ICF Level 1 Accredited Coach Certification | Resiliency Leadership® Coaching for High-Stress Environments
Certification Earned: First Responder Resiliency Leadership Coach Certification
Born on the Front Lines. Made for Leading Under Pressure.
A Leadership Coach Approach in High-Stress Environments
Everything Begins and Ends with LeadershipBuilding Human Capacity. One Leader at a Time.
International Coaching Federation (ICF) Level 1 Accredited Coach Certification
First Responder Resiliency Leadership® Coach Certification Program
A Leadership Coach Approach to Coaching in High-Stress Environments
The Professional Coach Certification is a 75-hour ICF Level 1 Accredited coach training program designed to prepare participants to serve as professional coaches and apply a leadership coach approach in organizations, private practice, and high-stress professional environments. The program serves mental health professionals adding coaching to their practice, consultants and independent coaches building or strengthening their coaching business, internal coaches serving within their own organizations, and seasoned professionals ready to bring a career’s worth of experience into their next chapter.
The program teaches the ICF Core Competencies and Code of Ethics while providing specialized training in Resiliency Leadership®, an original leadership protocol focused on strengthening individual and organizational resilience, developing coaching capacity within organizations, and supporting sustainable performance and well-being.
Participants develop foundational coaching knowledge, skills, and ethical practices while learning to apply a leadership coach approach to professional development, performance, resilience, well-being, and organizational culture, whether coaching within their own organizations or serving clients through their own practice.
Graduates complete comprehensive ICF Level 1 coach training and may pursue the Associate Certified Coach (ACC) credential upon meeting all applicable ICF credentialing requirements.
The Professional Coach Certification also provides the foundational course of study for participants who choose to continue into our ICF Level 2 Accredited Command and Resiliency Leadership Coach Certification, which prepares participants to pursue the ICF Professional Certified Coach (PCC) credential.
Nationwide First Responder Resiliency Leadership Initiative
Special Note: A Network of Support for First Responder Agencies
The 75-hour ICF Level 1 Accredited First Responder Resiliency Leadership Coach Certification includes a specialization in Resiliency Leadership®.
Participants who enroll during the timeline of the Nationwide First Responder Resiliency Leadership Initiative enjoy the benefit of receiving 85 total hours of training and dual specialization. Along with the 75-hour certification, they receive 10 additional hours of training and a second specialization in Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response®.
The additional 10 hours are drawn from our ICF Level 2 curriculum and may be applied toward the Professional Command & Resiliency Leadership Coach Certification for participants who choose to continue their coach education. These additional benefits are offered exclusively through the Nationwide Initiative.
The Initiative launches January 19, 2027. Founding Initiative tuition is $4,999 through January 31, 2028. Tuition increases to $5,999 beginning February 1, 2028, for the remainder of the Initiative. Standard tuition is $6,999 for the 75-hour Level 1 certification and does not include the second specialization in Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response® an additional 10 hours of advanced ICF Level 2 Accredited Command and Resiliency Leadership Coach Certification.
ORIGINAL FRAMEWORKS
Two Specializations. One Powerful Approach.
Professional coaching provides the foundation. Our specializations provide the structure to develop mastery and apply that training to the realities of public safety, where leadership, human performance, resilience, and Emotional Recovery intersect.
Developed by Dr. Janine Elias, Founder of the Elias Institute of Professional Coaching, Resiliency Leadership® and Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response® bring together professional coaching, leadership development, psychological hardiness, and trauma-informed principles.
***Standard enrollment in the ICF Level 1 Accredited First Responder Resiliency Leadership Coach Certification includes the Resiliency Leadership® specialization. Participants enrolled through the Nationwide First Responder Resiliency Leadership Initiative receive both Resiliency Leadership® and Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response®, including 10 additional hours of training that are part of our ICF Level 2 Accredited program.
Resiliency Leadership®
Resilience is often treated as an individual responsibility. Resiliency Leadership® goes further. It provides the knowledge and tools to strengthen personal resilience, coach others in developing habits that support resilience, and build internal structures that make resilience part of how agencies operate.
Resiliency Leadership® combines transformational leadership, psychological hardiness, and professional coaching to help leaders develop personnel, navigate difficult conversations, strengthen resilience, and shape an organizational culture where people can thrive.
Discover the theory, research, and practical applications behind the Resiliency Leadership® framework.
Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response®
The incident may be over. But for the person who experienced it, the impact doesn’t always end when the call is cleared.
Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response® is a nonclinical, trauma-informed coaching approach built around a powerful idea: what if the experiences that change us don’t have to define or defeat us?
It’s about helping people examine how they see the world, make sense of and attach meaning to what they’ve experienced, and find a way forward through adversity rather than around it. Recovery isn’t about returning to who you were before. It’s about discovering who you can become because of what you’ve lived through, carrying forward greater understanding, strength, determination, and wisdom.
Explore the principles and practical applications behind the Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response® framework.
Learn By Doing
This is not a sit-back-and-take-notes kind of program.
From the beginning, participants move between learning and doing, putting coaching skills and the leadership coach approach into practice through live peer-to-peer coaching sessions. You’ll experience coaching from both sides of the conversation, practice with real-world public safety scenarios, and receive direct feedback from certified instructors and fellow participants. With each round of practice, you build the confidence and skills to coach and to use a leadership coach approach when it matters most.
Beyond the Theory
This is a rigorous professional training program grounded in research, evidence-informed practice, and established theoretical frameworks for understanding how people learn, lead, adapt, recover, and grow.
Participants work across multiple disciplines, including coaching theory, Resiliency Leadership® theory, adult learning, psychological hardiness, trauma-informed principles, change theory, and time management, and learn how these concepts intersect within the realities of public safety.
From there, you’ll be challenged to translate what you learn into coaching conversations that develop personnel, address performance, navigate difficult conversations, strengthen resilience, support emotional recovery, build stronger groups, and influence the culture in which people work.
You won’t just learn the theory. You’ll be expected to demonstrate that you can use it.
Assessments & Coaching
Program Assessments
See Your Growth in Real Numbers
Our certification programs integrate evidence-informed coaching practices and validated assessments. At the start of the program, you’ll complete three assessments that offer insight into how you respond to pressure, how you’re experiencing stress, and how you lead. You’ll take them again at the close of the program, giving you an opportunity to see what has changed and where you may want to continue developing.
What the Assessments Do for You
Your results give you a starting point grounded in data, not guesswork. They inform the goals you set in your first one-on-one coaching session and give you an opportunity to reflect on your development at the close of the program. You’ll also experience assessments from the client’s side of the conversation before you use them with others.
How You’ll Use Them as a Coach
An assessment gives a coaching conversation a place to start. You’ll learn how to introduce each assessment, interpret the results, and debrief them in a way that leads to reflection and action.
In public safety, people are evaluated constantly. How an assessment is introduced matters. You’ll learn to present it as a tool for the person, not a judgment of them.
Your Results Are Yours. All assessment results are confidential and are not shared with your sponsor, supervisor or agency.
Mentor Coaching
Personal & Mentor Coaching
12.5 Hours of Coaching Embedded Within the Program
Most coach training programs teach you how to coach. This one also makes sure you experience high-quality coaching yourself. Every participant receives 12.5 hours of personal and mentor coaching built into the program.
Personal Coaching | 2.5 Hours
You’ll begin with a one-on-one session to set your individual goals and map out the professional development you want from the certification. Two 15-minute mid-program check-ins keep you on track, giving you time to review your progress and adjust your focus. You’ll finish with a one-on-one session to reflect on your development and plan your next steps.
Mentor Coaching | 10 Hours | Meets ICF Requirements
Alongside your personal coaching, you’ll receive 10 hours of mentor coaching from an ICF Mentor Coach, meeting ICF’s mentor coaching requirement for the ACC credential: 7 group sessions where you learn from the coaching experiences of your peers, and 3 individual sessions focused entirely on your coaching skills, with formal evaluation and direct feedback to help you sharpen your approach.
Along with your First Responder Resiliency Leadership Coach Certification® from the Elias Institute, you’ll leave with a deeper understanding of your strengths, a clear direction for continued growth, and something no textbook can teach—the firsthand experience of what powerful coaching can make possible.
Join Our Nationwide Resiliency Leadership Initiative
Program & Registration Details
- Nationwide Initiative Resiliency Leadership
- Our Unique Approach
- Coaching Specializations
- Program Details
- Tuition & Registration
This certification is the foundation of a historic, nationwide effort to advance how public safety develops and supports its people.
