Continued Education Credits  (CEC’s)

The system of requiring Continued Education Credits (CEC’s) is designed to ensure ongoing education and professional development of the IPM Certified Turf Practitioner.

CEC’s are awarded when an IPM Certified Turf Practitioner attends lectures, training sessions, seminars or demonstrations that focus on IPM or Plant Health Care related principals.  The Standards Committee decides which sessions qualify and the number of CEC’s.  CEC’s will not be awarded for sessions related to operation of the business, human relations or financial issues.

An official registration form that designates the number of CEC’s to be awarded will be issued for sessions that qualify.  General rule is that a 45 minute session equates to (1) CEC.  The session presenter is responsible for having the attendees complete the PHA supplied registration form and forwarding to Plant Health Atlantic for recording.

For sessions taken Online via webinars, the presenter (where possible) is responsible for forwarding the names of attendees to Plant Health Atlantic for recording.

Turf Practitioners can confirm at anytime the status of their CEC’s by contacting David McCafferty via email.  A portion of the Certification Administration fee is allocated to maintaining these records.

List of upcoming events that qualify.

Events, Symposiums, Conferences, Webinars, etc. that qualify for CEC’s with Plant Health Atlantic will be posted at this location.  Click the link below to download

February 2024 updated list (.pdf file)

How do I retain my IPM Certification Status?

To meet requirements for ongoing professional development, a Certified IPM Turf Practitioner must maintain their level of expertise by annually accumulating a minimum of (8) Continuing Education Credits (CEC’s) or by annually re-passing the examination as set by the Standards Committee, at a minimum 75% score.   You may start accumulating CEC’s from the date you successfully completed the IPM Turf Practitioner examination.  You have until the end of the next full calendar year to accumulate your first (8) CEC’s, then every year after.  Any meeting/course hours held before your certification date will not count towards your CEC’s.

NEW POLICY (January 20, 2016)

The cut off date for obtaining the mandatory 8 CEC’s is March 31.   Example: A Turf Practitioner certified prior to January 1, 2010, has until March 31, 2011 to get their 8 CEC’s.   A Turf Practitioner certified in 2010 now has until March 31, 2012.

To retain certification a Practitioner must annually obtain 8 CEC’s before March 31 of the following year or pay a re-registration fee ($235.00) and pass the IPM Certification examination.  CEC’s in excess of the required 8 can be carried forward for 1 year to a maximum of 4/year. 

What qualifies for CEC’s?

Official registration forms will be issued for sessions that qualify for CEC’s.  To qualify, the content of a session should relate to elements of IPM as outlined in the Sustainable Turf Manual, 1st edition, 2003, page 1.1; eg. Pest prevention, managing ecosystems, pest ID, pest monitoring, thresholds, controls, management evaluation and strategies.   It is then the responsibility of the person presenting the session to have the attendees complete the official registration form.  The completed registration form is forwarded to the Plant Health Atlantic Administrator who is responsible for compiling and maintaining the list of Certified IPM Turf Practitioners and a record of their CEC’s.

How do I apply for an IPM Session to be approved for CEC’s?

Should a Turf Practitioner take in a session which they believe would qualify for CEC’s but it is not posted on the PHA website, submit details of the session and proof of attendance to the PHA Administrator.  All inquiries will be reviewed by the Standards Committee for qualification for CEC’s.  CEC’s will be awarded for any session that qualifies.

At a minimum, the following information must be included with the request:

  • Date & Time
  • Schedule & Duration
  • Speaker (including bio if available)
  • Detailed information on the session
  • Link address (if virtual)