US Ski and Snowboard Coach Certification
(NOTE: *NEW* in 2024-25 Season)
As the regional governing body for Eastern skiing, NENSA facilitates the US Ski and Snowboard (USSS) coach certification process. We oversee the clinics and assessments that are part of the USSS curriculum. USSS is responsible for administering the coach certification process. Questions about membership status? Please contact USSS member services.
Certification Pathway
USSS L100 Coach Certification
L100 is designed to familiarize coaches from the junior, middle school, high school, college, and senior levels with a baseline national curriculum covering athlete development, technique and performance in nordic skiing. L100 requires a current USSS membership, completion of a SEA online course, and an in-person assessment with a NENSA/USSS assessor. All coaches must be “in progress” for L100 certification in 2024-25, and be “active” certified in 2025-26 for course access at USSS-sanctioned races.
USSS L200 Coach Certification
L200 is designed to further engage experienced coaches from the junior through senior levels of skiing with contemporary approaches to coaching, training, and performance in nordic skiing. The L200 curriculum is currently being re-designed, and will be offered again ahead of the 2025-26 season.
How Does NENSA use Coach Cert.?
USSS L100 Coach Certification
NENSA strongly considers L100 certification as a baseline for our Junior Nationals coaching staff team, as well as REG and RDG camp offerings in the summer, and will require L100 at these programs in line with the USSS timeline in 2025-26.
USSS L200 Coach Certification
NENSA strongly considers L200 certification in assigning leadership roles on the Junior Nationals coaching team, as well as at REG and RDG camp offerings in the summer. USSS strongly considers L200 as a baseline for staffing international trips such as World U23/Juniors, U18 Nordic Nations, and National Elite Group (NEG) camps. A complete list of these trips can be found here.
How To Become USSS Certified
Certified!
= 3 Current Memberships
+ Complete Course Online
+ On-ski Assessment w/NENSA
1. Obtain 3 Current Memberships – USSS, Sport Education Academy (SEA), NENSA
To obtain USSS certification, coaches must enroll in 3 separate pathways: USSS Membership, the Sport Education Academy, and NENSA Membership.
USSS Membership
USSS Membership: Coach, Volunteer and Athlete memberships provide access to a national set of standards which cover different roles within skiing. USSS membership is renewed annually on a July 1-June 30th basis.
Which membership is right for me? – See info from USSS here.
USSS Sport Education Academy
The Sport Education Academy (SEA) is a subscription-based library of curricula and resources provided by US Ski and Snowboard. A SEA subscription is purchased separately from a USSS membership, and is required for coach certification.
- SEA Membership: Library of resources purchased separately from USSS membership.
- Bronze Tier: Non-certification tier which gives access to a library of resources.
- Silver Tier: Certification “in progress” tier that gives access to a library of resources, and gives access to the USSS coach certification online curriculum.
- Gold tier: Active certification tier that gives access to a library of resources, USSS coach certification assessment, and continuing education offerings required to maintain active certification.
- SEA membership is renewed annually on a July 1-June 30th basis, but can be upgraded during the year.
To obtain and maintain any current USSS certification level, a SEA gold tier membership is required.
NENSA Membership
NENSA Membership: As the governing body facilitating coaches education in the Eastern region, NENSA requires a current NENSA coaches membership to participate in the in-person portion of the Coaches Cert. process. NENSA is committed to making coaches ed. accessible, and a coaches membership helps ensure we can support high-quality, low-cost coaches ed. programs across the region.
2. Complete SEA Course for L100 or L200 Online.
Curriculum Overview
USSS L100 Coach Certification
L100 is designed to familiarize coaches from the junior, middle school, high school, college, and senior levels with a baseline national curriculum covering athlete development, technique and performance in nordic skiing. The L100 curriculum was updated ahead of the 2024-25 season.
USSS L200 Coach Certification
The L200 curriculum is currently being re-designed, and will be offered again ahead of the 2025-26 season.
Q: What SEA Subscription Level do I need to access the L100/L200 Curriculum?
USSS has provided this flow chart to explain the current SEA subscription tiers:
3. Complete an on-ski assessment with NENSA/USSS Coach Assessor
Curriculum Overview
USSS L100 Coach Certification
The L100 assessment process is a ~3 hour progression from on-foot to on-ski movements led by a USSS/NENSA Coach Assessor.
USSS L200 Coach Certification
The L200 curriculum is currently being re-designed, and will be offered again ahead of the 2025-26 season.
Q: When does NENSA offer USSS L100/L200 Assessments?
NENSA is currently evaluating our community’s needs for frequency of certification assessment offerings in accordance with the new USSS curriculum. The earliest opportunity to complete the L100 assessment at this year’s Fall Symposium, Saturday October 5th at the Dublin School.
Q: Who facilitates USSS L100/L200 Assessments?
At present, USSS is working with a small, trained national faculty. The 2 Eastern members are:
- Ben Theyerl – NENSA Competitive Program Director.
- Justin Fereshetian – Colby College.
Interested in an assessment? Reach out to Ben Theyerl at [email protected]. NENSA is also working to assess our community needs for Coach Education across the region, and is looking to add assessors in the near future.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q: Do I need to be USSS L100 certified this season 2024-25?
USSS will start requiring L100 coach certification for all coaches in 2025-26. This season, 2024-25, USSS is requiring all coaches be at least “in progress” towards L100 certification.
The new coach certification requirements will be monitored similar to the current system for SafeSport verification. Coaches must be “in progress” to receive their USSS coaches bib and have course access at USSS-sanctioned races. In the East, these include Eastern Cups, SuperTours, and any USSS Championship events (Nationals, Junior Nationals, Spring Nationals etc…
What does “in progress” mean?
“In progress” = Current USSS membership + Current NENSA membership + SEA Silver Tier enrollment in L100 course.
“Active” = Current USSS membership + current NENSA membership + SEA Gold Tier enrollment in continuing education + passed USSS online L100 course + passed USSS/NENSA assessment.
Q: When will L100 Assessments be offered by NENSA?
The earliest offering will be at the NENSA Fall Symposium, Saturday October 5th, 2024 at the Dublin School in New Hampshire.
For the latest opportunities, visit NENSA’s calendar, and stay tuned to our KickZone newsletter.
NENSA will at least offer 2 annual assessment opportunities, one at our Fall Symposium. We are currently developing a program to offer more frequent opportunities for assessment ahead of the 2025-26 L100 requirements and the demand for certification across our community. If you are in need of an assessment, please contact Ben Theyerl, [email protected].
Q: I was certified before 2024-25 under the old L100/L200 curriculum. Do I need to complete coach certification again?
No. Any L100 or L200 certifications achieved under the previous USSS model are unaffected by the change in curriculum. In other words, you are “grandfathered” in.
Current L100 and L200 coaches must still complete 10 continuing education credits every other year to stay current, and these will be administered through the Sport Education Academy. A “Gold” tier membership is required to access these Continuing Ed. opportunities.
Q: Can I attend an assessment/clinic without being enrolled for L100 certification?
Yes. NENSA and USSS are encouraging coaches to “audit”/attend the new L100 clinical assessments as they were developed around the latest methodologies in nordic skiing technique and performance.
We believe that the content will be valuable to anyone engaged in coaching, and are committed to making these clinics open source and accessible to NENSA’s membership.
Q: Are there Coach Development Opportunities offered outside of USSS certification?
Yes. With the new USSS model, NENSA is currently developing programming to support Coach Development across our community outside of the certification process offered by USSS. For the latest, please visit our Coach Development page.
NENSA also encourages coaches interested in developing their skills to “audit” and attend our USSS clinics/assessments.