The Initiative launches January 19, 2027, and runs for 36 months. During that window, 350 first responders and the professionals who support them will each complete 85 hours of training in cohorts. Two hundred sworn officers—including chiefs, mid-level leaders, and peer support members—will earn their First Responder Resiliency Leadership Coach Certification through the Elias Institute, preparing them to bring professional coaching into their agencies across the country. Alongside them, 150 support professionals will extend that capacity beyond the internal chain of command: 50 retired officers, 50 mental health professionals, and 50 external coaches trained in the same leadership coach approach.
Every profession builds on its strengths as it grows. Public safety has always led with courage, commitment, and service. This Initiative adds professional coaching to that foundation by introducing a leadership coach approach to developing and supporting people across the profession. The leaders who take part will help shape and inform how first responders are developed, supported, and led for decades to come.
Be among the first. Participants who enroll early receive Founding Initiative tuition during the nationwide rollout, with limited enrollment in each cohort.
Our Unique Approach
Many coach training programs teach coaching in general terms and leave participants to figure out how to translate what they have learned into real-world application. We don’t.
Over the years, we have identified an essential component of developing skillful coaches: participants need a specific topic to coach around. They also need a clear framework that allows them to apply what they are learning, strengthen their coaching skills, and develop mastery over time.
Instead of learning coaching skills in isolation, our participants develop those skills while coaching around the real challenges, conversations, and decisions found in public safety.
That philosophy is built directly into the design of our program. Participants complete the foundational coach training required within an ICF Level 1 Accredited program while learning to apply those skills through original specializations developed by Dr. Janine Elias and the Elias Institute of Professional Coaching.
Resiliency Leadership® and Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response® provide distinct frameworks for applying professional coaching to the culture, challenges, and realities of public safety. All participants receive the Resiliency Leadership® specialization, and Nationwide Initiative participants also receive a second specialization in Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response®. Participants aren’t left to figure out how to apply what they have learned after the training ends. They learn to coach by coaching the very issues they are being trained to address.
Resiliency Leadership®
Resiliency Leadership® is an original leadership protocol that integrates three essential components: the four characteristics of transformational leadership; the psychology of hardiness and the 3 C’s—Challenge, Control, and Commitment; and formal professional coach training.
Leaders learn not only what builds resilience, but how to unpack the 3 C’s through both impromptu coaching conversations and formal coaching relationships. This gives them a practical way to help personnel examine challenges, recognize where they have control, reconnect with commitment, and develop the capacity to navigate adversity.
The goal is not simply to develop leaders who are resilient themselves. A Resiliency Leader develops resilience in others. They learn to recognize the organizational practices, structures, and systems that influence resilience and identify ways to build resilience into the day-to-day operations and culture of the department.
Resiliency Leadership® extends resilience beyond individual responsibility to a leadership capability and organizational practice.
Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response®
Included for Nationwide Initiative participants
Too often, first responders describe themselves as barely holding it together—doing everything they can simply to survive the job. Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response® asks a different question: What if recovery is possible?
Participants learn to use nonclinical trauma reduction tools to coach individuals in making sense of and attaching meaning to their experiences, moving through the challenges of loss and adversity, and developing the foundational habits that support resilience during times of immense upheaval.
Emotional recovery is not about trying to go back to who you were before. It is about moving through the experience and coming out the other side stronger, more resourceful, and with greater wisdom—equipped with tools to navigate what comes next and the capacity to thrive.
One Program, Two Settings
Graduates leave with a leadership coach approach they can use inside their agencies as leaders and outside the chain of command as culturally informed coaches, consultants, and support professionals.
Program Details
The First Responder Resiliency Leadership Coach Certification is a 75-hour ICF Level 1 Accredited coach training program built for the realities of public safety.
Participants enrolled through the Nationwide First Responder Resiliency Leadership Initiative receive 85 total hours of training: the 75-hour certification plus 10 additional hours of advanced specialization training.
The program prepares current and retired first responders, mental health professionals, and professional coaches and consultants to use a leadership coach approach to develop personnel, navigate difficult conversations, address performance, strengthen resilience, support emotional recovery, and influence organizational culture.
Professional coach training is combined with the original specialization in Resiliency Leadership®, and Nationwide Initiative participants also receive a second specialization in Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response®. Together they prepare participants to apply professional coaching competencies where leadership, human performance, resilience, and organizational culture intersect.
Upon Program Completion
Graduates receive the First Responder Resiliency Leadership Coach Certification from the Elias Institute of Professional Coaching, with a specialization in Resiliency Leadership®. Participants enrolled through the Nationwide Initiative also receive a second specialization in Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response®.
