Beginning this month, the National Kitchen & Bath Association and Century College, a community and technical college based in Minneapolis, are offering a six-course online training program; for kitchen and bath design professionals. The NKBA Online Kitchen & Bath Design Courses help NKBA members earn certification credits and education hours that can be applied toward a higher certification level or as continuing education credits.

Curricula for the courses are based on specifications encouraged by the NKBA. All courses will use the new NKBA Professional Resource Library, an updated nine-volume series written by industry experts. Courses may be taken individually or as a full curriculum (pre-requisites may apply to some courses). Classes, which began August 21, will run through March 2007. Individual courses are eight to nine weeks in length.

Led by NKBA Certified Kitchen Educators/Designers, the courses have previously been implemented by Century College in the classroom, as well as online, as part of the Kitchen and Bath Design Certificate Program. The series is specifically designed to help students both gain or upgrade professional skills and prepare for NKBA certification.

The six-course series covers the following topics: Presentation standards, construction and mechanical systems, basic design, lighting, business practices, and advanced design. All courses are offered as non-college-credit, but interested parties must apply directly with Century College.

The NKBA is allied with more than 46 colleges and universities across North America currently teaching NKBA Standards, which help ensure consistent, quality education for individuals across the industry. This is the organization’s first partnership with a school for online professional development.