Third USM Employee Receives APPA’s Certified Educational Facilities Professional Credential

Wed, 10/04/2023 - 07:54am | By: Gabriela Shinskie

Tina Bishop, business coordinator at The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) Gulf Coast Research Laboratory (GCRL) Physical Plant, has earned APPA’s Certified Educational Facilities Professional Credential (CEFP), the third for the university.

The APPA credential is tailored for professionals focused on achieving goals related to higher professional expertise and superior understanding of the core competencies for education facilities professional.

Bishop said she’s honored to hold the credential and excited to highlight the work done at the GCRL Physical Plant.

“This certification gets you involved in every aspect of the physical plant, such as operations, designing and planning,” said Bishop.

Bishop has been at USM for more than four years. She said GCRL focuses on every aspect of research and she’s proud to be a part of it. Lucas Applewhite, director of facilities planning and management of Coastal Operations, introduced Bishop to the opportunity to earn the certification.

“Coastal Operations now has their third Certified Educational Facilities Professional,” said Applewhite. “Tina Bishop has taken on this challenge and blown it out of the water.”

Bishop obtains her credential following Kelly Johnson, business coordinator at USM’s Gulf Park Campus. Johnson received her credential in August.

The mission and vision of the GCRL Physical Plant is to maintain and provide buildings on campus a safe and enriching environment.

Learn more about the APPA CEFP Certification and the GCRL Physical Plant.