This semester, Recreational Services at K-State implemented IMLeagues, a web-based intramural management solution. IMLeagues is especially helpful to students and staff involved with intramurals because it allows them to register and manage individual and team sports online. REC*IT, the official mobile app for IMLeagues, allows players to view their schedules, rankings and communicate with teammates from the comfort of their own home.
“It allows you to have access to your team, registration, any aspect of intramurals that you need as a participant 24/7,” Armando Espinoza, assistant director at K-State Recreational Services, said. “You don’t have to come into the office and physically turn in a piece of paper. You can just hop on your computer or phone.”
Justin Cain, graduate student in architecture, participated in football and soccer this fall.
“You know how people are with change, they don’t really like it at first but once they adapt to it, it’s the best thing,” Cain said.
Anna Pyle, sophomore in industrial engineering, was the intramurals chair for Kappa Alpha Theta sorority for 2014.
“We are the online generation,” Pyle said. “So I think it was smart for them to go online.”
While it was difficult to manage several teams at once, Pyle said it was convenient that she did not have to go into the office because she does not have a car in Manhattan.
The K-State intramural program offers over 60 events for both men and women among different divisions such as: fraternity, residence hall, independent or faculty and staff.
“The thing that students have very little concept of is all the moving parts with scheduling games, officials, rescheduling games and not interfering with any rentals (or) reservations, that may be going on in the facility,” Espinoza said.
According to Espinoza, IMLeagues and REC*IT has improved the overall communication between the students and himself.
Besides the players, intramural officials are essential to the program. Rec Services employs approximately 175 officials and 10 supervisors a year.
“If I can move an entire staff from day one to the end of the season as a stronger, more competent, more readily able to handle any kind of situation staff,” Espinoza said. “Then I feel we have successfully trained and developed our officials.”
IMLeagues and REC*IT allows Espinoza to focus more time on official development and education instead of the data entry he had to do previously.
“The way I like to look at it is if the students demand it, we’ll have it,” Espinoza said.
Entries for certain spring semester activities and events will be accepted as early as Jan. 20. Participants register online by following the instructions listed at recservices.k-state.edu/intramurals/registration.html.