Back in 2010, three wastewater industry members had a vision. They created the American Association of Water and Wastewater Professionals as a venue where operators could access a broad, structured curriculum of courses to help them meet specific education objectives.
They also envisioned operators having fun during the classes and leaving with abundant knowledge to apply immediately at work. And they foresaw operators gaining more respect as professionals and for the essential work they performed.
Now that vision has evolved into Water Otter, and the idea has advanced to taking the program online. “The trend in modern education is anytime, anywhere online delivery,” says Terry Looney, a co-founder. “Water Otter’s mobile-friendly platform allows courses to be taken from a PC, a tablet, or even a smartphone.”
Looney says quality education and regulatory compliance remain foremost in the program. “The water and wastewater courses are written and presented by experienced senior operators who are passionate about sharing their knowledge and experience. The courses are approved in most states that require pre-approval.”
A recent addition is a management and human resources curriculum that addresses newer requirements for management courses in some states. There are plans to continue expanding the curriculum to cover safety and other job-related subjects.
Adopting the program
Among the program’s early adopters is Barbara Jackson, a utility operations supervisor with the City of Richmond, Virginia (see Guardians of the Gates in TPO's September 2018 issue). She has implemented Water Otter as an important part of the Department of Public Utilities training operations.
“These types of relationships have led Water Otter to take an active role as a patron to the industry,” says Looney. “For example, we recently provided free online credits to participants in a hurricane-shortened Virginia Water Environment Association trade show.”
Water Otter offers enterprise memberships to large corporate clients and municipalities, as well as individual and small-group memberships. Trade discounts are available to members of WEF, AWWA, the National Rural Water Association and other trade groups.
A YouTube video describes the program and another offers a simple tutorial for using it. For more information, visit www.waterotter.com or call 877-378-8111.
