Arkansas Community Health Worker Association (ARCHWA)
Credentialing Council
Credentialing Council Type
Start of Certification
Total CHWs Certified
Average Certifications per Year
Legislation Supporting Certification
CHW Association
May 2021
29
30
No
An attempt was made to secure supporting legislation pre-pandemic without success. With increasing momentum towards certification, there is interest to retry legislative efforts.
Training
Guiding Competencies
The Core Competencies are based on the Core Competency Consensus (C3) Project.
Requirements
Facilitated Hours
Facilitated Format
Practicum Hours
Practicum Format
Costs/Tuition
Mandatory
80
Synchronous and/or asynchronous
40
Supervised/guided fieldwork
$50 application fee*
No
*At UAMS Community Health and Research, CHWs may be paid half of their CHW salary up to $20,000. At Tri County Health, training Is associated with an unspecified cost.
Eligibility
Age
Residency Status
Minimum Education
Experience
Background Check
18
Must be working in Arkansas or intend to work in Arkansas*
Must be literate in native language
See “Tracks”
No requirements**
*To evidence current work or intentions to work in Arkansas, applicant is asked to provide state-issued identification and additional evidence to the application.
**The ARCHWA Certification does not require a background check for applicants. However, applicant should be aware that a background check may be required by future employers at their discretion. Included in an employer’s discretion is the type of background screening conducted, subject to the U.S. Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). For example, a background check might include verifications for education/licenses, criminal records, identity, motor vehicle records, and drug testing. A background check typically does not include a search for medical or genetic information.
Screen for Fit
None
Training Sites
UAMS Community Health & Research
Tracks
Traditional track
Experiential track
Compensated or unpaid volunteer
Compensated or unpaid volunteer
4160 hours equivalent to 2 years full time
8320 hours equivalent to 4 years full time in the last 10 years with half of this experience in the last 5 years
Specialization
In development at UAMS Community Health and Research at Mercy Hospital.
Instructor Credentials
Director and/or trainers must have previous experience running CHW programs and/or serving as a CHW.
Legacy
Previous work experience is considered for certification through the Experiential track.
Examination
No standardized exam
Cost
N/A
Recertification
Number of CEUs
Frequency
Cost
20
Every 2 years
$50
CEUs in Arkansas are called Professional Development Credits or “PDCs”. PDCs can be either content-focused or profession-focused. Profession-focused can only account for up to 50% of total PDCs. Content-focused trainings are offered by ARCHWA.
Reciprocity Policy
Applicant’s evidence of training or certification from another state may be submitted to fulfill the experience requirement, if and only if such experience is relevant to Arkansas-based communities. Acceptance of such experience for certification purposes is subject to review and approval by ARCHWA Certification Commission.
Applicants to the Traditional track may have 1 year of out of state experience and 1 year of Arkansas experience in addition to taking the Arkansas Core Competency course.
Applicants to the Experiential track may have 2 years of out of state experience and 2 years of Arkansas experience.
Special thanks for contributions from Judy Pile, Sandra Lee, Sarah Moore, Jenny Hubert, and Rebecca Sheehan. See the bottom of the webpage for a full reference list. Last updated November 2023.