Completing this ICF Level 1 Accredited program fulfills the coach education requirement for the ICF Associate Certified Coach (ACC) credential. To earn the ACC, graduates must also meet ICF’s additional credentialing requirements, which include documented coaching experience and passing the ICF Credentialing Exam. ICF requirements are subject to change, so for complete and current details, visit the ICF Credentials page.
Tuition & Registration
Seats in each cohort are limited to 10–12 for virtual programs and no more than 26 for in-person events to ensure every participant receives the individual attention, observed coaching, feedback, and mentor coaching that professional coach training requires. Founding Initiative tuition is available for founding cohorts.
The Initiative launches January 19, 2027. Founding Initiative tuition is $4,999 through January 31, 2028.
Beginning February 1, 2028, Initiative tuition is $5,999 for the remainder of the Initiative.
Standard tuition for the 75-hour Level 1 certification is $6,999 and does not include the additional 10 hours of ICF Level 2 training or the second specialization in Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response®.
Additional tuition reductions are available for group registrations of 6 or more. See Agency & Group Enrollment below.
Step 1 — Learn More About the Program
Watch the Program Overview video or schedule a 30-minute briefing to learn more about the certification, training formats, upcoming cohorts, and the Nationwide First Responder Resiliency Leadership Initiative.
[ Watch the Program Overview ] [ Schedule a Briefing ]
Step 2 — Complete Your Application
Tell us about your professional background, current role, and what you hope to accomplish through the certification. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, and cohorts fill as applicants are accepted.
[ Apply Now ]
Step 3 — Register and Save Your Seat
Once accepted, complete your registration and enrollment agreement and submit the required deposit or tuition payment to confirm your place in the cohort.
Agency & Group Enrollment
When agencies train together, they develop a shared language for leadership, coaching, and resilience that can take root throughout the organization.
- Groups of 6 to 9: Register six participants and pay for only five.
- Groups of 10 or more: Contact us for agency rates and dedicated cohort options.
[ Contact Us About Group Rates ]
Participant Requirements
To participate in the program, you’ll need:
- Proficiency in written and spoken English
- A computer with a working camera and reliable internet access
- Access to Zoom for live virtual sessions
- A private, uninterrupted space for all live virtual sessions
- Your camera turned on during all live virtual sessions
- A commitment to completing weekly journal entries throughout the program
Smartphones can’t be used in place of a computer, because they limit participation in breakout coaching exercises.
Attendance
Full attendance is required to complete the certification. Any missed session must be made up before a certificate can be issued. Make-up sessions are arranged with the Elias Institute, and additional fees may apply for repeated missed sessions.
Complete tuition, payment, cancellation, refund, partial completion, and agency participant transfer policies are provided on the Registration Policy page.
Apply Now | Schedule a Briefing
Curriculum
Course Descriptions
The curriculum is organized into six areas of study that build coaching knowledge, develop practical skills, and provide opportunities to apply those skills through the program’s specialized coaching frameworks.
Resiliency Leadership® is included for all participants, while Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response® is included for Nationwide Initiative participants and those who continue into Level 2.
***Some course hours appear in more than one area of study for descriptive purposes. Total program hours are 85 for Nationwide Initiative participants and 75 for standard enrollment.
Coaching Foundations | 30 Hours | 5 Courses
Establishes the foundation for professional coaching practice through the ICF Core Competencies and Code of Ethics. Coursework explores the coaching relationship, coaching agreements, professional boundaries, communication skills, coaching methods and techniques, motivation, and the distinctions between coaching, consulting, mentoring, training, and therapy.
Participants begin applying these concepts through live coaching conversations and practice as both coach and coachee.
Coaching for Designing Actions | 30 Hours | 6 Courses
Moves coaching from conversation to meaningful action. Coursework examines how coaches support clients in developing awareness, identifying goals, exploring possibilities, making decisions, creating workable action plans, and establishing accountability.
Participants explore coaching approaches and assessment tools that support self-awareness, behavior change, leadership development, resilience, and sustained growth.
Coaching for Resiliency Leadership® | 10 Hours | 7 Courses
Integrates professional coaching with leadership development, psychological hardiness, resilience, and the realities of leading within public safety and other high-stress professional environments.
Coursework examines transformational leadership, the 3 C’s of Hardiness—Challenge, Control, and Commitment—organizational culture, internal coaching, transfer of training, and the cultural factors that influence coaching within public safety, including service identity, hierarchy, rank, shift work, and closed organizational systems.
