Introducing Christine Riggen, CFP Board's Registered Program Manager

Christine Riggen joins CFP Board as its Registered Program Manager, bringing with her diverse experience dedicated to training and growing as an innovative and effective educator. Christine will oversee the review process for initial and subsequent renewals of registered programs with CFP Board, as well as facilitate the processing of electronic graduate lists. Her focus will be on ensuring the delivery of quality education for financial planning students, with the goal of providing excellent service in support of registered programs.

Originally from the Chicago area, Christine comes to CFP Board from Fairfax County Public Schools in Virginia. Her extensive background in classroom education and curriculum development was first launched through her role as a Peace Corps TOEFL teacher in China and continued as a seventh and eighth grade English teacher. In addition to her Virginia Postgraduate Professional Licensure as an educator, Christine also holds a Masters of Education in Curriculum and Instruction and a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She has developed multiple innovative broad-based performance initiatives to encourage and measure the effectiveness of training material, as well as created comprehensive grade level curriculum as a charter member of a new school. Christine looks forward to merging her expertise in curriculum and instruction with the mission of CFP Board.

CFP Board Contact Information

CFP Board Welcomes Programs Registered in 2007

2007 saw the addition of 15 new financial planning education programs to the roster of CFP Board-Registered Programs. The addition of the programs listed below brought us to a total of 331 registered programs at 200 different institutions at the end of December 2007.

Graduate Programs:
 
University of Georgia
MS Housing and Consumer Economics Emphasis Family Financial Planning

 
Undergraduate Programs:
 
University of Georgia
BSFCS Consumer Economics Emphasis Family Financial Management
 
Virginia Tech (Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University)
B.S. Finance CFP® Certification Education track
 
Virginia Tech (Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University)
B.S. Agricultural & Applied Economics, Financial Planning Option
 
Certificate Programs:
 
Boston University
Boston University's Accelerated Certificate in Financial Planning
 
Bryant University
Accelerated Financial Planning Certificate Program
 
California State University – Los Angeles
CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Certification Education Program
 
Dowling College
Certificate in Financial Planning
 
Taylor University – Fort Wayne
CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Certification Education Program
 
University of Central Florida
CFP® Certification Professional Education Program
 
University of Georgia
Family Financial Planning Professional Certificate Program
 
University of Oklahoma
e-Financial Planning Certificate Program
 
University of Tennessee – Chattanooga
Executive Certificate in Financial Planning
 
University of Texas - Arlington
CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Certification Education Program
 
University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh
Financial Planning Certificate
 
Summary of CFP Board-Registered Programs:
 
Ph.D. programs: 3
 
Graduate programs: 48
 
Undergraduate programs: 92
 
Certificate programs: 188

Change to Registered Program Registration Periods

Effective January 2, 2008, the first registration period for a new CFP Board-Registered Program will be valid for a period of one year, and subsequent registration periods granted to renewing CFP Board-Registered Programs will be valid for 18 months. The abbreviated timeframe will take effect upon each program’s next renewal.

CFP Board’s policies for registered programs require periodic review and registration renewal. In the past, program registration periods ranged from three to five years. The new, abbreviated registration periods will allow CFP Board to implement a complete review process, implement practices recommended by CFP Board’s Education Task Force, and assure a uniform process is in place for all registered programs.

When submitting renewal applications, electronic copies of marketing materials and Web site information should be submitted directly to our Trademark Department at compliance@CFPBoard.org. If the only changes to your marketing materials and/or Web site are to dates, please make note of that information in the e-mail correspondence.

If you have questions about the change or the procedures for requesting registration renewal, please contact Christine Riggen at criggen@CFPBoard.org.

Updated Standards of Professional Conduct Booklets

A copy of CFP Board’s updated Standards of Professional Conduct booklet was mailed to all Program Directors in December 2007. The booklet contains the new ethical standards for CFP® professionals that take effect July 1, 2008. The new standards will be tested beginning with the July 18-19, 2008 CFP® Certification Examination.

The updated Standards booklet includes the Candidate Fitness Standards that took effect January 1, 2007. These standards were developed to help individuals determine if their past conduct might prohibit them from attaining CFP® certification. CFP Board encourages candidates to review the Candidate Fitness Standards prior to committing themselves to taking the CFP® Certification Examination so they can determine whether their background might prohibit or delay them from attaining CFP® certification.

If you have not received a copy of the updated Standards booklet and wish to have one mailed to you, please contact us at mail@CFPBoard.org or 800-487-1497 to verify your preferred mailing address and request a copy of the booklet. Additional copies can be ordered for $5.00 each by calling 800-487-1497, and an electronic version of the booklet is available free of charge from our Web site at: www.CFP.net/aboutus/Standards.asp.

Electronic Graduate Lists

CFP Board-Registered Programs are strongly encouraged to provide electronic lists of their financial planning program graduates to CFP Board. The lists certify that the named students have earned the degree or certification provided by the program, serve as verification that they have met the education required to sit for the CFP® Certification Examination and enable graduates to apply for the CFP® Certification Examination online without having to provide hardcopy documentation of their education.

We appreciate the efforts of the many registered programs that currently submit electronic graduate lists, and we will continue to facilitate this process to provide an exceptional level of service for individuals who seek CFP® certification. To request a copy of the template for electronic graduate lists, please contact Christine Riggen at criggen@CFPBoard.org.

November 2007 Exam Results

Score results for the November 2007 CFP® Certification Examination were recently released to exam takers. The 10-hour, two-day exam was conducted at 50 sites nationwide. Of the 2,764 individuals who sat for the November 2006 exam, 1,670 passed, representing a pass rate of 60%.

Upcoming Exam Dates

Prior Tax Year Law to Be Tested on March Exams

Beginning with the March 2008 CFP® Certification Exam, all exams administered in March will test over prior year tax law. The March exam administrations will provide the prior year tax tables and candidates will be expected to use prior year rates and limits with respect to retirement contributions, phaseouts, estate tax and annual exclusion. Examples of the tables provided to exam takers can be found at: www.CFP.net/become/taxtables.asp

While preparations for the 2008 Program Directors Conference are still in the early stages, we hope you’ll save the date and plan to join us at the historic Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC from August 7-9, 2008.

The Renaissance Mayflower Hotel
1127 Connecticut Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20036
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/wassh-renaissance-mayflower-hotel/

Registration information, accommodation information and additional details about the 2008 Program Directors Conference – including the announcement of a nationally-recognized keynote speaker – will be available during the next few months.

We invite anyone who wishes to participate on the planning committee for the Conference, or who has suggestions for topics or offers for presentations, to contact Carol Lee Roberts, CFP® at croberts@CFPBoard.org.