"Undergoing the accreditation process has been a learning experience for myself and our administration," said Eric Clock, facility maintenance/mechanical instructor at Alaska Vocational Technical Center. "It gave us a chance to evaluate our program and compare it to others on a national level. As a result of the accreditation, our school has achieved national recognition and been the recipient of valuable and useful equipment donations."

Validated by representatives from major HVACR trade associations, PAHRA accreditation is available to all training programs - secondary, post secondary, public, or private. It was created for the purpose of establishing national educational standards for accrediting HVACR programs.

To become accredited, a training school must first evaluate its own strengths and weaknesses as compared to industry standards and then submit its findings in a self-study report. A survey team then conducts an on-site visit to corroborate the self-study report.

Partners in the PAHRA program include the Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute (ARI), Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA), American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), Council of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Educators (CARE), Gas Appliance Manufacturers Association (GAMA), Heating, Airconditioning and Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI), North American Technician Excellence (NATE), and Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors-National Association (PHCC).

The program launched in January 2001. Since then, a total of 16 schools have received accreditation through the PAHRA program. For more information, visit www.pahrahvacr.org.

Publication date: 10/04/2004