IPPCA to Require Continuing Education for Certification

In response to requests from its certified members, International Professional Pond Contractors Association plans to roll out a continuing education requirement for its certified members.

International Professional Pond Contractors Association certification logo

“They want to be able to prove that they’re active and are getting continuing education,” said Dave Jones, founder and chairman of IPPCA, of the organization’s certified members. He said the continuing education shows that certified members continually improve their expertise after demonstrating an initial level of proficiency. Certified contractors must continue to meet the existing qualifications, including at least 12 customer ratings, proof of insurance and business license, written test.

IPPCA offers two levels of certification: Certified Professional Pond Contractor and the higher Certified Master Pond Contractor. About 25 percent of IPPCA’s roughly 35 members in good standings are certified at one of the two levels.

Aquascape certification logo

By improving the perceived value of IPPCA certification, Jones said he expects more IPPCA members to complete the certification process and more pond contractors to join the organization in pursuit of certification.

Continuing education programs, most common among professionals such as attorneys and veterinarians, require licensed or certified professions to attend or otherwise receive a minimum level of training and education on a regular basis — for example, 40 hours of continuing education every year.

Although the program’s specifics are being worked out, IPPCA expected to launch the program, even during development, as soon as April, Jones said.

The program will focus on pond and water garden education rather than general business or landscaping seminars, Jones said, no-ting that credits could be earned at such events upon review of the curriculum. For example, a contractor could earn credits for a daylong training program on low-voltage lighting if that program included a section on pond or underwater lighting, Jones said. Those credits would be prorated to cover the pond-specific sections.

The program would consider education provided by other industry organizations, including company-specific training, Jones said, pending a committee’s review of curricula.

Jay Bearfield, IPPCA’s executive vice president, will chair the review committee. The committee is expected to have a table detailing the number of continuing education units that IPPCA will recognize for nonIPPCA programs in time for InfoTanza in October. At InfoTanza, the tables will be voted on and implemented, if approved.

Sponsored IPPCA events, however, such as its InfoTanza conference in October or Ponditat for Humanity pond-builds, likely would provide more continuing education credits than similar nonIPPCA events, Jones said. Aquascape’s certified contractor program also has a continuing education requirement.

“I feel it’s so important to work with a neutral entity like the IPPCA, fellow contractors and manufacturers to establish some consistent and uniform professional standards that we can all rely on." 
~Dave Jones, founder and chairman of IPPCA

In addition, IPPCA will require a certain number of continuing education units for members to serve as mentors in its newly launched mentoring program. The idea is to offer hands-on training and consulting (including at the mentoree’s own projects) as well as follow-up support via the Internet and phone.

“The trend in radically reduced numbers of attendance and cancellations at others’ pay-to-attend events must be replaced with member and nonmember programs so that the vital task of education will be continued in the industry,” said Peter Stopen, owner of Pondview Landscaping in Brick, N.J., and chair of IPCCA’s mentoring program committee.

Other IPPCA members serving on the mentoring committee include Bearfield, Freddie Combas of Florida Water Gardens (Winter Park, Fla.), Rocké Huntington of Pond Dragon (Lincoln, Neb.), Jones, Jake Langeslag of Aqua Eden (Faribault, Minn.), Joel Police of Fins & Flowers Water Gardens (New Haven, Ind.) and Gary Sackett of Springwater (Bismarck, Ill.).

In other news, IPPCA is looking for manufacturers, distributors, contractors and other interested parties to serve on its newly established Industry Standards Committee. Individuals do not need to belong to IPPCA to participate on the committee.

“I feel it’s so important to work with a neutral entity like the IPPCA, fellow contractors and manufacturers to establish some consistent and uniform professional standards that we can all rely on,” Jones said. “Our intent is to primarily establish a template for accumulating and listing solid, pertinent to-the-industry, scientifically produced data to be entered so that a contractor in Oregon can be confident that he will receive the same consistent performance of his design and equipment as one in Texas or Maine with a different design and equipment.”

The Thomas Glover Pocket Reference series will provide an initial platform of information on which to build, IPPCA reported. Initial committee members include Jones, Langeslag and manufacturers’ rep Warren Thoma of Thoma and Associates in Crystal Lake, Ill. For more information, call IPPCA at 866-484-7722 or e-mail info@ippca.com.

 Give us your opinion on
IPPCA to Require Continuing Education for Certification

Industry Professional Site: Comments from non-industry professionals will be removed.