Coaching for Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response® | 15 Hours | 6 Courses
Introduces the application of professional coaching to the human element of crisis response and emotional recovery.
Coursework explores nonclinical coaching approaches for helping individuals navigate adversity, prolonged stress, high-stress incidents, and professional challenges while supporting self-awareness, resilience, emotional recovery, and the identification of practical next steps.
Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response® is a nonclinical coaching approach and does not replace therapy, counseling, clinical treatment, agency peer support, or other mental health services.
Coaching to Build a Thriving Practice — Internal & External | 14 Hours | 2 Courses
Professional practice development is intentionally embedded throughout the curriculum rather than taught as a stand-alone module. Participants receive 14 hours of embedded content focused on building and sustaining a professional coaching practice, whether coaching internally within an organization or externally as an independent professional.
Coursework addresses the practical considerations of delivering professional coaching services, including establishing credibility as a coach, defining coaching services, developing internal coaching capacity, navigating organizational and sponsor relationships, and building a sustainable external coaching practice.
By integrating these concepts throughout the program, participants learn not only how to coach, but how to effectively apply professional coaching within the setting in which they intend to practice.
14 Hours of Embedded Professional Practice Development
Coaching Practicum | 7 Hours | Group Mentor Coaching
This is where knowledge becomes demonstrated coaching skill.
The 7-hour Coaching Practicum also serves as the group mentor coaching component of the program, giving participants structured opportunities to coach, observe coaching, receive feedback, and strengthen their application of the ICF Core Competencies.
Participants practice as both coach and coachee while learning from instructor feedback, peer observation, and the coaching experiences of others in the group. This allows participants to identify what is working, recognize opportunities for improvement, refine their coaching approach, and build greater confidence and consistency from one coaching conversation to the next.
The practicum also helps participants develop their ability to listen for what is happening beneath the surface of a conversation, ask more effective questions, remain present rather than rush to solve a problem, and recognize the difference between coaching and advising, consulting, mentoring, or directing.
Repeated practice and feedback allow participants to move beyond simply understanding the ICF Core Competencies to demonstrating them in actual coaching conversations.
Learn → Practice → Get Feedback → Examine → Adjust → Practice Again.
Student Learning Outcomes
Upon Completion of this Program:
Apply the ICF Core Competencies within a coaching session.
Demonstrate foundational coaching competencies through observed coaching practice.
Utilize practical coaching strategies to support individuals navigating adversity, stress, and professional challenges.
Apply coaching skills to support leadership development, employee wellness, organizational effectiveness, and internal coaching initiatives.
Implement ethical principles, professional boundaries, and confidentiality standards within internal and external coaching relationships.
Recognize and navigate cultural and organizational factors that influence coaching within public safety, including hierarchy, rank, service identity, shift work, and closed organizational systems.
Demonstrate a foundational understanding of Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response® as a nonclinical coaching approach for individuals navigating adversity, stress, and high-stress professional experiences.
Apply Resiliency Leadership® principles and professional coaching skills to support personnel development, well-being, organizational effectiveness, and internal coaching initiatives.
Establish and maintain coaching agreements that support client growth and accountability.
Explain the ethical responsibilities of professional and internal coaches.
Program Assessments
Our certification programs are evidence-based. Participants complete three validated assessments at the start and close of the program to measure growth:
Participants also learn to use these assessments in their own coaching relationships, including how to introduce them, interpret results, and debrief clients.
***Some assessments require separate purchase, licensing, or certification for use with your own clients. Details are covered in the program.
Hardiness Resilience Gauge (HRG)
TAB 1: Hardiness Resilience Gauge (HRG)
When the pressure is on, what keeps you steady?
The HRG measures the 3 C’s of hardiness: Challenge, Control, and Commitment. The 3 C’s are a core component of Resiliency Leadership®. When it comes to hardiness, more isn’t always better. The goal is a healthy balance across all three, and your results show where each one falls.
In coaching: The HRG gives resilience conversations a clear starting point and helps the people you coach work toward that balance. Repeated assessments can help them recognize changes in their psychological hardiness over time.
Want to use the HRG with your own clients? Our Hardiness Resilience Gauge Certification prepares you to administer and debrief it.
Perceived Stress Scale (PSS)
How much is the job really weighing on you?
The PSS is one of the most widely used stress measures in the world. Ten quick questions ask how you’ve perceived stress over the past month, and your score reflects how you’ve been experiencing stress during that time.
