New York City Mayor Eric Adams in October appointed acting Fire Commissioner Laura Kavanagh to lead the department on a permanent basis, making her the first female commissioner in the 157-year history of the Fire Department of New York (FDNY). Kavanagh will oversee a department of 17,000, including firefighters, and emergency medical workers. FDNY, an NCCRS member organization since 1982, is the largest fire department in the country.

Susan E. Gustafson, EdD, MSN, BSN, RN, an associate professor of nursing at Elmira College in upstate New York, and a registered nurse for nearly 40 years, decided to become a nursing professor because she wanted to influence the current and future state of healthcare. "By educating nursing students, I am able to impact the care they give to patients, while motivating and creating future nurse leaders," explained Susan. "Education is inherent in nursing, as is the obligation to protect the public. Nurse leaders strive for equality in providing healthcare opportunities, giving a voice to those who are most vulnerable. Nurse educators advocate for patients and empower them to create positive meaningful change." 

An NCCRS evaluator since 2017, Susan's research has primarily focused on education and women's health. In addition to being a community health educator, she teaches Professional Nursing, and a Medical-Surgical clinical course on a telemetry/stroke unit. She also designed and teaches non-nursing courses such as "Health Perspectives on Vulnerable Populations," and "Culture, Health, and Policy Law Impacting Vulnerable Populations."

Susan, who earned her education doctoral degree in Executive Leadership and Management from St. John Fisher University, is grateful she has had an opportunity to teach students how to design and develop evidence-based community health change projects through a model of community assessment she developed called BE-BRIGHT!©. "BE-BRIGHT!© identifies, assesses, and evaluates the balance of community needs with resources," said Susan. "The model is noted in my 2019 book, “Designing an Evidence-Based Health Promotion Change in Any Community.""

"Education is the key to opportunity," stated Susan. "As an NCCRS reviewer, I am able to advise and evaluate the quality of college-level courses, but also ensure standards are met in terms of expectation and rigor. By tapping into college credit recommendations, students are able to direct a pathway to their goals, envision an unlimited scope of opportunity, and gain the confidence they need to hope for a better tomorrow."

The following NCCRS member organizations have courses/programs/exams due for revalidation in 2023. The purpose of the five-year revalidation is to approve the continuance of college credit recommendations previously established, and to ensure the accuracy of exhibits posted in the CCRS Online directory.

The revalidation process is similar to the initial evaluation, requiring a thorough review of documentation, including assessments, graded student work, instructor resumes, syllabi, and other related materials.

If your organization appears on the list below, an NCCRS staff member will contact you to discuss your evaluation details. 

A majority of students in the United States and seven other countries participating in a survey by Coursera think professional certificates, or microcredentials, provide advantages for employability. Many respondents also said their college isn't offering classes that help them prepare for the workforce. An article in eCampus News states that by adopting skills-based learning, higher education institutions can fill gaps in their curricula and directly connect their degree programs to the labor market.