Building the Curriculum

Of course, the meat of the program is the curriculum itself. “The good news is the content was already available,” says Sasson. “The training team — which is now under the direction of Chris Sgroe — has been working with the various schools to educate their instructors and get them certified to teach the course.”

And, as with many other educational programs in the post-pandemic world, the training leans on a hybrid learning model. “Most of the course work is available online, and it’s self-paced,” explains Sasson. “Some of the courses are instructor-led online courses, and some are hands-on, in-person courses.”

According to Sasson, there are other ways that Crestron supports this outreach: “We’ve donated classroom systems to Lincoln Technical Institute Union Campus and the Sheffield Institute of Audio Research. We provide hands-on training courses to Warren High School. We’re working closely with Pace University — they’ve launched a minor in AV and are hoping to have a major available in a few years.”

And when Sasson’s asked about his goals for the future, his plans are aspirational — but definitely achievable. “We want to educate and excite the next generation of integration professionals.

“Our goal is to develop an educational community that includes middle and high schools, trade schools, colleges and universities, and to reach out to military veterans and professionals looking to change careers,” he says.

“This goes well beyond educating the current generation of professionals.”