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Southside Virginia Community College’s (SVCC) heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVAC) program, held at the Lake Country Advanced Knowledge Center in South Hill, was one of 18 programs in the country to receive the HVAC Excellence national accreditation designation in 2021.

“We (SVCC) are very proud to receive this accreditation,” said SVCC Dean of Career and Occupational Technology Dr. Chad Patton. “Our hands-on learning approach is vital in training future HVAC technicians and we take great pride in that.”

HVAC Excellence was established in 1994 to improve the technical competency of the HVACR (heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration) through validation of the technical education process. According to HVAC Excellence, by setting program standards and verifying that they have been met, the challenges facing the HVAC industry can be met by continuous improvement in the way that technicians are prepared.

While third-party accreditation of programs has always been important, aligning programs to national standards is more important today than at any time in recent history. When COVID-19 was declared a pandemic, most people, including HVACR educators, were told to stay at home to flatten the curve.

While most HVACR programs are once again offering face-to-face training, they have often transitioned to a hybrid or blended format, modifying their delivery methods, how students are being evaluated, how student progress is being tracked and how hands-on skills are practiced and verified.

To make certain that their HVACR programs were keeping aligned with these changes, and what the industry requires from successful field technicians, these schools voluntarily pursued accreditation of their programs. Now that they are accredited, the schools can reap the many benefits of accreditation and are listed in the official directory of HVAC Excellence Accredited Programs.

To view more information about SVCC’s HVAC program visit southside.edu/hvac.