The CEC's goal is to provide members with a planned system of high-quality continuing education instruction designed and delivered to enhance attainment and retention of technical competence by occupational and environmental health professionals.

There are three objectives to help guide the committee towards this goal:

  • Identify and promote new educational programs.
  • Monitor the quality of courses presented under the auspices of the committee.
  • Improve communication with other AIHA technical committees.

In pursuing these objectives, the committee:

  • Coordinates the development and presentation of half-day and full-day professional development courses at AIHA Connect.
  • Works with the national office to periodically assess the members' needs for continuing education.
  • Reviews all courses, from newly proposed to previously presented, at AIHA Connect.
  • Obtains and analyzes student evaluations, audits continuing education courses, and provides feedback on PDC results.
  • Improves participation in technical committee reviewing of PDCs and designates specific members to proactively interact with technical committees.

Questions?

Contact Erin Breece, Program Director, Education, +1-703-846-0749.​

Forms

PDC Non-select Appeal Form

This form is to be used to request reconsideration of a PDC proposal not selected by the Continuing Education Committee (CEC) for AIHA Connect.

Please use one form for EACH PDC proposal in which you are appealing reconsideration. Requests for reconsideration must be received within fourteen (14) calendar days of notification receipt; appeal requests received after that time frame will not be considered. The CEC chair will coordinate with AIHA staff to determine if the basis of the appeal is supportive of a change to the PDC program for the particular AIHA Connect and will respond to the appeal within 14 days from the receipt of the appeal at AIHA headquarters.

The appeal should be submitted electronically and AIHA staff will confirm its receipt the same day as received.

Continuing Education Committee Meetings Overview

Spring

The CEC meets four times a year, both virtually and in-person. CEC member attendance at these meetings is mandatory.

The spring meeting is held via conference call. The focus of this meeting is the selection of new CEC members, who begin their term at AIHA Connect that same year, as well as to vote to identify a new Vice-Chair from the existing membership.

Additional examples of items we'll discuss include: updates on professional development course (PDC) registration and on-site auditing duties/processes, the CEC's role in assuring the appropriateness and quality of continuing education activities, and CEC goals for the upcoming year.

Summer

The CEC meets four times a year, both virtually and in-person. CEC member attendance at these meetings is mandatory.

The summer meeting occurs during the annual conference, AIHA Connect, at the conference site. This meeting is in-person and the primary focus is on PDCs that were presented during the conference. Discussion centers around PDCs that have been audited over the conference period, reviewing overall conference comments, and providing an update of PDC registration numbers to-date.

At this time, we welcome all of the committee's new members who were voted on to the committee during the spring meeting and thank outgoing members. We'll also review the upcoming mid-summer meeting processes.

Mid-Summer

The CEC meets four times a year, both virtually and in-person. CEC member attendance at these meetings is mandatory.

The mid-summer meeting is virtual, where all PDCs held during AIHA Connect are critiqued and feedback is formulated to later provide to course instructors.

At this meeting, we primarily review the attendee and monitor evaluations of the PDCs that were offered on Saturday, Sunday, and Thursday around the conference event. Using attendee surveys from the courses, CEC members audit both new PDCs and those PDCs that were placed on probation the preceding year. We compile and review attendee, CEC, and PDC monitor feedback. PDCs with significant failings are either placed on probation by the CEC or they are discontinued. We suggest improvements for courses with minor shortcomings. After the summer meeting, letters are sent to PDC presenters informing them of the results of the CEC evaluation.

Fall

The CEC meets four times a year, both virtually and in-person. CEC member attendance at these meetings is mandatory.

The fall meeting is held via conference call and lasts approximately 2-3 hours, where the next year's PDCs are selected for the next AIHA Connect.

Each year, more and more PDC proposals compete for a limited number (average of 55) of slots. As a result, the CEC uses a rigorous rating process (developed by the committee) to eliminate bias in the selection process. In preparation for this meeting, proposed courses are reviewed and scored by at least two CEC members. When we convene, we review the CEC evaluations of the PDC proposals, as well as past performance (if available). We then rank the proposals in order, selecting the best for inclusion into the upcoming year’s AIHA Connect event.