Hi all,

My name is Francis Neric and I'm the new National Director of Certification for the American College of Sports Medicine(ACSM). It is an absolute honor to be able to lead the development and administration of certifications for such a prestigious organization. I think it would an appropriate time to provide some background information and my vision for certification at ACSM.

I was conferred a BS in Exercise Science from California State University, Long Beach in 2002 and MS in Exercise Physiology from California State University, Fullerton in 2005. My thesis titled,"Comparison of Swim Recovery and Muscle Stimulation on Lactate Removal After Sprint Swimming" was published in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning and Research (December 2009). Most recently, I was conferred my MBA with a concentration in management from University of Colorado at Colorado Springs in 2016.

Professionally, I coached age-group through master's level swimmers for over 10 years. I recently worked for the National Strength and Conditioning Association from 2008 to 2016 in roles and projects that spanned continuing education, exam development, and project management. On a personal level, my wife and I have two beautiful children, Emily (8) and Lila(4). We enjoy exploring and investing in life experiences. My family is the prism through which I view my personal and professional worlds. My girls offer me an invaluable perspective into the importance of patience, empathy, sincerity, prioritization, and balance.

ACSM has long been heralded as the "gold standard" for the exercise profession through its unwavering commitment to cutting-edge research and rigorous certification standards. My goal at the College is to carry forward the legacy and provide: (1) greater transparency in the exam development; (2) a more efficient online registration and recertification processes; (3) increased professional development opportunities; and, (4) top-quality customer service that folks have come to expect of the College. We plan on achieving this by providing greater insights to policy changes through regular updates on the certification blog and social media channels. We will review the current exam registration and recertification processes, and investigate innovative solutions for user experience. Lastly, we will work closely with our exam candidates and certified professionals in discovering in how we can better serve you.

The future for ACSM indeed looks bright and I look forward to serving this esteemed organization.

In health,

Francis Neric, MS, MBA

Connect with me:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fneric/ 

Twitter: @FNeric