Registered Member
The biggest benefit of your membership is access to incredible learning opportunities and resources, so regardless of if your goals are something concrete like a certification or a specialist program, or if you just want to be a better teacher and skier, you’re in the right place.
- If you haven’t already joined a snowsports school, now is a good time to do that. Most instructors do their initial training through their own school.
- Check out these FREE resources:
- This is a great time to start learning even more about your craft. Your membership comes with FREE digital access to these manuals or you can access printed manuals here.
- Teaching Snowsports Manual
- Alpine Technical Manual
- Teaching Children Snowsports Manual
- It’s also important that you spend time teaching lessons on-snow. Getting better at anything requires practice.
- If your goal is certification, develop a plan with your snowsports school director or training supervisor to learn what you need to know to be successful at Level I.
- As a registered member, you are eligible to take any event that doesn’t require certification as a prerequisite. Check out the Event Calendar to see your options!
Resources:
Cross Country Level I Certification
Prerequisites
- Be at least 14 years of age.
- It is highly recommended to be an employee or volunteer of a recognized Snowsports School, Nordic Program, Cross Country Center, club, organized group or recreational facility.
- It is highly recommended that you have 25 hours of teaching and training experience within the Cross Country discipline.
- You should prepare by reading the Cross Country Assessment Guide and Cross Country Technical Manual as well as the Teaching Snowsports manual. Digital versions of these manuals are available from the National office.
- Complete the Cross Country Level I E-Learning Course.
- PLEASE NOTE: While a school director’s signature is not required, we strongly encourage you to notify your director so that he or she is both aware of and can help ensure that you are prepared for a successful exam experience. When you register for a Level I Certification Assessment you are attesting that you have read and completed all prerequisites prior to taking the Cross Country Level I Certification Assessment.
- Sign up for any of the Eastern Cross Country events (except for a Backcountry event) and select that you want to be assessed at the Cross Country Level I Standard.
Requirements
- Successfully pass an on-snow assessment as detailed in the Cross Country Assessment Guide.
- The candidate must attend a 2-day Level I Assessment and pass the Level I assessment criteria in the National Cross Country Certification Standards pdf.
- All participants must follow the PSIA-AASI Eastern Event Participant Safety Policy.
Once certified, click here for a summary of what is required to maintain PSIA-AASI Certification.
Resources
Continuing Education
There are lots of options to continue your professional growth and maintain your certification both on and off snow.
*What is a member required to do to maintain certification?
For on-snow events, please see the Event Calendar.
Filter the calendar by:
- month
- discipline
- event location
- state
- resort
- and/or type of clinic to see options.
Find course descriptions and find the right event for you at our new Event Finder.
Online courses you can complete at your own pace:
If you need the flexibility of an online option, we have several e-learning courses you can take to earn credits:
Go to: Eastern Online Courses for the following options (6 CEUs each):
- History of Skiing
- History of Snowboarding
- Aging and the Senior Skier
- Teaching Students with Developmental/Intellectual Disabilities
Go to: Digital Learning Hub Courses for other E-Learning Courses:
- Skate to Ski (6 CEUs)
- Teaching Families and Groups (6 CEUs)
- Alpine Movement Analysis (1 CEU)
- ACL Strong – Knee Injury Prevention (2 CEUs)
- And more non-credit and 1 credit programs.
Prerecorded webinars that offer credits:
There are many prerecorded webinars you can watch at your convenience to earn CEU credits.
Go to: Eastern Webinars Eastern programs include the following and more:
- Exploring Common Movements Between Disciplines (1 CEU) with Kathy Brennan, Brian Donovan and Keith Rodney
- Converting Beginners into Lifelong Snowsports Enthusiasts (1 CEU) with Joe Forte
- Movement Prioritization (1 CEU) with Nate Gardner
- Stance and Alignment: The Alpine Boot and the Body (1 CEU) with Dave Taylor
Go to: Digital Learning Hub Webinars for National programs including and more:
- The Importance of Failure (1 CEU) with Mermer Blakeslee and Maggie Loring
- The Unified Assessment Form: An Examiner’s Perspective (1 CEU) with Eric Rolls
- Checking Under the Hood Webinar (1 CEU) with Krista Crabtree and Heidi Ettlinger
- The Art of Being (More) Emotionally Intelligent (1 CEU) with Fran Tone
- Create Your Own Place at the Table (1 CEU) with Amy Gan
Children’s or Freestyle Specialist 1
If you have a particular area of interest, now that you’ve achieved your Level I certification, you are eligible to take some of the specialist courses. These are nationally recognized “Certificate Based” programs that address teaching special populations or activities. The courses have an evaluative component, but they are also highly educational in nature. Take advantage of any of these educational opportunities that are focused on your particular area(s) of interest. If you are working toward your Alpine Level II certification, be aware that the Children’s Specialist 1 is a prerequisite course for the Alpine Level II Teaching Assessment.
