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 In this section:

                Office of Training Education and Development (OTED)

Office of Training Education and Development (OTED)

                        Request an ORA LearnED Training System Account
          State, Local, Tribal, and Territorial Regulatory Partners
          OTED Training Schedule & Catalog
          OTED Student Handbook
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          Independent Course Delivery (ICD) Program: Training together for a safer tomorrow
          Train-the-Trainer (TTT) Program: Train together for a safer tomorrow
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          Office of Training Education and Development (OTED)
          Independent Course Delivery (ICD) Program: Training together for a safer tomorrowOffice of Training Education and Development (OTED) Independent Course Delivery (ICD) Program: Training together for a safer tomorrow
  
  	
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			**— Announcement —**
			
			The observation and evaluation element of the Independent Course Delivery (ICD) and Train the Trainer programs are in abeyance as we have streamlined the program to become more efficient. Instructor Candidates who meet program requirements will receive a Qualified Instructor (QI) certificate. The ICD program has maintenance requirements for QIs. Send questions to ORAOTEDICDAdmin@fda.hhs.gov.
			The Office of Training, Education, and Development (OTED) is proud to announce the ICD program to support an Integrated Food Safety System (IFSS)!
			Now, state, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) regulatory authorities can apply to deliver OTED courses within their own jurisdictions using SLTT instructors who have completed OTED’s Train-the-Trainer (TTT) program requirements.
			By working together, FDA and our SLTT partners can ensure our integrated workforce has access to the necessary OTED courses to meet their training and development needs!
			 
			**Introducing the new ICD Management Portal**
			Taking part in the Independent Course Delivery (ICD) program and interacting with OTED will be easier than ever before with the new online ICD Management Portal! The ICD Management Portal is webapp that serves as your all-in-one center for everything related to the ICD program. In the portal you will be able to access a library of helpful resources that will assist you as you complete each step of the ICD Application and course delivery process!
			To learn more about the new ICD Management Portal watch the video and read the fact sheet.

Photo of Pat Alcock and FDA logo with text of quote – “OTED is proud to recognize our ‘Partners in Training’ for their commitment to advancing an Integrated Food Safety System and protecting the public health by increasing access and availability to quality regulatory training for not only their employees but FDA and other regulators as well.” – Patricia L. Alcock, OTED Director



Partners in Training Recognition

By delivering approved ICD courses, SLTT regulatory jurisdictions are helping to increase the IFSS’s overall training capacity and availability. To that end, OTED is proud to recognize these programs as our “Partners in Training”:

			California Department of Public Health (CDPH)
				New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets (NYSDAM)
				Florida Department of Health and Consumer Services
			Two people shaking hands, Getty Images

Learn more about the ICD program and what some of our partners are saying about it



Benefits of Participating in the ICD Program

Address your own training needs

Achieve conformance with Standard 2 of the regulatory program standards.
	Pick and choose the courses needed by your team.
	Deliver training at times that best meet your programmatic and staff needs.
	Address your training backlog and attrition challenges.
	Develop your own long-term training plans.
	Leverages your program’s own instructors/subject matter experts (SMEs) who have experience and background unique to your jurisdiction (once they complete the requirements of OTED’s TTT program)
	Resolve travel restrictions, such as the inability to travel out of your state or to certain locations.Reinforce your program’s commitment to an IFSS

Invite other SLTT and FDA colleagues to attend your ICD courses.
	Partner with other SLTT jurisdictions, associations, and academia in the delivery of your ICD courses.Increase efficiency

Reduce staff travel time.
	Focus on the actual delivery of training rather than having to worry about the development of the training course and associated materials.
	Maximize use of your cooperative program funds with less travel costs.




Need to Learn More About the ICD Program?



What courses are available in the ICD program?

The following ICD courses are now available:

FD190 Food Current Good Manufacturing Practice, Application, and Evidence Development
	FD249 Conducting Seafood HACCP Inspections
	FD219 Juice HACCP and Conducting Juice Inspections
	FD202 Conducting Acidified Food Inspections
	CC104 - Instructor Skills Training For Independent Course Delivery Instructor-Led Training (ILT) FD152 Food Processing and Technology (Note: Due to the specialized food processing equipment required for this course, the ICD applicant must partner with their local land grant university to deliver this ICD. Please contact the ICD Program Administrator for more information.)

