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Today Is a sad day for all USCCA Training Counselors
After serving as a USCCA Training Counselor from their first Training Counselor course in Wisconsin, and developing many instructor candidates, I’ve made the decision not to pursue the new Firearms Instructor Development Course (FIDC) pathway that USCCA is forcing on Training Counselors if you want to maintain your certification.
With the current Training Counselor program coming to an end on June 15, even though I can certify instructors until then, I will no longer promote or conduct any USCCA instructor courses.
Why am I stepping away?
I believe in raising instructional standards. I’ve dedicated my professional career to doing exactly that. I’ve attended many of the firearms instructor course USCCA has offered, invested thousands of dollars in continuing education, and repeatedly demonstrated proficiency through their evaluations.
However, the new direction requires existing Training Counselors to complete another five days of training, at considerable personal expense, beyond the waived tuition, simply to become eligible for consideration for a replacement role.
There is no guaranteed transition, no clearly defined selection process, and no published opportunity for experienced instructors to demonstrate equivalent competency.
What disappointed me most was how the decision was communicated. Those of us who invested many years developing USCCA instructors learned about the elimination of our program through a Facebook announcement, without meaningful advance communication or an opportunity to provide input.
The intent is noble, but the implementation is poor.
I don’t know everything, and I’ve never claimed to. I will always be willing to learn, improve, and be evaluated. But I also believe demonstrated competency, professional experience, and previous investments should carry meaningful weight.
I respect USCCA’s decision to change direction, just as I hope my decision not to continue under the new model will be respected.
My positions within several organizations depends on my ability to train and certify quality instructors for them. I will now focus only on being an NRA Training Counselor and certify instructors through them. I was an NRA Training Counselor long before I became involved with USCCA. I feel betrayed and booted to the curb. I have always conducted very professional classes, met or exceeded expectations, stayed within the code of conduct and consistently received 5 star reviews. I am losing my credentials through no fault of my own and will not pursue this or any of their other USCCA Instructor certification courses any further.
I’m grateful for the relationships I’ve built and the instructors I’ve had the privilege of developing. Those experiences will always mean something to me.
I will continue maintaining my USCCA Certified Instructor credentials, and conduct the courses I have in the past.
I’m not stepping away from teaching. I’m simply closing this chapter and shifting to the NRA Certified Instructor courses. It’s a sad day for Training Counselors, and many others. I was proud of my contribution to firearms education on a nationwide basis. I have students come to me for Instructor Certification from as far away as San Francisco and Florida. That will not be so with regard to USCCA anymore.
NOTE: I did not write this article. It was written by J. D. Nagol, with more elegance than I could ever create. I DID edit it to fit my circumstances.
Mobile users: I have upgraded to new Calendar software! You no longer have to deal with the ‘Blue Dots’ on small screens…
It is still best viewed in landscape mode, but in either mode you can read the class titles, etc., much the same as you would on a PC.
