ANSI-IREC Awardees Recognized at CEWEC
In September, ANSI and IREC announced three certificate-awarding entities had been accredited under the ANSI-IREC pilot accreditation program for training/education programs in the energy efficiency and renewable energy industries. The three entities, CalCERTS, CleanTech Education and the Midwest Renewable Energy Association (MREA) were recognized for their achievement at the 5th national Clean Energy Workforce Education Conference in Albany, New York on November 13th.
The first three certificate-awarding entities to obtain ANSI-IREC accreditation are:
- CalCERTS, based in California, providing training of Home Energy Rating System Raters
- CleanTech Education, based in North Carolina, providing training focused on solar photovoltaics, solar heating, energy efficiency, wind energy, green IT, and smart grid
- Midwest Renewable Energy Association (MREA), based in Wisconsin, providing training related to renewable energy and energy efficiency
The pilot program, which began in January 2012, evaluated certificate-awarding entities against requirements for equipment, curriculum, facilities, administration and personnel set forth in the IREC Standard 14732: 2012, General Requirements for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Certificate Programs. Accreditation under the ANSI-IREC program demonstrates to students, policymakers, funders, and employers that programs have demonstrated meeting all requirements in the Standard. The purpose of accreditation is to determine if these programs meet the requirements for issuing a market-valued certificate. ANSI and IREC expect to launch the full program in early 2013.
IREC’s Executive Director, Jane Weissman, and IREC’s Credentialing Program Manager, Laure-Jeanne Davignon, recognized the new pilot certificants.
“When you converge the requirements in the Standard with the rigor of the accreditation process matched with the expertise of the Assessors, the result is a pretty amazing step to assure market-valued training for the clean energy workforce,” says Jane Weissman, IREC’s executive director.
“It was a delight to meet representatives from the other certificate –awarding entities and the Midwest Renewable Energy Association is honored to be among the first three to obtain ANSI-IREC accreditation,” says Nicole Rice, MREA.
