NAC656.240. Accreditation of program or course of study; determination of hours of credit; approval of course of study.

     1. A sponsor of a program or course of study for continuing education may submit to the Board, on a form provided by the Board, a request for accreditation of the program or course. The form may be submitted either before or after the program or course has been offered.

     2. A court reporter or designated representative of a court reporting firm who attends a course of instruction not accredited by the Board may submit, on a form provided by the Board, a request for accreditation of the course.

     3. The Board will determine whether programs or courses of study offered by a sponsor or taken by a court reporter or designated representative of a court reporting firm are to receive accreditation, and the Board will set forth the terms and conditions for the accreditation of the programs or courses of study.

     4. The Board will determine the number of hours of credit each participant is entitled to receive for attendance or participation in a program or course of study.

     5. The Board will approve courses of study on an annual basis.

     6. To be approved, a course of study must directly relate to the skills and knowledge required to engage competently in the practice of court reporting and must be made available to each court reporter and designated representative of a court reporting firm in this State. Such courses of study may relate to:

     (a) Strengthening the participant’s understanding of the English language, including, but not limited to, the following areas:

          (1) Reading;

          (2) Spelling;

          (3) Vocabulary; and

          (4) Medical and legal terminology;

     (b) Increasing speed;

     (c) Technological advances in the field of court reporting;

     (d) The applicable laws, regulations, and court and procedural rules governing the practice of court reporting in this State;

     (e) Ethics and professionalism in the field of court reporting;

     (f) Substance abuse;

     (g) Management of the business affairs and the economics of court reporting; or

     (h) Any other subject which the Board determines to be appropriate.

     7. Each court reporter or designated representative of a court reporting firm who completes a program or course of study offered or approved by the National Court Reporters Association or a sponsor designated or approved by the Board as an accredited sponsor is entitled to receive credit for continuing education.

     (Added to NAC by Cert. Court Reporters’ Bd., eff. 11-6-95; A by R030-09, 10-27-2009; R072-12, 4-5-2013)