The National Tile Contractors Association (NTCA) says it has renewed and expanded its sponsorship program with Daltile for 2010, which includes a series of training and educational seminars designed to benefit professional tile contractors, architects and designers. Daltile will sponsor up to 70 NTCA workshops across the United States, with additional stops in Canada scheduled for Vancouver and Toronto.

The 2010 NTCA training and education program includes seven architectural workshops at Daltile Gallery Selection Centers in Atlanta, Anaheim, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Manhattan and San Diego. The NTCA “Tile & Stone Gallery” workshops hosted at Daltile locations are geared to present architects and designers with important tile and stone industry information, specification details, new materials and methods, while providing the opportunity to earn CEU credits.

In addition, Michael Whistler, the new West Coast regional director for the NTCA, will host a special training presentation in Spanish on August 11, in Escondido, CA. Whistler, the latest addition to the NTCA team, will present 30 workshops in the Western states, as well as the Vancouver session. Gerald Sloan, NTCA training director, will present an additional 39 workshops in the Eastern United States and Toronto. “Daltile is pleased to take our long standing support of the NTCA to a new level as evidenced by our expanded 2010 program,” said John Turner, Sr., general manager of DalTile Corporation commercial sales and national accounts.

Bart Bettiga, NTCA executive director said, “As long as the NTCA has been performing workshops, Daltile has been a consistent supporter of the program. In these challenging economic times, both the NTCA and Daltile are committed to being leaders in promoting the successful installation of tile, stone and allied surfaces, through training and education.”

Workshops generally follow a four-hour format with refreshments and snacks provided at each host location. Each workshop will allow hosts to customize topics to best meet the needs of their target audience.

For more information on workshop scheduling or hosting, please contact NTCA assistant executive director Jim Olson at jim@tile-assn.com, via telephone at (601) 939-2071, or visit www.tile-assn.com.