The Commission on Secondary Schools, the Commission on Elementary Schools, and the Committee on Institution-Wide Accreditation have been renamed the Commissions on Elementary and Secondary Schools to more accurately reflect the continuum of services that Middle States Association provide to schools and educational institutions PK through non-degree granting post secondary programs and educational service providers.
The Accreditation process is:
- a voluntary peer-driven activity,
- a standards-driven process,
- devoted to a mission,
- accepts objective evaluation and seeks validation by a recognized authority,
- self-correcting and continuously plans for the future,
- a continuing capacity to increase quality, student learning, and instructional effectiveness, and
- student oriented.
An accredited school must not only meet the rigorous Middle States Standards, but it must also demonstrate that it is committed to continuous improvement through strategic planning.
Accreditation Protocol: Description
The Project Evaluation protocol allows a school to:
- Focus the energy of the community on a particular aspect of current academic research (research/creation of the project)
- Demonstrate application of that research in the living laboratory of the school (implementation/application)
- Share that body of knowledge and its application with other schools communities (evaluation/peer review)
- The school community chooses an area of current educational research that speaks to an acknowledged need or a shared vision for the future of the school.
The Project Evaluation Protocol (PEP) does not use a traditional self-study guide for its renewal activities; rather, the school community, using guidelines issued by Middle States Association (MSA), designs the major steps of proposal, implementation, peer review, and sharing. Additionally, Project 21 learning initiative is an integral and fundamental component of the accreditation process.
The Project: Phases
Proposal Phase:
- School community gathers data about the current state of the school community and sets forth specifics about why a given Project.
- The school community addresses the question of how it meets MSA Standards.
- Proposal is submitted before the school moves strongly into implementation (Dec. 2010)
Implementation Phase:
- After approval, the school community undertakes to learn all it can about the area the Project.
- The school community designs the means in which the Project will be made a reality.
- The school must be meticulous in developing materials and keeping records that will allow evaluation teams and MSA to track the creation and implementation.
Peer Review Phase:
- MSA appoints an evaluation team to visit the school to determine both the school community’s understanding of, and commitment to, the Project topic as well as adherence to the Standards.
Sharing Phase:
- The school hosts a colloquium for members of the educational community. This colloquium is concurrent with the evaluation visit.
By December 2010, CPS will be submitting the Project Evaluation proposal to Middle States Association.
After its submission, it may be approved as submitted or a request from MSA for further development and
re-submission may occur.
Mari Tere del Valle
Accreditation Coordinator
mdelvalle@cpspr.org
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