Training Analysis

Cost Summary of Recent Training Activities

Description of Recent Training Activities

MRP: 2007 Essentials for Cemetery Monument Care, NPS Tel Course. This three-hour televised course was NCPTT’s first foray into satellite broadcast training. The course emphasized sound maintenance techniques for cemetery and commemorative monuments that are sustainable, cyclic, non-invasive, and do no harm. The course aired on January 30, 2007 and included more than 94 registered participants from more than 50 NPS units. The evaluations were some of the highest scores ever received from a Tel course.

MRP: Video clips for cemetery preservation training. NCPTT produced two five-minute video clips on proper techniques for cleaning and resetting cemetery headstones. The video segments were aired on the Essentials in Cemetery Care course and were placed on NCPTT’s website. A Spanish language version also has been made available. An additional video clip on iron fence repair has been produced and is currently in distribution. There have been over 260 requests for DVDs in the first month since their release.

MRP: 2007 Cemetery Monument Conservation Basics – San Antonio. NCPTT partnered with the Texas Historical Commission and the City Cemetery to hold a four-hour workshop in San Antonio, Texas that focused on condition assessment, materials identification, basic cleaning techniques, and simple repairs. The workshop targeted a general audience and hosted 40 participants.

MRP: 2007 Cemetery Monument Conservation Basics – Hot Springs. NCPTT partnered with the Arkansas Heritage Preservation Commission to hold a six-hour workshop in Hot Springs, Arkansas that targeted a general audience and included condition assessment, materials identification, basic cleaning techniques, and simple repairs. Emphasis was placed on African American cemeteries. The workshop reached 50 participants.

MRP: 2007 Cemetery Monument Conservation Workshop – Pensacola. Originally scheduled for September 2007, this training event was pushed back to Oct. 23-25, 2007 based on instructor availability and weather considerations. All plans for the workshop, including site visits, instructor contracts, and logics were completed in FY 2007. NCPTT expects an enrollment of 25 to 32 participants for the course.

A&C: Prospection in Depth 2007—Natchitoches. Prospection in Depth 2007 is the second iteration of a workshop promoting the integration of advanced GIS, GPS, and archaeological geophysics as a non-intrusive way of locating and exploring sites. It represents an innovative pedagogy because of its constructivist approach, wherein the participants conduct legitimate research as part of an ongoing academic research project on creolization. Four instructors taught 10 participants for two weeks. The participants represented state and federal governments, the private sector, and academia. A videographer documented the course, so that video clips could be excerpted for the website.

A&E: Engineering for Older and Historic Buildings 2006—Natchitoches. Architecture & Engineering offered two weeks of courses that introduced the issues and technical challenges encountered in older and historic buildings, and emphasized the subtle shifts in perspective and problem-solving methods that are necessary when working with these resources. Topics covered were Materials and Building Pathology followed by Diagnostics Methodology & Treatment Strategies. A total of 16 students attended.