Meet the talented individuals that help Parks & Recreation grow!
With over 30 years of dedicated service to fostering community engagement, Susan Slawson is a visionary leader in parks and recreation. A graduate of Geneva College with a degree in Business Management, Susan combines her business acumen with a deep passion for sustainability and community development. Her instinctive understanding of community dynamics has earned her widespread reverence, trust, and respect throughout the Greater Philadelphia region.
Susan was sworn in under Mayor Cherelle L. Parker in 2024 and is deeply aligned with the mayor’s vision of making Philadelphia “a Safer, Cleaner, and Greener City, with Access to Economic Opportunity for All.” Her work exemplifies this mission by creating inclusive, vibrant, and sustainable park spaces that enhance public life and promote a higher quality of living. She firmly believes that accessible, diverse recreational programs can transform neighborhoods, making them more desirable places to live, work, and play.
As the commissioner of Parks & Recreation for eight years prior to the merger of Fairmount Park and the Department of Recreation, Susan oversaw strategic planning and programming for over 150 recreation centers and playgrounds across every neighborhood in Philadelphia. Her tenure was marked by innovation and resilience, particularly during the economic downturn of 2008. Under her leadership, the department secured significant federal grant funding to reduce the digital divide, introducing 25 KEYSPOT computer labs with internet access across the recreation system. She also successfully raised over $4 million to keep outdoor pools operational during this challenging period, ensuring critical community resources remained available.
Currently, Susan continues to collaborate closely with City Council members to plan capital projects and budgets. Her expertise in building partnerships with community organizations, neighborhood groups, and city departments highlights her commitment to operational excellence and collaborative leadership.
Guided by an unwavering vision for progress, Susan’s work leaves an indelible mark on the community, inspiring a brighter, more inclusive future for all, fully embracing the promise of a safer, cleaner, and greener Philadelphia.
Susan (Sue) Buck was appointed Parks & Rec’s deputy commissioner of operations in 2016. A 1989 graduate of the Pennsylvania State University, she has been with Parks & Rec for 21 years.
As deputy commissioner of operations, Buck manages staff development and operations to preserve and protect public land and waterways. She also makes sure that the department’s buildings, fields, and parks are safe, clean, and ready to use. Specifically, she oversees:
- Facilities maintenance
- Grounds maintenance and landscape management
- Standards and inspections
- Park Rangers
- The Recycling Center
- Contract management
- Storm response
From 1995-2003, Buck was a recreation leader and facility supervisor at locations throughout the department. In 2003, she was promoted to coordinator of the department’s Teen Center. In 2007, Buck was promoted to district manager of then District 9, which included west and southwest Philadelphia. In March of 2011, Buck was promoted to North regional manager, a where she managed four districts in the Operations and Program divisions.
Marissa Washington is deputy commissioner of administration for Philadelphia Parks & Rec and has held this title since 2008.
She oversees the following departmental units:
- Fiscal
- Human resources
- Warehouse
Collectively, these units manage the department’s $70 million budget and personnel, representing roughly 2,000 staff members, both permanent and seasonal.
Prior to her appointment at Parks & Rec, Washington worked at the Police Athletic League (PAL) where she managed grants, supported the accounting unit with budget preparation, recruited volunteers and hired part-time staff for after school programming. While at PAL, she assisted the Commanding Officer with various organizational responsibilities and national projects to build program capacity.
Washington was also a community organizer, mainly focused on the quality of public education provided to youth in the Strawberry Mansion section of Philadelphia. She worked closely with parents in North Philadelphia to help them navigate the school system and increase accountability at the local level.
Washington graduated from Towson State University with a degree in business administration with a concentration in finance. She is also a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority incorporated, a social organization founded in 1908. A lifelong resident of Philadelphia, Washington graduated from the Philadelphia High School for Girls and resides in Upper Roxborough with her husband, James.
Leigh Ann Campbell is the Deputy Commissioner for planning, property and strategic engagement. In her role, Leigh Ann oversees:
- Capital Projects coordination
- Planning
- Historic Properties
- Property Management & Concessions
- Natural Lands
- Urban Agriculture
- Strategic Engagement
- Stewardship
She manages a variety of tasks and employees that lead strategic engagement, historic asset management, properties and concessions, and stewardship of open spaces including natural lands, urban agriculture, and volunteer stewardship engagement. Campbell is a licensed landscape architect and has over 20 years experience. She most recently served as the PPR Director of Planning, Preservation and Property Management. Leigh Ann spent the first decade of her career at OLIN, a Philadelphia design studio, then joined the PA Horticultural Society to be closer to community-based improvements where she supported teams that included urban agriculture, pop up gardens, horticulture, volunteer-based stewardship initiatives and led capital improvement projects in partnership with several City agencies. During graduate school, Campbell interned with Denver Parks and Recreation’s planning and natural lands division.
These days you will find Leigh Ann exploring our city with her husband and two teenage sons. She is active in her community and serves as a co-leader of her local Tree Tender group. Although she’s been an urban gardener for over a decade, Leigh Ann now has a plot in a local community garden.