In coaching: The PSS works as a quick check-in. Use the results to open conversations with the people you coach about workload, recovery, and what is within their influence.
Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ)
How do you lead when it counts?
The MLQ is one of the most widely used leadership assessments in the world. It measures the full range of leadership behaviors: transformational, transactional, and laissez-faire. Your results show which behaviors you rely on most and how your leadership is balanced across the range.
In coaching: The MLQ gives leadership conversations a clear starting point. Coaches use the results to help leaders recognize their strengths, explore the balance between transformational and transactional leadership, and identify the behaviors they want to develop.
DELIVERY OPTIONS
Three Ways to Earn Your Certification
All three delivery options include the same curriculum: live instruction, OnDemand coursework, observed coaching practice, feedback, and mentor coaching. Each leads to the ICF Level 1 Accredited First Responder Resiliency Leadership Coach Certification.
Option 1
TRAIN FROM ANYWHERE
Fully Virtual
Weekly Live Sessions | Approximately 22 Weeks, Excluding Holidays
Complete your certification from anywhere, without travel or time away from your agency, practice, or family.
Schedule: One 2.5-hour live class per week on Zoom, with a one-week break built in
OnDemand Video: About 90 minutes before each class, watched at your own pace
Cohort Size: 10–12 participants
Coaching Included: 12.5 hours of personal and mentor coaching
[ See Full Details ]
Option 2
BEST OF BOTH WORLDS
Hybrid
5 Days In-Person + Weekly Virtual Sessions | Approximately 12 Weeks, Excluding Holidays
The connection of face-to-face training with the flexibility of live virtual sessions.
Schedule: 5 in-person days, 8 hours each day, followed by 10 weekly 2.5-hour live sessions on Zoom, scheduled around participants’ availability
OnDemand Video: 20 hours, divided between the in-person days and virtual sessions
Cohort Size: Up to 26 in person, divided into smaller groups for virtual sessions
Coaching Included: 12.5 hours of personal and mentor coaching
[ See Full Details ]
Access
OnDemand Video Library
Learn on your schedule, not around it.
Every course in the program includes an OnDemand video series presented by certified instructors. The content is academically rigorous, grounded in research and established theory, and built for practical application. Each video connects the concepts you’re learning to the real conversations, decisions, and challenges you face in your work.
Videos run from 5 to 60 minutes, so you can learn in short segments between shifts or settle in for a deeper session when time allows. You get instant access upon registration, so you can start learning before your first live session, and you’ll arrive ready to dive into hands-on coaching practice.
Your learning doesn’t end when the program does. Your OnDemand library stays available for 6 months after you complete the program, so you can refresh key concepts, revisit techniques as you begin coaching on your own, and keep building toward mastery.
Done-for-You Coaching Resources
You won’t leave with only knowledge and skills. You’ll leave with the tools to start coaching right away.
Every participant receives a complete set of professional resources designed to support you during the program and long after it ends:
- Student Manual: A comprehensive guide to the program content that you can return to throughout your coaching career.
- Powerful Questions: A ready-to-use collection of coaching questions to help you deepen conversations, expand awareness, and move clients toward meaningful action.
- Discovery Session Script: A structured guide for your first conversation with a potential coaching client, so you can explain what coaching is, establish trust, and set clear expectations from the start.
- Done-for-You 12-Week Coaching Protocol: A complete coaching program you can deliver to individuals or groups and adapt to your specialty, your clients, or your agency’s needs.
- Recommended Reading List: A curated collection of diverse resources in adult learning, habit formation, time management, psychological hardiness, leadership, critical conversations, and nonclinical trauma reduction to keep you learning long after the program ends.
Whether you’re coaching within your agency or building your own practice, these resources give you a proven structure to start coaching with confidence.
