Certified Policy Advocate Track
The Certified Advocate Track provides courses concentrated in policy training in the NAACP's main content areas: Criminal Justice, Economic Empowerment, Education, Health, International Affairs and Political Empowerment (Civic Engagement). It is open to all NAACP members and interested community leaders. The Certified Advocate Track is required for all committee chairs.
| Training Area | Credit Hours | Content Training | Availability |
| PT101 | 3 | Introduction to content area. Focus on fundamentals related to general Administrative, Policy, and Advocacy issues in content area. | Offered annually during Regional Conferences |
| PT201 | 3 | State Data, Disparities and Key Indicators | Offered annually during Regional Conferences |
| PT301* | 3 | Current federal case law and legislation impacting the content area. | Offered annually during Regional Conferences |
Example of Training Areas: PT101-Criminal Justice, PT201-Criminal Justice, PT301-Criminal Justice
CERTIFIED POLICY ADVOCATE Requirements
NAACP Certified Policy Advocates are individuals who have been fully trained in a particular content area and have the ability to promote and implement the NAACP Advocacy Agenda. To become a Certified Policy Advocate, participants must complete 9 credit hours in the Certified Policy Advocate Track. The following trainings must be taken:
- PT101
- PT201
- PT301
Example: NAACP Certified Advocate-Criminal Justice
RETEST OR RETRAIN
Trainings must be taken consecutively without interruption. If classes are not taken consecutively without interruption; participants must be retested (if a placement test was taken to test out) or be retrained at the level of the previous class. (i.e. If a participant took PT101 in 2001; PT201 in 2002 and did not take PT301 in 2003; the participant must be retested or retrained on the PT201 level before they will be allowed to proceed to PT301.)
CERTIFICATION EXPIRATION
All Certified Policy Advocates must be retested or retrained every two years. If a participant opts to be retested and fails to receive a score of at least 80% on the test; the participant is required to take the entire Certified Policy Advocate Track again.
COURSE AVAILABILITY
With proper scheduling, participants will be able to take up to two (2) courses annually during the Regional Conference Meetings. Online training will be available in 2007.
The courses offered for this year's training schedule are as follows:
- PT-101 Civic Engagement: In this course, participants will receive guidance in galvanizing and equipping community members in civic participation activities, voter registration/education, and community based mobilization.
- PT-101 Criminal Justice: In this course, participants will begin to identify and discuss the key components of the NAACP Criminal Justice Advocacy Agenda and develop community support to address criminal justice issues. The Criminal Justice curriculum focuses on racial profiling practices, fair and equitable trials and sentences, felony disenfranchisement and re-entry, and the death penalty.
- PT-101 Economic Empowerment: The goal of this course is to assist community members, efforts to increase minority communities to Credit, Capital and Financial Services. Participants will also learn to advocate for financial literacy programs for minority owned business.
- PT-101 Education: In this training participant will discuss the key components of the Education Advocacy Agenda and the NAACP Call for Action in Education; participants will also identify and discuss disparities in resources equity, teacher quality and analyze strategies for increasing parent and family engagement and early childhood literacy initiatives; and finally to provide community support in order enhance early childhood literacy initiatives.
- PT-101 Health: This training is designed to highlight the key components of the Health Advocacy Agenda; as well as discuss and review disparities in five health advocacy focal areas, these area include HIV/AIDS, Access to high quality health care, respatory diseases, mental health and obesity; create, targeted community programming addressing health disparities; and to provide information and increase community awareness around health disparities in the African American Community.