Is an ICD course offering equal and equivalent to an OTED delivery?

Yes, ICD courses approved for delivery by OTED are considered OTED courses.

How were the ICD and TTT programs developed?

OTED developed the ICD and TTT programs in collaboration with the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA), Association of Food and Drug Officials (AFDO), California Department of Public Health (CDPH), and New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets (NYSDAM). Pilots were conducted in CA and NY to refine the program. The program was developed collaboratively and then piloted over 18 –24 months, for two different OTED training courses to test processes and procedures. The program officially launched in December 2021.

May other SLTT and FDA staff attend my ICD course?

Yes, employees from your jurisdiction, other SLTT jurisdictions, and the FDA can attend your ICD course offering. In fact, you are encouraged to invite participants from other SLTTs and FDA since the networking and sharing of best practices and experience can enhance the learning.

What resources are available to support the delivery of my own ICD courses?

In support of Standard 2, you may be able to use Flexible Funding Model/Manufactured Food Regulatory Program Standards (MFRPS) cooperative agreement funds to build your training infrastructure including supporting the delivery of approved ICD courses. Examples of acceptable use of funds include, but are not limited to, purchasing training equipment such as participant response devices, acquiring training software and systems, printing course materials, and hiring state training officers. Funds may also be used to host post-course deep dive sessions with participants to discuss how the concepts learned in the course are to be applied within your jurisdiction. Funds may also be used to pay for instructor and participant travel to instructor-led training (ILT) courses, when available. Contact the Office of Partnerships’ MFRPS Program Manager for more details.

How is this different than the “Course-in-a-Box” (CIB) concept that OTED used in the past?

The CIB provided materials and instructions to SLTTs to deliver a training course independently of OTED. The former CIB program relied on the applicant agency to select and train internal staff as instructors to deliver content. OTED did not provide any associated instructor training in the content area. In many instances, this did address, albeit minimally, the SLTT partner’s immediate need for specific training. However, it did not fully address the long-term strategic training needs of partners to support an IFSS or Domestic Mutual Reliance. In addition, without standardized and uniform training of the instructor(s), the CIB option inadvertently contributed to a lack of uniformity and consistency in the content delivery. OTED’s TTT program provides training to SLTT instructor candidates to equip them for teaching in ICD courses. Our experience with the former CIB program provided the foundation for improvements while developing the ICD program.

What is required of an ICD applicant to deliver an ICD course?

ICD applicants are responsible for all aspects of the ICD planning and delivery including, but not limited to, the following:

Marketing the ICD course offerings to prospect participants.
	Facilitating participant registration.
	Verifying participants’ completion of any course prerequisites.
	Arranging suitable meeting space/training facility (or e-learning platform).
	Procuring course supplies and equipment commensurate with OTED’s course requirements.
	Printing and distributing course materials.
	Securing qualified instructors to teach the course.
	Verifying student identity prior to class by checking employment or government issued ID Maintaining a student attendance sheet for each class Providing OTED with a final number of students trained Filling out and issuing certificates provided by OTED.
	Retaining course records.






Ready to Apply to Deliver Your Own ICD Course?



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Learn more about our application process

Train-the-Trainer text with illustration of trainer above and descriptive words in the background – tomorrow, opportunity, qualified, development, partnership
Qualify your instructors to teach courses through OTED’s TTT program

Close up of computer keyboard w/ location symbol on a key – Getty Image
Apply to deliver your own ICD course



**More questions?** Contact the OTED ICD Program Administrator at oraotedicdadmin@fda.hhs.gov.





Phone: 301-796-4550
			Fax: 301-827-8708
			Email: oted@fda.hhs.gov
			Website: www.fda.gov/Training
			11919 Rockville Pike
			Rockville MD 20852

                                                                                  Content current as of:
      02/01/2023Office of Training Education and Development (OTED)

          
                        Request an ORA LearnED Training System Account
          State, Local, Tribal, and Territorial Regulatory Partners
          OTED Training Schedule & Catalog
          OTED Student Handbook
          OTED Address and Travel Information
          Independent Course Delivery (ICD) Program: Training together for a safer tomorrow
          Train-the-Trainer (TTT) Program: Train together for a safer tomorrow
          Ready to Become a Qualified Instructor (QI)
          OTED Staff Directory
 
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