Accredited Golf Superintendent (AGS) and Master Superintendent (MS) Credit Values

The CGSA Accreditation Committee has determined that the term “Continued Education Credits (CEC)” will be used as the unit of measure for course credit value.  The following chart outlines the point values to be assigned to various eligible activities.   Any educational program that is offered by an organization other than a national superintendent organization must be reviewed and approved prior to the start of the program in order to be eligible for CEC. The Committee has also established that the renewal term for both the AGS and the MS will be five years and that the CEC requirements for renewal would be 90 and 125, respectively.

The following methods, credit values and limits were approved for use by members:
(For a .pdf version of this chart click here)

Item	Description	CEC Value
Courses	post-secondary, college or university; related to a skill/behaviour outlined in the National Occupational Standards; Could be with a grade assigned by the institution or without a grade; would require a “certificate of completion” issued by the institution, if no grade assigned; Could be offered by either a college or university or another recognized institution	1 hour of instruction equals 1 CEC Courses in this category that were not NOS related would be eligible for credits to a maximum of 10 CEC per year and 30 CEC per renewal period.
Seminars	must be a minimum of three hours and related to one or more skills/behaviours outlined in the NOS; Courses offered by a national superintendents association (CGSA, GCSAA, BIGGA, etc.) would be automatically approved for credit; Other courses would require approval by the CGSA Accreditation Committee; Members would be required to provide course content information, as prescribed, and proof of completion/attendance.	1 hour of instruction equals 1 CEC
On-Line/Distance	Courses or seminars could be “attended” on-line or completed as distance education programs; The same requirements as outlined above would apply to distance or on-line programs.	1 hour of instruction equals 1 CEC. Partial points would be awarded for 30 minute segments.  Sessions of less than 30 minutes would not be eligible for points and sessions of more than 30 minutes but less than an hour would only be eligible for .5 points. Participants must send in the course outline that confirms the number of hours spent on instruction
Conferences	this option would apply to both national and regional level conferences; CGSA and other national level conferences would be eligible for a higher credit value than regional conferences; Regional superintendent conferences would not require prior approval but conference content and proof of attendance would be required to be submitted by the conference sponsor to CGSA to determine point levels.  A regional conference could submit its program for approval and advise attendees of the credit value for the event.	For national conferences, 1 CEC for every hour of instruction For regional conferences, 0.5 CEC per hour of instruction
Volunteerism	This item was broadly defined and would include volunteering for superintendent related organizations as well as community and other volunteer activity; A limit would be placed on points accumulated in this manner and volunteering for CGSA and other superintendent related activities would be of more value than community related activity.	6 CEC for volunteer assignment of a national or international organization 4 CEC for volunteer assignment of a provincial or regional organization 2 CEC for volunteer assignment of a local organization The above noted CEC values would be awarded on an annual basis for superintendent or turf related organizations.  For non superintendent or turf related organizations the CEC values would be reduced by 50%. A maximum of 30 CEC would be allowed using this method during any qualification or renewal period.
Publishing	This item was broadly defined and would include publishing in a superintendent related publication or of superintendent related materials as well as any other kind of material that may be written and is published; A limit would be placed on points accumulated in this manner and publishing for CGSA and other superintendent related publications would be of more value than other, non superintendent related publishing.	Articles published for a national superintendent-related magazine would be eligible for 10 CEC. Articles published in a regional superintendent-related magazine / newsletter would be eligible for 6 CEC. Other articles related to superintendents’ profession but not published in a superintendent specific publication would be eligible for 4 CEC. A maximum of 25 CEC would be allowed using this method during any qualification or renewal period.

