Training Policies

Registration

Any person may register for an Earth Advantage course, regardless of age, race, gender, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, citizenship, or physical characteristics. Participants who would like to receive clock hours for continuing education or earn an Earth Advantage professional designation must meet the prerequisites and requirements listed for each specific course. To register for a course or event, complete and submit the online registration at www.earthadvantage.org or call 503.968.7160 ext. 20. Please submit credit card payment at time of registration or call 503.968.7160 ext. 20 to pay by cash or check.

Cancellation Policy

Refunds will only be honored if a cancellation is made on or prior to 14 days before the scheduled course or event. Please note: an administrative cancellation fee of $25 for certification courses, and $10 for general education courses will be taken out of the refund. Cancellations made less than 14 days prior to the course or event are not eligible for a refund. If a participant is unable to attend a course or event, and it is less than 14 days before the course or event, there are two options available. Participants may transfer the registration to someone else (e.g., a colleague) for the same course or event (i.e., same date and location), or apply their registration credit to any EA course or event within a 12-month period from the original scheduled course or event. For certification courses there is a $25 transfer fee for all transfers to another course made less than 48 hours prior to the first class, or for transfers made mid-course. If a certification course participant is unable to finish all of the course modules after the course has begun, he or she has 24 months from the original course date to transfer the registration and tuition to a future course to complete the remaining modules and receive certification. Participants may cancel or transfer a registration by sending a written request to education@earthadvantage.org or by contacting EA’s education department at 503.968.7160 ext. 20. In the event that Earth Advantage cancels a course due to low enrollments, inclement weather, instructor illness, or other emergency, participants will be notified by email and phone that the course has been canceled. If EA cancels a course, participants will have two options: they may receive a full refund within 30 days, or they may transfer their enrollment to a future course offering.

Attendance Requirements, Leaves, Absences, Makeup Work, and Tardiness

Participants seeking continuing education credit or professional certification must attend 100% of a given course in order to receive credit for that course. Participants must sign in at the beginning of each class and sign out at the end of each class day and will only receive clock hours for continuing education for actual course attendance. The instructor’s name will be listed on each attendance sheet. All attendance records for the course will be kept by Earth Advantage for a minimum of seven years. For certification courses, if a participant is unable to attend the full course, he or she may attend any future offering of that course within a 24-month period to make up the portion of the class that was missed. Continuing education credits and professional designation will not be issued until attendance and course requirements have been met.

Standards of Progress

In addition to meeting attendance requirements, participants seeking an Earth Advantage professional designation through a certification course must successfully complete a certification exam. Please see individual certification course descriptions for details.

Certificate of Completion for Certification Courses

Participants will be emailed or sent a certificate of completion within 7-10 business days that will include the participant’s name, course name, course completion date, clock hours, and signature of the school administrator. 

Continuing Education

Participants needing documentation of clock hours should notify an EA staff member upon course check in to ensure that a certificate of continuing education is available at the end of the course. 

Special Accommodations

It is the policy of Earth Advantage to make every effort to reasonably accommodate participants with documented disabilities who have special needs. Participants are encouraged to contact Earth Advantage prior to the start of the course to request special accommodations, including but not limited to accessibility, modification of assignments, or accommodations needed during testing. Earth Advantage is an accessible facility. Earth Advantage will make every effort possible to provide courses delivered in other locations in accessible facilities. A number of Earth Advantage courses involve site visits to green homes. Participants should wear footwear that is appropriate for construction sites, and should notify staff at least two (2) business days before a scheduled course if accommodations are needed for accessibility.

Course Scheduling Policy

Earth Advantage will not offer more than eight (8) hours of classroom instruction in any given day and appropriate breaks will be given to participants each day. Breaks will include one 10-15 minute break every two (2) hours and a one (1) hour lunch break every four (4) hours of classroom time.

Instructor Qualification Policy

Instructors for the course shall have a minimum of: a) Three years of experience directly related to the subject matter being taught; or b) A baccalaureate or higher degree in a field directly related to the subject matter being taught; or c) Three years of teaching experience in the subject matter being taught; or d) A combination of education and experience equivalent to (a), (b), or (c) of this section.

Causes for Dismissal and Conditions for Readmission

Participants will be dismissed for failure to cooperate with the course instructor or Earth Advantage staff, or for creating undue disruptions in class. Participants will also be dismissed for falsifying registration forms or any certificates of completion for clock hours or professional designation. Dismissed participants seeking readmission must submit a written request to the administrator; requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Audit Policy

Any state licensing representative will be provided a space to audit the course at no cost to the individual. The auditor will be permitted to review course records appropriate to the course offering. No credit hours will be awarded to an auditing participant.

Online Course System Requirements

For participants completing an online Earth Advantage course, please me mindful of the system requirements for our online education host, OnlineEd:
  • Any computer or mobile device with an internet connection and web browser should work. We support all of the following browsers and devices:
  • Internet Explorer (version 11 or above)
  • Firefox
  • Google Chrome
  • Safari
  • Opera
  • Android
  • iOS
For assistance with these system requirements, email education@earthadvantage.org