| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | LIZ LONGSTREET |
| (202) 857-1122 | |
| Washington, D.C., July 9, 1997 |
The International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET) has granted Certified Provider status to The Employee Development University of the Southern California Water Company.
In 1991 the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET) established a certification process at the urging of its members to review and approve organizations which adhere to IACET's criteria in providing continuing education and training. The purpose of the certification process is to:
Southern California Water Company is a public utility company engaged principally in the production, transmission, distribution and sale of water to over 240,000 customers, or one out of 30 persons in the state of California. The company also provides electric service to more than 20,500 customers located in the Bear Valley mountain communities.
The IACET Certified Provider Certification process is governed by a nine-member Commission appointed from representatives of Certified Provider organizations and other membership categories. The Commission is chaired by Ellen Fagan, Director of Continuing Education for the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. The Commission utilizes a corps of trained site visitors located throughout the country to conduct site visits. Site visitors are chosen for training from among IACET Certified Provider organizations.
IACET is a nonprofit approval association of over 600 organizations that conduct quality continuing education and training. Members include professional associations, businesses, industries, higher education institutions, government agencies, health organizations, regulatory agencies, proprietary schools, and others.
The Association began in 1968 as a voluntary task force to establish a uniform unit of measure for continuing education and training programs similar to the credit hour system used in higher education. This effort led to the creation of the Continuing Education Unit (CEU) — a unit of measure for noncredit activities which is used in the U.S. and in various parts of the world.
In 1976, the task force created a membership organization called the Council on the CEU. The name was changed again in 1989 to the International Association for Continuing Education and Training to reflect an expanded mission. Throughout its history the Association has conducted research and development projects toward effective practices in continuing education and training. These projects have been widely disseminated and include The Continuing Education Unit Criteria and Guidelines, Principles of Good Practice in Continuing Education and A Practical Handbook for Assessing Learning Outcomes.
For further information, call the Certified Provider Commission at IACET Headquarters: (202) 857-1122.