Student Housing associate director earns credential for facilities professionals

LAWRENCE – Doug Carter, KU Student Housing’s associate director for operations, recently earned the national credential of Certified Educational Facilities Professional. 

Carter is one of 10 university professionals — out of about 35 professionals across the nation who took the examination — who completed the rigorous exam and earned the credential offered by APPA, Leadership in Education Facilities (formerly known as the Association for Physical Plant Administrators).

Carter’s success in earning the CEFP demonstrates understanding and application of skills to create and maintain safe, functional and inspiring learning environments for current and future generations. The exam covers four core areas:

• Energy & tilities
• Planning, Design & Construction
• Maintenance & Operations
• General Administration & Management

“This credentialing process helps me help students,” Carter said. “Students live with us for several years, and it’s important that their space is energy-efficient, updated, and functions well. APPA credentialing is the gold standard for facilities plant management.”

Carter oversees the Student Housing operations staff that serves as liaison to KU Facilities Services in managing building systems that include heating, ventilation, air conditioning, plumbing, electrical systems, life and safety issues, and preventive maintenance. Carter is also integrally involved in renovation and construction project management on behalf of KU Student Housing. KU Student Housing supports KU's goals by serving about 5,000 students.    

APPA provides members the opportunity to explore trends, issues and best practices in educational facilities through research, publications, professional development and credentialing. APPA is the association of choice for 5,200 educational facilities professionals at more than 1,500 learning institutions throughout the United States, Canada and abroad.

“By obtaining the CEFP, it assures the individual and their institution that they have established a thorough and applied understanding of the best management practices related to educational facilities,” said J. Thomas Becker, chair of APPA’s Board for Educational Facilities Professionals Certification. “Our CEFP recipients and their institutions have also committed to an ongoing program of professional development that will further assure cutting-edge relevancy going forward. The APPA CEFP is quickly becoming the industry standard for leaders within educational facilities.”