A Proud Provider of Quality Continuing Education
I was surprised to receive a message from ASAE giving me another opportunity to pay to be in their CAE Registered Provider program. I have made my position very clear and public on the changes they made and I am not seeing any significant changes at this time (despite the message saying changes have been made).
The CAE Commission did offer grace periods and extensions because the original roll out did not go well. There were many unanswered questions or confusing answers, and the fees increased significantly for continuing education providers that are not regional or state societies of association executives.
Fine. They made changes. I don’t support the changes. I decided not to participate.
While I am not a CAE "registered provider" I follow all the criteria and rules for preparing and delivering quality content to nonprofit management professionals preparing for the CAE Exam, and those pursuing education that helps them continue their learning and earn renewal points.
This revised CAE Provider system does not promote quality nor does it ensure it. But, that is the driver for the changes according to the information on the ASAE website.
What it does is (1) cost more for those who are not regional or state societies of association executives, and (2) makes the application process take longer.
For example, below are the items required for submitting a course for approval for "CAE credit" but there is no mention in this list of WHO IS TEACHING OR LEADING THESE COURSES. There is no review of the content either.
From the ASAE website.
“Providers must submit a CAE Registered Provider course reporting form with the online application. Within the reporting form, your organization will need to provide:
name/title of the course or conference
method of delivery
program’s start and end date
course learning objectives
three-four sentences for course description
total number of anticipated CAE credits
CAE domain that the course content adheres to”
This application is the old application with a higher fee and longer waiting period. And most importantly, no mechanisms for truly assessing quality.
In my years of experience creating and leading education for nonprofit management professionals, I have learned that the expertise, knowledge and teaching skills of the course leader are vitally important to the quality of the sessions and what people in the courses take away. Yet, this is not asked on the application form for consideration.
While learning objectives are great, if no one is reviewing the actual content of these CAE courses or auditing the sessions, there is no way to guarantee "quality."
When I decided in August 2023 not to participate in this program it was because it does not address these issues of quality education, which again, is the cited driver for these program changes.
However, as a CAE and ACNP, I made the commitment to follow all the guidelines for CAE education credit – even though Rogue Tulips Consulting is not in the formal program.
All of our course facilitators have the CAE or other designation supporting their expertise and knowledge.
Our courses are real-time and only earn credit for real-time participation.
Our current on demand course has a quiz for each segment.
We have a historical record of EVERY SINGLE PERSON WHO HAS EARNED CAE CREDIT FROM US.
We track and calculate CE hours for every participant, and we always issue a certificate of participation, which we will re-issue upon request.
Our course facilitators are always available for one-on-one consultations to assist course participants in understanding content and helping them improve their exam skills. While this does not qualify for CAE credit, it is an important aspect and support system for the people in our education program.
If the only thing we lose is the option to describe our courses as eligible for "CAE Credit" then so be it. We switched to Continuing Education credit in most of our language last fall.
We will now change all our language to Continuing Education and remove all mention of CAE “credit.” This does not seem to prohibit us from noting in our descriptions which Domain our education relates to, nor does it stop us from explaining that you can use this CE for a variety of purposes related to credential renewal or credential exam applications.
Should the CAE Commission actually address the issue of quality, meaning setting standards such as course leaders must have the CAE, CNP, CMP, or other nonprofit management credential, and/or reviewing the actual content – not just learning objectives – and/or auditing courses for quality, then Rogue Tulips Consulting will gladly re-join the CAE Provider program.
Until such time, we will continue providing the quality education we are known for and continue helping our colleagues grow in their careers. If you are interested in quality education for nonprofit management professionals, check out our education offerings.
