What is it? For the past few years, the Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America (BPAA) has offered its members access to education through a program called Bowling University. The offering is coming in handy for a number of state-level groups, including the Iowa Bowling Proprietors’ Association (IBPA), which recently announced that it was giving its members access to the online courses for free.

Why it works: Bowling alleys are complicated businesses—with elements of retail, recreation, competition, and food service. Making all those things work together is hard—which is why Bowling University’s approach makes a lot of sense both nationally and regionally. In 2011, the offering was named the Maryland Distance Learning Association’s “Program of the Year.”

Other benefits: Both IBPA and BPAA offer a variety of benefits for their members. In the case of IBPA, members get access to state-level resources and marketing tools and have the ability to take part in statewide tournaments. As for BPAA, the group’s member benefits are so comprehensive that it had to create an online flipbook just to list everything. The national association offers web design services, access to food manufacturers and beverage distributors, and youth-development programs to encourage kids to throw a few balls.

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