Among NRA’s many contributions to our nation, few are more appreciated than marksmanship training and firearms safety instruction. For students from Alaska to Puerto Rico, the instructor in the classroom and on the range is the face of the NRA. These men and women who make the investment in time and resources to become NRA-certified instructors not only carry on our finest traditions, they maintain the world’s highest standards in firearms safety.
Through program changes, technical evolution in the classroom and the ongoing pandemic with its transformational impact on education, our instructors have continued to persevere. The current global pandemic has awakened awareness across the country that the individual is ultimately responsible for his or her own personal safety. Self-defense is key to preserving hearth and home. As such, record numbers of first-time firearms owners have come flocking to the NRA to seek out the best in current safety instruction. Not since World War II has the demand for our instructors been as great nor as needed as now.
The current demand for training materials has skyrocketed and our Certified Instructors are seeing class sign-ups reaching peaks that were previously unthinkable. NRA’s 116,000 instructors are ready, willing and able to handle the surge as we welcome friends and neighbors into the ranks of those who have benefited from the wisdom of over a century and a half of firearms safety training.
My good friend, Mitch O’Neal, a serving member of NRA’s Education & Training Committee and an NRA Certified Instructor in the Atlanta, Ga. area, recently told me that he has seen an exponential increase in requests for Basic Pistol training as well as Personal Protection in the Home instruction. Mitch said, “As we see numbers continue to trend higher as members desire to protect themselves, their neighbors and home. I am proud the NRA offers training for those who desire to carry confidently and in a safe & legal manner.”
Whether you are interested in becoming an NRA instructor, or need initial training or perhaps a refresher course, you can visit nrainstructors.org. As you know, the NRA offers many courses that may allow you to meet the requirements to obtain a concealed carry permit. Be sure to check out additional resources for women at NRAWomen.com.
We salute our NRA instructors who make these resources available to friends, neighbors and their fellow citizens in search of safe gun ownership, the preservation of their Second Amendment rights, personal protection or just their passion for the shooting sports.
With my sincerest appreciation to those of you in the trenches and on the front lines of our Certified Instructors Programs, thank you for all you do. Keep up the great work and make sure you, your family and friends vote this November. And when you do so, make sure you Vote Freedom First!