Cross Country Level II Certification
Prerequisites
- Must be Snowboard, Alpine, Tele, Cross Country OR Adaptive Level I Certified and a current member.
- Be an employee or volunteer of a recognized Snowsports School, Nordic Program, club, organized group or recreational facility.
- Complete the Cross Country Level II E-Learning Course.
- Please note: While a school director’s signature is not required, we strongly encourage you to notify your director so that he or she is both aware of and can help ensure that you are prepared for a successful exam experience.
- Must have attended a prerequisite event in either of the previous two seasons or the current season, but prior to registering for the Cross Country Level II Assessment event. A prerequisite event can be any Cross Country event on the Eastern schedule separate from the event in which you earned your Cross Country Level I.
Requirements
Two-day on-snow assessment
- Candidates will be evaluated on the Assessment Criteria of the National Standards and listed in the Cross Country Assessment Guide.
- All participants must follow the PSIA-AASI Eastern Event Participant Safety Policy.
Resources
Children’s, Freestyle or Adaptive Specialist 2 or 3
If you want to continue your professional development in your particular area of interest, Children’s Specialist 2, Freestyle Specialist 2 or 3 or Adaptive Specialist 2 or 3 are great options.
Once you’ve achieved your Alpine Level II, you are also eligible to take any courses that require a Level II certification as a prerequisite, so even if you’ve achieved your certification goals already, there are still lots of opportunities to improve your skills in educational clinics. You can also consider some of the Level III Prep events as a way to keep moving forward in your professional development.
Cross Country Level III Certification
Prerequisites
- Must be Snowboard, Alpine, Tele, Cross Country OR Adaptive Level II Certified and a current member.
- Be an employee or volunteer of a recognized Snowsports School, Nordic Program, club, organized group or recreational facility.
- Complete Cross Country Level III Workbook.
- Please note: While a school director’s signature is not required, we strongly encourage you to notify your director so that he or she is both aware of and can help ensure that you are prepared for a successful exam experience.
- Must have attended a prerequisite event in either of the previous two seasons or the current season, but prior to registering for the Cross Country Level III Assessment event. A prerequisite event can be any Cross Country event on the Eastern schedule.
Requirements
Two-day on-snow assessment
- Candidates will be evaluated on the Assessment Criteria of the National Standards and listed in the Cross Country Assessment Guide.
- All participants must follow the PSIA-AASI Eastern Event Participant Safety Policy.
Resources
Cross Country Development Team
Are you a Level III instructor who would like to take it to the next level and join the Education Staff? The Dev Team is a group of highly skilled Level III instructors who are training to become Eastern Cross Country Examiners. They are chosen by way of a demanding and competitive tryout. They receive training that focuses on sharpening their riding skills, their teaching skills, their people skills, and their professional knowledge. The goal is to develop highly effective clinicians to deliver a wide range of educational events to the membership.
Cross Country tryouts are scheduled for March 2-3, 2024 at Trapp Family Lodge, VT.
Application Requirements for the Development Team Tryout:
To be accepted to the tryout for the Development Team you must register for the tryout and submit the following before February 28, 2024 at 11:30pm.
- A professional resume not to exceed two pages. Please identify your professional high points (e.g., presentations, authored materials, relevant activities outside of teaching, foreign language competencies, special credentials, etc.) Document should be in docx, jpeg or pdf format.
- A cover letter describing why you are trying out for the team, your strengths, what specific skills can bring to the team and the organization, or any other information you feel would be relevant. Please do not exceed two pages. Document should be in docx, jpeg or pdf format.
- A letter of recommendation from your snowsports school director or manager. In the event you hold that role at your school, please provide a letter of recommendation from your immediate supervisor or manager.
- Contact details for a second professional reference
- Contact details for a third reference, professional or personal
Please use this form to submit the required documents prior to February 28, 2024.
Thank you in advance.
Choose any discipline to find more about Certification and Professional Development
We have developed pathways for learning for each of the main disciplines and specialties. Click on a discipline to learn more about options for learning, whether you are looking to maintain your certification or earn a new one.