CE Frequently Asked Questions

Because NEHA receives so many phone calls with questions about continuing education and credential renewals, we have put together this list of commonly asked questions and answers to make this process easier for you.  Click on the link below to reveal the answer.

• Q: How do I enter in my Continuing Education on the automated form?
  A: “To submit coursework for CE credit, click on the appropriate link and fill out the provided form. The name, date (to be entered in DD/MM/YYYY format, i.e., 01/01/2013), a brief summary of the course, and the total number of hours you spent minus breaks, lunches, dinners, and business meetings are required. Please note: The total number of CE hours is subject to revision by a Continuing Education staff member.
  
  NEW PROCESS: Once you have entered your course information, click on the “Submit” button. Your form will be sent to a Continuing Education staff member and you will receive a confirmation of your submission via e-mail. (The confirmation will come from the e-mail address, credentialing@neha.org. Please add this e-mail address to your safe senders list.) This confirmation will restate the information you have entered into the form. Please review the form for accuracy and completeness.”
• Q: What is my credentialing ID?
  A: Your credential ID number is separate from your NEHA membership number and/or NEHA activity ID number. Your credential ID number can be found on your credential wallet card and credential wall certificate.
• Q: How do I know my CE Submission was received/approved by NEHA?
  A: If NEHA has your current email address on file, you will automatically receive a message confirming your submission. Once a Continuing Education staff member has reviewed the information, you will receive a second message stating whether it was approved or denied. NEHA will be reviewing CE submissions approximately every other week. Please Note: If you do not receive an automated response from NEHA it means we either did not receive your submission or the email we have on file is incorrect/missing.
• Q: What if my email address/street address/personal information is not on file with NEHA or is incorrect?
  A: You can contact NEHA’s credentialing department by emailing credentialing@neha.org and request that your information be changed in your record. Once your request is received it can take up to one business day to be changed in our database and appear on the CE Submission Form.
• Q: How do I send NEHA my supporting documentation for my CE Submissions?
  A: Since you will be submitting your submissions electronically, we will no longer require you to submit supporting documentation (i.e. certificate of completion, course agenda, etc). However, we do require that you keep a record of the supporting documentation, as we will be randomly auditing individuals to provide such documentation on a biannual basis (please see below where it outlines the audit procedures and processes). Notice will be sent to individuals in January and July each year if you are chosen for an audit. Those selected for an audit will have 6 months to provide the appropriate documentation to NEHA regardless of their credential expiration date.
• Q: If I hold more than one NEHA credential do I have to enter in the same course more than once?
  A: No, if you hold more than one NEHA credential you do not need to enter in the same course more than once. The system will apply the CE hours appropriately to your multiple credentials.
• Q: What is the process and procedure if I am chosen for an audit?
  A:

  1. Notice will be sent in January for those whose credentials expire in the January 1 – June 30 window. All those chosen at random will have until June 30 of that year to provide their CE submissions, for their two-year credential period, WITH supporting documentation (i.e. course agenda, certificate of completion, etc) to NEHA.
     
     

  2. Notice will be sent in July for those whose credentials expire in the July 1 – December 31 window. All those chosen at random will have until December 31 of that year to provide their CE submissions, for their two-year credential period, WITH supporting documentation (i.e. course agenda, certificate of completion, etc.) to NEHA.
     
     

  3. If you are chosen for an audit CE submissions can be entered electronically but will also need to be sent as a hard copy with supporting documentation.
     
     

  4. If you are chosen for an audit your credential will go into an active- in audit mode until the audit window closes. For example if your credential expires 3/31/2013 and you are chosen for the January 1 – June 30, 2013 audit, you will have until 6/30/2013 to provide your credential renewal fees and supporting documentation for CE submissions (that should still fall within your two-year credential period of 4/1/11 – 3/31/13) without being penalized.
     
     

  5. Your credential will remain in the active- in audit mode even after your expiration date, as you will be in the audit process.
     
