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Continuing Education
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Continuing
Education Requirements
(Minnesota Statute 326.107)
by James C. Balogh, Ph.D., PSS
Continuing education is required for all professions licensed or
certified by the Board. Professionals licensed or certified by the
Board must obtain a minimum of 24 professional development hours (PDHs)
of continuing education per biennial renewal period. One PDH means an
educational contact hour of not less than 50 minutes. The initial
period for obtaining the first 24 PDHs is from August 1, 1999 to June
30, 2002. You will have an additional 11 months to obtain continuing
education PDHs for the renewal period of July 1, 2000 - June 30, 2002.
In future renewal periods, you may carry over up to a maximum of 12
PDHs from a prior renewal period.
Programs
and Activities
Based on the continuing education task force recommendation, continuing
education must consist of learning experiences which enhance and expand
our skills, knowledge, and abilities in order to remain current and
render competent professional services to the public. Remember, the
entire purpose of the licensing program is to protect the health,
safety, and welfare of the public. Therefore, a well-rounded continuing
education program includes technical, non-technical, regulatory,
ethical, and business practice needs as related to protection of the
public. Continuing education activities which satisfy the professional
development requirement include, but are not limited to, the following:
Criteria
for Continuing Education
Activities
Continuing
education activities must have a clear purpose and objective that
maintain, improve, or expand the skills of the professional. For
example, the technical, regulatory, or ethics training portion of the
MAPSS summer and winter meetings meet this criteria. The sessions
regarding MAPSS business or social gatherings at these annual meetings
do not meet the continuing education criteria. The content of
acceptable continuing education presentations must be well organized
and presented in a sequential manner. There must be evidence of
pre-planning which must include the opportunity for input by the target
group receiving the instruction.
It is very important for both continuing education providers and
professionals to remember that participation in a continuing education
activity must be documented. MAPSS should consider providing
participants in the educational portions of meetings with a signed
certificate which includes the date, activities, sponsor, time, name of
the participant, and a summary of other requirements discussed in the
section on reports and records.
Continuing education activities are not limited to those given in the
Minnesota. As long as supporting documentation is obtained, continuing
education activities are not limited by geographic location.
Reports
and Records
Professional licensees and certificate holders must keep records of
their continuing education activities. Records or documentation of
activities must include dates, subjects, duration of programs,
sponsoring organization, PDHs earned, registration receipts where
appropriate, and other pertinent documentation. These records must be
kept for two years after submission to the board. This information may
be audited by the Board. The Board in its random audit process may
require the professional to produce the continuing education
information. Documentation on your continuing education activities also
may by requested by the Board during a renewal application or a
complaint alleging noncompliance on the part of the professional.
As part of the license renewal process, the Board will supply a form
for the licensee to submit a summary of their continuing education
activities. This form must be completed with sufficient detail to
permit audit verification by the Board.
Noncompliance
A licensee or certificate holder who does not satisfy the continuing
education requirements for a renewal period will be placed on
probationary status. The probationary professional then has 180 days
after notification by the board to substantiate the originally claimed
PDHs or to earn other PDHs to meet the minimum requirements. PDHs
earned in the probationary period can not be applied to the next
renewal period. An individual who applies for a license or certificate
renewal after the biennial renewal period has lapsed and has not
satisfied the continuing education requirement shall be notified by the
Board. The licensee or certificate holder again has 180 days to
substantiate the original claim for PDHs or earn PDHs to meet the
minimum requirement. If the continuing education deficiencies are not
made up in the specified time period, the individual’s
license or
certificate will be suspended.
Exemptions
A licensed or certified professional is exempt from the continuing
education requirement for the following reasons:
Summary
Continuing education is a condition required for license renewal. All
licensed professional soil scientists should take this seriously. Based
on a review of agenda’s from past MAPSS summer and winter
meetings, at
least 50 to 60 percent of our biennial continuing education credits can
be secured by attending the technical sessions of MAPSS meetings.
Recent reports suggest that the half-life of a college degree ranges
from 3 to 5 years. Whether we practice as soil scientists in
government, academia, industry, or the private sector, we should take
pride in our status as well trained professionals. The continuing
education requirement should not be viewed as an additional onus. We
should use this opportunity to document our professional integrity and
pride. Certainly the laws of physics have not changed. However, our
ability to manipulate and interpret these "laws" changes constantly.
Continuing education is a way to remain in touch with the constant
evolution of soil science.
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