Course Development	This option would allow for CGSA members to gain credits as a result of preparing a course for superintendents, either through the CGSA or some other superintendent related organization; If sponsored by CGSA or other national level superintendent organization, it would be eligible for more points or credits than if it were developed for or approved by a regional organization; If not a CGSA program, a copy of the program would need to be made available in order to gain credits.	These are courses that would involve a minimum of four hours of instruction. 10 CEC per half day course developed and 15 CEC per full day course. Each course must meet the requirements set by the CGSA and must encompass one or more of the NOS skills. A maximum of 45 CEC would be allowed using this method during any qualification or renewal period.
Teaching	This option would allow for CGSA members to gain credits as a result of delivering a course for superintendents, either through the CGSA or some other superintendent related organization; If sponsored by CGSA or other national level superintendent organization it would be eligible for more points or credits than if it were delivered for or approved by a regional organization; If not a CGSA program, a copy of the program would need to be made available in order to gain credits.	These are courses that would involve a minimum of four hours of instruction. 1 CEC per hour of instruction time.  Marking of assignments would not be included as instruction time. Acting as an on-line instructor would be eligible.   A maximum of 25 CEC would be allowed using this method during any qualification or renewal period.
Professional Presentations	This item was broadly defined and would include presentations to a superintendent related organization or of superintendent related  materials as well as any other kind of presentation that may be prepared and delivered; A limit would be placed on points accumulated in this manner and a presentation for CGSA and other superintendent related events would be of more value than a presentation at a non superintendent related event.	Presentations for a national superintendent-related organization would be eligible for 10 CEC. Presentations for a regional superintendent-organization would be eligible for 6 CEC. Other presentations related to superintendent’s profession but not done to a superintendent specific organization would be eligible for 4 CEC. The maximum credits possible in this category per qualification or renewal period will be 25.   All presentations will be eligible no matter the length.
Memberships	For involvement as a member in other superintendent related organizations; Different credit amounts depending on the level and type of organization; a limit would be placed on the number of credits available through this activity	Membership in the CGSA is mandatory to continue involvement within the program and will not offer any CEC values. Regional Association membership is valued at 1 CEC per year with a maximum value per term of 5. National or International memberships are valued at 2 CEC per year with a maximum per term of 10. A maximum of 10 CEC would be allowed using this method during any qualification or renewal period.

Research	Conduct of research, either as part of a regular maintenance regime or as part of a formal research project; Would require the submission of a written report on the nature, methods and results of the research, as well as an indication of the application of the results to the responsibilities of a superintendent. Eligible research should be original as opposed to a repetition of previous work.	5 CEC per research project per year as host and 10 CEC per research project per year for active participation Approved research programs must be supported by a research body or superintendent organization and a report, acceptable to the Accreditation Committee must be submitted with an application in order to be granted CEC in this category A maximum of 25 points would be allowed using this method during any qualification or renewal period.
National Tournament Hosting	Being the host superintendent for a tournament that is part of the CGSA National Tournament recognition program	3 CEC per tournament up to a maximum of 6 CEC per renewal or qualification term.
Internship	The CGSA Accreditation Committee will use the GCSAA model to design this aspect of the program.  Points accumulation from the internship activities would be limited.	5 CEC per internship assignment to a maximum of 10 CEC per renewal or qualification term.
Course or Project Review	This would entail a thorough review of the golf course or course related project, Audubon Certification would qualify.	6 CEC per review to a maximum of 12 points per qualification or renewal term.
Handicap	Maintenance of a certified handicap would be eligible for a limited number of credits.	1 CEC per year to a maximum of 5 CEC per renewal or qualification term.
Completion of Best Management Practices Survey and/or Compensation Survey	This would involve completion of either of the two surveys available for superintendent members to complete	1 CEC per year per survey to a maximum of 10 CEC per renewal or qualification term.
Completion of career assessment using web-based tool	CGSA will be developing an interactive, web-based tool for use by members to determine areas of strength and weakness	1 CEC per renewal or qualification term.

All CGSA courses or activities will be classified as NOS or non-NOS related activities and include an explanation as to which NOS areas they address.  A minimum of 45 credits for AGS and 60 for MS must be accumulated from courses, seminars, conferences and on-line instruction during any five year term. 

If you have any questions on this program, please contact Lori Micucci.