     

  6. If an individual cannot provide supporting documentation for a continuing education submission he/she will not be given credit for those hours.
     
     

  7. If an individual falls short of meeting the minimum CE hour requirement for the credential and/or does not submit the appropriate renewal fees, he/she will be entered into a one-time grace period that can last for a period of up to two (2) years from their credential expiration date. At the end of the grace period all appropriate fees and continuing education hours must be submitted in order to become active status.
     
     

  8. If a candidate fails to submit the appropriate fees and continuing education hours prior to the end of the grace period, his/her credential is revoked. In order to re-obtain the credential the individual must reapply and retake the examination.
     
     

  9. If an individual has entered into a grace period once and brings their credential up to date but then fails on another occasion to fulfill the renewal requirements the individual’s credential is automatically revoked. In order for an individual to re-obtain his/her credential once it has been previously revoked, he/she must wait for a period of one (1) year to reapply and retake the examination.
     
     

  10. If an individual is chosen for an audit in 2007 it does not preclude him/her from being chosen again for an audit in 2009 (the next time the credential would be up for expiration). Audit participants are chosen at random. Therefore it is possible to be chosen for an audit more than one time.
      
      

  11. The first audit notices were sent out in January 2007.

• Q: How do I check the status of my continuing education?
  A: We deeply apologize for the inconvenience you may have experienced in reviewing your continuing education as a result of the technological issues we have incurred over these past few weeks. We have been working tirelessly with our IT partner to understand and resolve these technology issues, and now the NEHA staff can access your continuing education history; however, we are still not able to provide you this information online. For information about your continuing education, please contact us directly at (303) 756-9090 ext. 310 or credentialing@neha.org.
  
  Within the next couple of weeks, we will have the information available to you online through the power of our new technology, which we have been working hard to implement. You have seen advertisements in the Journal of Environmental Health and on our Web site promoting “My NEHA”. My NEHA is the customer-facing piece of this new technology that will provide you with the ability to more easily manage, not only your continuing education, but also your personal profile and transactions with NEHA. For additional information about My NEHA, visit neha.org/MyNEHA.html.
• Q: What is acceptable for continuing education credit with NEHA?
  A: Conferences, seminars, classes, lectures, online trainings, etc., are all acceptable forms of continuing education if they are related to the environmental health field – food, water, wastewater, air, vector and pest control, hazardous materials and/or waste management, radiation, recreation, housing and institutional health and safety, occupational health and safety, program planning and legal aspects, or general environmental health and scientific concepts, etc.
• Q: Are university courses acceptable for continuing education?
  A: Yes, university courses at the undergraduate and graduate level are acceptable if they address environmental health. NEHA grants 16 contact hours for each semester credit hour and 13 contact hours for each quarter hour.
• Q: What is the difference between contact hours and CEUs? Which do I need to accrue for renewal of my certification?
  A: One “contact hour” is one clock hour of learning time. One CEU is equal to 10 contact hours. NEHA measures continuing education in contact hours.
• Q: If I have more than the required number of contact hours accrued within my renewal cycle, can I carry the difference into the next renewal period?
  A: No. The term “continuing education” means just that. It is NEHA’s goal to insure that the individuals that hold a NEHA credential are continually educating themselves within the environmental health field. Therefore, we do not carry over continuing education contact hours from one renewal cycle to the next.
• Q: Can I enter in my continuing education online if I do not hold a NEHA credential?
  A: No, the online submission is available only to those that hold a NEHA credential. If you do not hold a NEHA credential but would like NEHA to maintain your continuing education hours we can do so for a fee of $7.50 per submission. You would complete one CE Submission Form per CE activity and submit it via fax or mail to:
  
  National Environmental Health Association
  Attn: Continuing Education
  720 S. Colorado Blvd., Ste. 1000-N
  Denver, Colorado 80246
  Fax Number: (303) 691-9490

   

  Still have questions?
  Contact NEHA's Credentialing Department at (303)756-9090, ext. 310 or credentialing@neha.org.