Continuing the Development of the Integrated Food Safety System Food Protection Professional National Curriculum Standard.

International Food Protection Trng Inst, Portage MI

Investigators

Abstract

RFA-FD-16-042 ? Project Summary This proposal is submitted by the International Food Protection Training Institute (IFPTI) as part of a coordinated suite of independent applications from the Association of Food and Drug Officials (AFDO), the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL), and the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) to continue the development of the Integrated Food Safety System (IFSS) National Curriculum Standard (NCS). As part of this coordinated effort, IFPTI will utilize its nationally recognized leadership and expertise to guide the ongoing development of the IFSS Curriculum Framework (IFSS Framework); oversee the design and delivery of learning experiences; expand the Interactive National Curriculum Standard (INCS); and advance the NCS in key food protection leadership venues, all in close collaboration with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Division of Human Resource Development (DHRD). Utilizing its curriculum framework development process, IFPTI will direct the continued buildout of the IFSS Framework, Animal Food Framework, Manufactured Food Framework, and Retail Food Framework, and will lead the development (and subsequent buildout) of new curriculum frameworks for the milk, shellfish, and produce program areas (e.g., a Dairy Processing Framework, a Shellfish Plant Framework, and a Produce Framework, or others as directed by DHRD). Building out the frameworks means developing competencies and key performance indicators (KPIs, or proficiency measures) for all content areas defined by the frameworks. The curriculum frameworks, competencies, and KPIs will be incorporated into the Interactive National Curriculum Standard (INCS), an online system that allows users to identify competencies within framework content areas; assess themselves (or their staff) against those competencies; identify competency gaps; locate learning experiences to address competency gaps; and develop personal or group learning plans. IFPTI will direct the design, development, and delivery of online and blended learning experiences (courses, training, etc.) for framework content areas; deliver and redevelop The Applied Science, Law, and Policy: Fellowship in Food Protection based on DHRD specifications; and redevelop the Instructor Skills Training course in preparation for delivery by food protection partners. Finally, IFPTI will advance support for, and adoption of, the NCS by delivering educational presentations at major food protection leadership events, notably the FDA Training Summit. The project presented in this application, in concert with the coordinated projects proposed by AFDO, APHL, and NEHA, offer FDA the best opportunity to develop an IFSS NCS that will result in a competent regulatory food protection workforce doing comparable work across all jurisdictions (federal, state, and local), thus achieving the important public health mission of a safer food supply.