The listing of certifications for public officials can recieve via the NM EDGE program at New Mexico State University is long. Among them is a GIS certificate which makes one a New Mexico Certified Geographic Information Service Specialist:
NM Certified Geographic Information Systems designation requires completion of 28 classes from a requirements list and a mini-portfolio demonstrating, through written and project work, the student's application of the competencies learned by participating in the classes.
Wow - 28 classes? Each one is just three hours of classroom instruction (not three credit hours) per this PDF checklist for the certificate. Courses range from vector input to ethics to presentation skills.
For newly enrolling students, there is an initial enrollment fee of $50. This is a one-time fee. From that point, the cost of each class is $75. Lower class fees are available by purchasing multiple class-units at a time either individually or through a group account. For many organizations, establishing a group account can assist in helping to defray the costs of our classes.
What is NM EDGE?
The NM EDGE, which stands for Education Designed to Generate Excellence in the public sector, is a program administered by New Mexico State University's Cooperative Extension Service. ...
Originally established in 2003 as County College, a mutually beneficial project between the Extension Service and the New Mexico Association of Counties, the program has evolved and expanded into the NM EDGE under the leadership and guidance of Jon Boren, associate dean and director of the Cooperative Extension Service, and Paul Gutierrez, executive director of the New Mexico Association of Counties.
I wonder how this meshes with current efforts to integrate GIS into community colleges and the GTCM? Or GISP? I wonder if it competes with more formal certificates? If other states offer such certificates?
via Deming Headlight which notes recent recipients of the GIS certification
