Transit Industry Leaders:

I hope you are well. I thank you for your heroic efforts serving communities across the country during these challenging times. You are truly appreciated. Second, I thank you for your continued support of the National Transit Institute (NTI) as we undergo the most radical operational shift of our 29-year history – pivoting from on-site course delivery to virtual course instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic.

NTI recently developed a “National Transit Institute – Virtual Course Registrant and Participant Code of Conduct” to offer a set of rules, guidelines, and expectations for registering and participating in virtual NTI courses. I hope you find the document clear and reasonable.

As NTI continues evolve our virtual course portfolio and enhance our operational and administrative procedures to deliver high-quality virtual training, I want to highlight the following:

  • Participation in virtual training on a mobile or other handheld device severely limits the ability of a participant to engage in critical interactive elements of virtual training. We strongly encourage participation on PC or laptop;
  • Investing in high-speed internet service (if available), webcams, and headsets (or computer microphones/speakers) significantly enhances the quality of participation in virtual training. We strongly encourage the use of these services and equipment;
  • For many, the shift to at-home tele-working often lends itself to abrupt schedule changes and personal or work-related issues that demand immediate attention. This is a reality, however, participation in the entire duration of NTI virtual courses is required to receive a certificate of completion;
  • The demand for virtual training has been great. Many courses fill up quickly, then generate sizable waiting lists. Again, we understand unforeseen personal and work-related issues arise, however, failure to show up or dropping a course shortly before it begins results in unfilled (virtual) seats in courses that could have been filled with those on the waiting lists; and
  • Please read the automatically-generated email you receive after registering for a course. This message will confirm your enrollment in the course OR confirm that you have been placed on the course waitlist.

Again, we thank you for your support as we work to refine our ability to manage and deliver virtual training. Please forward any feedback and suggestions to nti_info@nti.rutgers.edu. Stay safe!

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