The National Swimming Pool Foundation (NSPF) was a

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of 50 ...

non-profit organization, most known for selling the Certified Pool Operator certification, amongst many other less known products. The Certified Pool Operator certification is a credential that could be considered a quasi license to professionally care for and maintain

swimming pool A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, paddling pool, or simply pool, is a structure designed to hold water to enable Human swimming, swimming or other leisure activities. Pools can be built into the ground (in-ground pools) or built ...

s in recreational water environments. In 2019, the NSPF completed a merger with the Association of Pool & Spa Professionals (APSP), founding the Pool & Hot Tub Alliance (PHTA). NSPF itself was primarily a publishing company; they sell books and online courses through over 1,000 instructors authorized to teach their courses worldwide. In 2003 Tom Lachocki was named APSP CEO. Lachocki was formerly a Biolab/

Chemtura Chemtura Corporation was a global corporation headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with its other principal executive office in Middlebury, Connecticut. Merged into Lanxess in 2017, the company focused on specialty chemicals for various i ...

chemist who holds eight US patents on chemical processes many of which have a direct or indirect application to swimming pools or "recirculating bodies of water". Lachocki took the Certified Pool Operator handbook from a black-and-white hand-sketched manual to a full-color matter-of-fact textbook. Though for many years the Certified Pool Operator certification was the only certification for someone wishing to work in the pool industry, the

CDC The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the National public health institutes, national public health agency of the United States. It is a Federal agencies of the United States, United States federal agency, under the United S ...

now recognizes at least seven similar pool operations courses.

References

Swimming organizations Organizations established in 1963 1963 establishments in the United States Swimming pools {{Swimming-stub