Everything Included In Your Certification Program
Professional Coach Training
- 75-hour ICF Level 1 Accredited coach training program
- Specialization in Resiliency Leadership®
- Nationwide Initiative participants: 85 total hours, including 10 additional hours of ICF Level 2 training and a second specialization in Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response®
12.5 Hours of Personal Coaching
- 10 hours of mentor coaching from an ICF Mentor Coach: 3 individual sessions with formal evaluation and 7 group sessions
- One-on-one coaching sessions at the start and close of the program
- Two 15 min. mid-program check-ins
OnDemand Video Library
- Academically rigorous video instruction built for practical application
- Instant access upon registration
- Continued access for 6 months after you complete the program
Evidence-Based Assessments
- Hardiness Resilience Gauge (HRG), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), and Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ), taken at the start and close of the program to measure your growth
- Training to use all three assessments with your own coaching clients
Done-for-You Coaching Resources
- Student Manual
- Powerful Questions
- Discovery Session Script
- Done-for-You 12-Week Coaching Protocol for individuals or groups
- Recommended Reading List
Small Cohorts, Real Attention
- Virtual cohorts of 10–12 participants and in-person cohorts of no more than 26
- Three training formats: Fully Virtual, Fully In-Person, or Hybrid
Upon Completion
- First Responder Resiliency Leadership Coach Certification from the Elias Institute of Professional Coaching
- Completion of the coach education requirement for the ICF Associate Certified Coach (ACC) credential
Ready to Get Started?
The first cohort begins January 19, 2027. Seats in each cohort are limited, and applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. See upcoming cohort dates in the calendar below.
Join a Monthly Live Conversation
Get your questions answered live on the first Thursday of every month, 8:00–9:00 a.m. Pacific. [Join the Live Event]
Tuition
Founding Initiative Tuition: $4,999
Available for enrollments through January 31, 2028.
Initiative Tuition: $5,999
Available for enrollments from February 1, 2028, through the close of the Initiative in January 2030.
Initiative participants receive 85 hours of training: the 75-hour ICF Level 1 Accredited First Responder Resiliency Leadership Coach Certification plus 10 additional hours of advanced coursework, with specializations in both Resiliency Leadership® and Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response®.
Standard Tuition: $6,999
Includes the 75-hour certification with a specialization in Resiliency Leadership®. Standard tuition applies after the Initiative closes.
Agency Group Tuition
Agencies enrolling six or more participants can enroll six participants for the price of five. For groups of 10 or more, call us about agency rates and dedicated cohort options.
Three Steps to Save Your Seat
1. Learn More: Join a monthly live conversation or schedule a 30-minute briefing to learn about the certification, training formats, and upcoming cohorts.
2. Apply: Complete your application and tell us about your professional background and what you hope to accomplish.
3. Register: Once accepted, complete your registration and enrollment agreement and submit your deposit or tuition payment to confirm your place.
Questions? Call (818) 888-0191, Monday–Friday, 8 a.m.–6 p.m. Pacific.
Getting Started
Tuition & Enrollment
Founding Initiative Tuition: $4,999
Available for enrollments through January 31, 2028.
Initiative Tuition: $5,999
Available for enrollments from February 1, 2028, through the close of the Initiative in January 2030.
Initiative participants receive 85 hours of training: the 75-hour ICF Level 1 Accredited First Responder Resiliency Leadership Coach Certification plus 10 additional hours of advanced coursework, with specializations in both Resiliency Leadership® and Emotional Recovery for Crisis Response®.
Standard Tuition: $6,999
Includes the 75-hour certification with a specialization in Resiliency Leadership®.
Agency Group Tuition
Agencies enrolling six or more participants can take advantage of our group tuition offer: enroll six participants for the price of five. For groups of 10 or more, call us about agency rates and dedicated cohort options.
Cohort sizes are limited to ensure participants receive individual attention, observed coaching practice, feedback, and mentor coaching throughout the program.
Ready to take the next step?
Complete your application or schedule a 30-minute program briefing to discuss the certification and find the right cohort for you.
Calendar
Upcoming Program Dates
19
January 2027
Start Date: January 19, 2027 | 22 Weeks
Fully Virtual Cohort | Open to All
The Nationwide First Responder Resiliency Leadership Initiative launches with our first Fully Virtual cohort, open to sworn officers at every level, retired officers, mental health professionals, and coaches who serve public safety. Live classes meet weekly on Zoom for 2.5 hours, Tuesday’s 8am-10:30am PST, over approximately 22 weeks, excluding holidays. Cohort size is limited to 10–12 participants.
Event Info
Coming Soon
19
April 2027
Start Date: April 19, 2027 | 12 Weeks
Hybrid Cohort | Chiefs
A cohort designed exclusively for chiefs.
This Hybrid cohort is open exclusively to chiefs, giving you the opportunity to train alongside peers who understand the demands of leading an agency. The program begins with 5 days of in-person training in Torrance Ca, followed by weekly 2.5-hour virtual sessions scheduled around participants’ availability. Approximately 12 weeks, excluding holidays.
