In 2011, the Eppley Institute launched five online certificate programs aimed at parks and public lands professionals. The programs focus on a wide range of topics that affect parks and public lands agencies: facility management, park planning, capital improvement, instructor training, and aquatics management.

Each program is comprised of a series of e-courses. Facility Management, Park Planning, Capital Improvement, and Aquatics Management Certificate Programs feature five e-courses each while Instructor Training Certificate Program features eight individual e-courses.

By finishing these programs, learners gain valuable knowledge that can be applied to their jobs. Additionally, learners earn a certificate of completion from the Eppley Institute, an Indiana University research institute.

Since Eppley released these programs in 2011, 45 registrations have been processed for these certificate programs. To complete each program, learners must explore each e-course, successfully complete an assessment for each e-course, and submit an assignment for each e-course. The assignments are reviewed by the Eppley Institute. Eppley offers comments on the work and grades the content for accuracy. The strength of these assignments is that learners can incorporate information from their jobs in parks and public lands agencies into their answers. For example, in the Facility Management Certificate Program, participants can analyze their own park and conduct practice condition assessments on their own buildings. As a result, the assignments prove to benefit each learner with specific information that can be used at their park agency.

Students have found the courses to be useful. Dan Dilworth, a Northeast Region Program Manager in the National Park Service has taken two certificate programs, Instructor Training and Capital Improvement. He found that courses to be helpful to his career and has "highly recommended it [certificate programs] to coworkers and other instructors." Mr. Dilworth found the feedback from Eppley Institute staff to be helpful in completing the programs.

The certificate programs are versatile and can be molded to fit specific agency training needs. For example, Eppley has modified the Instructor Training Certificate Program to meet the needs of the National Trainer Development Program of the National Park Service.

Given the early success of these first certificate programs, the Eppley Institute is developing other programs to address key topics in the parks and public lands profession.