Georgia County Government - April 2009 - (Page 38) Standard of Excellence Continuing Education Program ANNUAL MEETING continued from page 37 will also alter its schedule this year. The changes mean many county officials will have the chance to get in two training classes during the annual meeting. ACCG will offer commissioners’ training on Saturday as always and, in addition, is also offering one additional class, which will be taught in two parts. The class is “Commission and Staff Relations,” an elective in the basic level of training. Th ree hours will be taught on Sunday, April 26 and the remaining three on Monday, April 27. Participants are reminded that they will need to take both parts to receive credit. If participants find they cannot stay for both days of training, they are urged to take the course at a later opportunity. Finally, a golf tournament will not take place this year, owing to schedule conflicts. “Making the County Buyers’ Mart available on Saturday was a natural progression, giving vendors more flexibility and more participants access to the Buyers’ Mart,” said ACCG Executive Director Jerry R. Griffi n. “County officials will have plenty of time to peruse booths, explore new products and services, reacquaint themselves with vendors they know, and do the networking with providers of products and services to counties that is available here, like nowhere else,” Griffin added. “The Buyers’ Mart is a vitally important forum for county officials, and counties and vendors have made long-lasting business relationships through this venue. We’re hoping that vendors get more business out of it, and that counties find the deals they’re looking for, with the new Saturday-Sunday Buyers’ Mart schedule.” The Buyers’ Mart exhibits will be in the Martin Luther King, Jr., Arena in the Savannah Civic Center from Saturday afternoon through Sunday at 4 p.m. Door prize drawings will take place on Monday at 11:30 a.m., and visitors to booths are encouraged to drop their business cards into bins each vendor will have, for collecting them. Unless otherwise indicated in the official convention program, available in registration packets onsite, all events take place in the Savannah Civic Center. ■ P rofessional training and certification are one of the primary member services offered by ACCG. For the last two decades, ACCG has offered the Commissioners Training Program and the Certified Commissioners Advanced Program (CCAP) in conjunction with the Carl Vinson Institute of Government at the University of Georgia. In response to requests for more opportunities for lifelong learning, ACCG has created the Standard of Excellence, a new continuing education program. County officials can begin earning hours toward the Standard of Excellence at the 2009 Annual Meeting. The Standard of Excellence is designed to encourage ongoing training and to increase participation in ACCG meetings and other programs where member input is essential. Credit can be earned in a number of ways, such as taking training courses that were not previously taken, attending the general and breakout sessions at ACCG meetings, or participating in district or policy committee meetings. Local officials cannot count training courses toward the Standard of Excellence until they have completed CCAP; however, they can earn continuing education hours by participating in ACCG meetings and will receive recognition for those hours upon completion of CCAP. The Standard of Excellence offers several levels of recognition ranging from 100 to 300 hours of continuing education credit. Local officials that reach 300 hours will earn Lifetime Achievement, which includes a one-time, $1,000 bonus. To retain Lifetime Achievement, officials must earn 15 hours of continuing education credit annually. As part of tracking credit for the Standard of Excellence program, ACCG is introducing a new barcode system for nametags at the 2009 Annual Meeting. This new electronic system will allow ACCG staff members to quickly scan nametags as people enter and exit the general session and breakout session. ACCG plans to incorporate the barcode system into all training programs moving forward to make tracking credit for members quicker and easier. The Standard of Excellence is completely voluntary, and local officials can choose not to participate simply by telling ACCG staff members not to scan their nametags. For more information on the Standard of Excellence, go to www.accg.org and click on ACCG Training Programs. ■ 38 GEORGIA COUNTY GOVERNMENT http://www.accg.org http://www.rsandh.com
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