Event Info
Coming Soon
14
May 2027
Start Date: May 14, 2027
In-Person Cohort | Sworn Mid-Level Leaders
Two immersive 5-day sessions, 4 weeks apart, for sworn officers in mid-level leadership roles.
This In-Person cohort is open exclusively to sworn officers in mid-level leadership roles, bringing together peers who lead at the same level and face similar challenges. Training takes place over two 5-day sessions, 8 hours each day, approximately 4 weeks apart, in Torrance Ca. Cohort size is limited to 26 participants.
Event Info
Coming Soon
08
March 2027
Start Date: March 8, 2027
Fully Virtual Cohort | Retired Officers & Consultants
For retired officers and consultants who support public safety from outside the agency.
This cohort brings together retired officers and consultants who want to bring professional coaching to public safety from outside the chain of command. Retired officers bring firsthand knowledge of the job and the credibility that comes with it. Consultants bring tried-and-true private sector insights to public safety. Training side by side, each group learns from the other, with the opportunity to build professional relationships that extend well beyond the program. Whether you plan to build your own coaching practice or partner with agencies as a culturally informed coach, you’ll be prepared to do both. Live classes meet weekly on Zoom for 2.5 hours, Monday’s 9-11:30am PST, over approximately 22 weeks, excluding holidays. Cohort size is limited to 10–12 participants.
Event Info
Coming Soon
04
May 2027
Start Date: May 4, 2027
Fully Virtual Cohort | Mental Health Professionals
For mental health professionals who serve first responders, including sworn officers who also work as mental health professionals.
This cohort is open exclusively to mental health professionals who serve first responders, including the many sworn officers who also work as mental health professionals. You bring clinical expertise and an understanding of what first responders carry, and for many of you, firsthand experience on the job. Coaching adds a nonclinical, forward-focused approach that meets first responders where many are most comfortable starting. You’ll learn how coaching differs from therapy, how to apply it within public safety culture, and how to support leaders and personnel in ways that complement clinical care. Training alongside peers who share your commitment to first responders, you’ll have the opportunity to build professional relationships that extend well beyond the program. Live classes meet weekly on Zoom for 2.5 hours, Tuesday’s, 2pm-4:30pm PST, over approximately 22 weeks, excluding holidays. Cohort size is limited to 10–12 participants.
Event Info
Coming Soon
05
April 2027
Start Date: April 5, 2027
Hybrid Cohort | Mental Health Professionals
For mental health professionals who serve first responders, including sworn officers who also work as mental health professionals.
This cohort is open exclusively to mental health professionals who serve first responders, including the many sworn officers who also work as mental health professionals. You bring clinical expertise and an understanding of what first responders carry, and for many of you, firsthand experience on the job. Coaching adds a nonclinical, forward-focused approach that meets first responders where many are most comfortable starting. You’ll learn how coaching differs from therapy, how to apply it within public safety culture, and how to support leaders and personnel in ways that complement clinical care. Training alongside peers who share your commitment to first responders, you’ll have the opportunity to build professional relationships that extend well beyond the program. The program begins with 5 days of in-person training in Torrance Ca, followed by weekly 2.5-hour virtual sessions scheduled around participants’ availability. Approximately 12 weeks, excluding holidays.
Event Info
Coming Soon
Scuttlebutt
What Folks Are Saying
“I thoroughly enjoyed Dr. Elias’ Leadership Group Coaching: Crisis Response and Transformational Leadership program. The small group interaction was beneficial as it allowed me to see that in general, the problems encountered in my agency are very similar, if not the same as in other agencies. Dr. Elias provides guidance into building better relationships with subordinates through a more nuanced coaching technique rather than a direct “you should do this” method.”
“Dr. Elias, thank you for the years of knowledge and experience you have poured into your Group Coaching Certification. An incredibly comprehensive program with high-quality content, meaningful activities, and relevant resources, so many tools to help me excel. I have elevated my skills far beyond what I had imagined. I highly recommend her programs to anyone wanting to grow their coaching and program development skills!“
“Dr. Janine Elias brings a much-needed new perspective to leadership, organizational and personal productivity, and accountability. She is a responsive, caring instructor and accomplished executive and leadership coach who generously shares her years of broad industry knowledge and research. Dr. Janine Elias is relentlessly positive, collaborative, caring, and an expert in the structure of change, motivation, and resiliency leadership.”