International Society of Arboriculture

Certification Board

 Continuing Education Unit (CEU) Award Policy

 Approved – March 10, 2005

1.   Approval of CEUs: Continuing Education Units (CEUs) shall be pre-approved by ISA Certification staff or the ISA Chapter Certification Liaison. Any appeals of CEU awards by Chapters shall follow ISA Certificate Appeals Policy.

2.    Post-Approval: For post-approval, the ISA Certification Staff or the Chapter Liaison may award CEUs.

3.    In order to obtain CEUs, the organization or individual must submit a detailed agenda of the meeting that provides an adequate description as follows:

1. A Letter requesting CEU approval.
2. Name of the topic (program agenda) for which CEUs are requested.
3. Name, address/email address, fax number and contact number of program organizer.
4. Domain(s) (if known) and category(s) for which they apply.
5. Actual length of time that the presentation will be conducted, excluding breaks and lunch.
6. Instructor name.

(Approval forms are available at www.isa-arbor.com)

4.   To qualify for CEUs, the program topic must have direct correlation to a Certification Domain identified within the certification application booklet for the appropriate Certification program. (Publish and clarify Domains and topics acceptable as separate listing.)

5.   Post approval- Individuals must submit proof of attendance to receive CEUs for a program, including canceled check, receipt, certified grade transcript or sign-off by instructor.

6.   One hour of seminar or training session time is worth 1 CEU.

7.   CEUs may be awarded in increments of 0.5. (to nearest .25 starting with .5) No CEUs will be awarded for programs less than 30 minutes of actual seat time of the presentation. However, multiple 15 minute or less presentations, such as tailgate sessions, can be combined to total 30 minutes and then receive 0.5 CEUs.

8.   Standard awards for established programs will be as follows:

a)      Each Credit hour of college course work* is worth 10 CEUs .

b)      A first aid or CPR class or renewal is worth 4 CEUs.

c)      An article written for a magazine or newspaper is worth 3 CEUs.

d)      Climbers and judges can be awarded up to 3 CEUs, at ITCC and Chapter TCC events.

e)      Company/ Association training programs that include home study exams will receive 1 CEU per 20 questions.

f)        CEU quizzes associated with books with study guides, magazine articles and chapter newsletters will receive 1 CEU per 20 questions.  

g)      Certification exam training workshops attendees and Instructors are eligible for CEUs at 1 CEU per hour of session, with a maximum 10 CEUs for a program.

h)      Presenters, instructors and leaders at workshops, conferences, seminars or other related training or education programs shall receive the equivalent number of CEUs awarded to the attendees if they attend the entire program. 

Other standard awards will only be established after first consulting with the Liaison Committee and then seeking approval of the Certification Board.

9.   CEUs are not to be treated as a commodity to compensate volunteers for service projects, board meetings or other non-education focused programs. There must be a formal educational component to receive CEUs.

10.  Program sponsors or independent registrar will be required to validate and certify signatures on sign-in sheets for CEUs with a statement on form of what signature means to reduce fraud. Chapters can add another signature level if desired.

11.  Attendance at only a portion of a program will require completion of the post-approval process.

12.  Course codes shall not be posted or otherwise made available to non-attendees after the program.

13.  Fees for assigning CEUs, at the Chapter’s sole discretion, can be charged an amount not to exceed $45 per course code with a maximum of $135 for a single workshop to recoup costs of Chapter’s CEU administration only.

14.  Tailgate safety meeting CEU policy: Local Companies will submit to ISA Certification staff or each ISA Chapter Liaison for pre-approval for these programs. National companies may submit to ISA Certification staff. Application will include support to justify compliance with TCIA guidelines. Course code will be good for 6 months (January – June then July – December to conform to Certification cycle). Each 6 month tailgate course code will be valid for 4 total CEUs. Applicant submits one course attendance form, signed by supervisor certifying that each employee attended.

*    Note:  College course work must be an academically accredited 2-year or 4-year institution.