HHTC Curriculum Development

Essentials for Healthy Homes Practitioners for health and housing professionals seeking a solid understanding of the details of healthy homes programs and principles. The course helps prepare students for the Healthy Homes Specialist Credential exam.
Launching a Healthy Homes Initiative for a mix of health and housing professionals, policymakers and advocates seeking to develop a healthy homes initiative in their community.
Building Healthy Homes for designers, architects and progressive contractors seeking to understand the building science and construction methods involving healthy homes.
Pediatric Environmental Home Assessment (on-line training) for nurses and other practitioners who do home visits seeking to better assess their client's homes for healthy home problems and make referrals for assistance.
Community Health Workers for individuals who work as health advocates in their communities. This course will train CHWs to provide one-on-one and large group education on healthy homes, provide general advice about specific healthy homes problems, and be able to recommend healthy homes approaches to be taken by families, landlords and other community members.

The National Healthy Homes Training Center's flagship course is the Essentials for Healthy Homes Practitioners. The Training Center complements that course with a mixture of courses designed to address specific audiences or challenges. Every training course takes a holistic approach that emphasizes the key elements of a healthy homes: Keep It Dry, Keep It Clean, Keep It Pest-Free, Keep It Well-Ventilated, Keep It Safe, Keep It Contaminant-Free, and Keep It Maintained.

The Training Center has three stages for course review and approval:

Approved Courses: These courses that have been piloted and updated to reflect the results of the pilot. While undergoing constant enhancements, the basic structure of the course is in place. The Curriculum Committee has approved the course. The Training Center will post the materials for these courses on-line.
Piloted Courses: These courses are being piloted to evaluate their impact, effectiveness, and marketability to the target audience. The Curriculum Committee has reviewed the proposed course and released it for piloting. The specific course materials are not yet approved since they are expected to evolve during the piloting process.
Courses Under Consideration: The Curriculum Committee evaluates proposals for courses to be piloted. Proposals are developed by the National Center for Healthy Housing and the Training Center's network partners, especially training partners. Not all of these courses will be piloted.

We welcome any thought, ideas or suggestions you have about the courses, especially courses under consideration. Contact Tom Neltner at tneltner@nchh.org or 443-539-4160.

About the Curriculum Committee: The Curriculum Committee’s mission is to review all curriculum proposals for approval and to advise the National Healthy Homes Training Center Partners and Trainers about other curricular matters. The Curriculum Committee will review training proposals to ensure that they:

Are consistent with the overarching goals of the Training Center,

Add to the compendium of training offerings; and

Do not duplicate or conflict with current course offerings.

In addition the committee will ensure that the proposed and ongoing courses meet the Training Center’s quality standards, reflect current knowledge and practice, and support the Training Center in meeting emerging needs.

2006-2008 Curriculum Committee Members:

Rebecca Morley (chair)

National Center for Healthy Housing

Deb Millette

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Kathleen Morris

Ohio Nurses Association

Ralph Scott

Alliance for Healthy Homes

Paula Cox

Guilford County Health Department in NC

Kevin Kennedy

Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, MO

Kathleen MacVarish

Boston University

Rachel Riley

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

Approved Courses

Essentials for Healthy Homes Practitioners - in English and Spanish
Pediatric Environmental Home Assessment - On-Line Training for Nurses
Healthy Homes for Community Healthy Workers
Launching a Healthy Homes Initiative - Approved 8-2-07
IPM in Multi-Family Housing - Approved 8-2-07
Building Healthy Homes - Course taught through NeighborWorks. Contact Tom Neltner for more information.

Piloted Courses - Course Materials Posted On-line

Hogares Saludables para Promotores de la Vivienda y la Salud (Healthy Homes for Housing and Health Promoters) - Offered in Spanish and English - Proposal developed by Dr. Asa Bradman and Lupita Chapa of University of California at Berkeley.

Piloted Courses (titles are not final)

Code Inspections for Healthy Homes
Healthy Homes Specialist Refresher
Lead-Safe & Healthy Homes Work Practices - Piloting led by Dennis Livingston of Community Resources with support of Tom Neltner at NCHH. Approved on 12-8-06
Coastal Healthy Homes Improvement - Course developed by Dr. Claudette Reichel of Louisiana State University, Armand Magnelli of Livable Housing with support of Jonathan Wilson and Tom Neltner of NCHH. Approved on 1/18/07
Flood Cleanup for Healthy Homes (including Train-the-Trainer) - Proposal developed by Ralph Scott of the Alliance for Healthy Homes with support of Jonathan Wilson and Tom Neltner of NCHH. Approved on 1/18/07

10320 Little Patuxent Parkway, Suite 500 • Columbia, MD 21044
Phone: 410.992.0712 • Fax: 443.539.4150