As our industry progresses, the importance of continuing education has mirrored the growth of accrediting institutes that allow us to provide additional value to our customers and employers. As such, it is important to clarify the different units available to lighting professionals and why they are important. Often times contact hours involved with educational functions are generically referred to as continuing education units, which in some industries would be considered correct. In the lighting industry, Continuing Education Units (CEU's) are directly related to the interior design community, specifically all associations participating in the Interior Design Continuing Education council (IDCEC), i.e. the ASID, IDC, IDEC, IIDA, NKBA and IFMA. Acuity Brands Lighting currently does not have educational activities accredited by the IDCEC but is constantly evaluating the lighting professional's needs for such. Below is a list of educational units currently provided by Acuity Brands Lighting and a brief explanation of each. While our currently educational package offers a variety of contact hours, we also have the ability to create new programs to most efficiently and effectively fulfill your educational requirements. for more information on continuing education, please contact your local Acuity Brands Lighting representative.

AIA/CES Learning Units (LU's)
Acuity Brands Lighting has recently partnered with the American Institute of Architects / Continuing Education System as a Passport Member. We now have the ability to offer LU's, all of which qualify for Health Safety and Welfare status, through the Jim H. McClung Lighting Center, our Specification Sales Force, our Agency Sales Force and in the near future look for an on-line offering of AIA accredited courses. For more information on how to receive AIA LU's, contact your local Acuity Brands Lighting representative. Re-certification requires 18 LU's annually, 8 of which must be Health Safety and Welfare.

NCQLP Lighting Education Units (LEU's)
LEU's are required by the NCQLP to maintain Lighting Certification (LC). Thirty six LEU's are required during a 3 year time frame in order to maintain LC status. Acuity Brands Lighting currently offers LEU credits for Specifier Seminars, Visual training, Distributor and Contractor Workshops. For information on LC re-certification guidelines, visit the NCQLP website.

Professional Development Hours (PDH's)
PDH's, geared specifically towards the engineering community, are available for all educational activities conducted at the Jim H. McClung Lighting Center. It is important that contact hours for each activity are compared to each states content and time restrictions, as each state regulates the need for continuing education differently.

ALA
The American Lighting Association requires continuing education to maintain lighting certification. The Lithonia Lighting Residential workshop qualifies for ALA hours. Upon completion of the seminar/workshop, each attendee will be given a certificate of completion for the seminar which will include the appropriate number of credit hours achieved. Fourteen ALA credit hours are currently offered for the Residential Workshop.