wildlife and is glad to be helping grant sponsors