OGRA’s Municipal Asset Management certification program represents a refreshing departure from other asset management training programs. One of the strengths of this program is its holistic approach, which considers individual categories of public assets within the broader context of other assets competing for the same taxpayer dollar. The instructional methodology in each week-long course is firmly anchored in practical application of the skills being taught. Students are held to the highest academic standards, and are evaluated on their ability to demonstrate they can apply the skills, not simply recall knowledge from short term memory.
Assignments are carefully chosen to familiarize students with the resources both human and information that they will need to manage tangible capital assets in their municipality.
Finally, the certification capstone project simulates as closely as possible, the political realities of municipal asset management. Students are asked to prepare a written asset management plan for one category of assets in their community, then to present and defend their plan to members of the Academy’s Certification Advisory Board, who will interview the candidate in much the same way that a municipal Council would respond to them in real life.
