ADVANC-ED / SACS CASI District Accreditation
Welcome to the St. Johns County Schools SACS CASI general information site. This site has been posted to provide the St. Johns County staff and community an opportunity to become more familiar with a new protocol offered by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Council on Accreditation and School Improvement (SACS CASI), District Accreditation as a Quality System. SACS - CASI District Accreditation is the highest level of accreditation that a school system can receive from the SACS CASI organization.
Currently, the St. Johns County School District schools are fully accredited.This means that annually, every public school in St. Johns County meets or exceeds the accreditation standards that support student achievement. Through this traditional method of accrediting schools, individual schools are reviewed for accreditation eligibility, with the district's central office staff playing a limited but important role. Currently, St. Johns County School District is seeking District Accreditation. The process for district accreditation began in 2006 and is scheduled to be completed in October 2007.
District Accreditation, as a quality assurance process, will validate St. Johns County's outstanding accomplishments. During the coming weeks we invite you to review the information on this website and become familiar with the process of quality assurance and learn more about St. Johns County Public Schools.
From ADANC-ED.....
AdvancED District Accreditation is a powerful systems approach to improving student performance results over time. District Accreditation recognizes that increasing student achievement involves more than improving instruction. It is a result of how well all the parts of the education system-the district, school, and classroom-work together to meet the needs of students.
District Accreditation applies the three pillars of accreditation-high standards, continuous improvement, and quality assurance-to the entire district to ensure alignment and support between and among the district and its schools. The District Accreditation process provides the district and all of its schools with a comprehensive framework for continually improving student achievement and district performance.
For the purposes of District Accreditation, a district may include school districts or systems, school corporations, diocesan school systems, or tribal school coalitions. Coalitions of unrelated schools joined together for the purpose of school improvement may be considered districts based on review by AdvancED.
AdvancED Accreditation Standards for Quality School Systems The AdvancED Accreditation Standards for Quality School Systems form the foundation of District Accreditation. The standards build on NCA CASI and SACS CASI district accreditation standards. They are tightly aligned with the research on the factors that
impact student performance and were developed with broad input from practitioners and education experts. The standards apply to school systems within the 30-state region of NCA CASI and SACS CASI.
What are the benefits of District Accreditation?
District Accreditation is not a stand-alone process; rather it serves as an umbrella or framework that supports system-wide continuous improvement focused directly on improving learning for all students. Already, school systems indicate that it is a highly effective process for meeting and exceeding federal No Child Left Behind and state accountability laws. In addition, District Accreditation:
Supports and enhances a common language of school improvement across content areas and grade levels, as well as across individual schools, feeder schools, and school system lines of responsibility.
Ensures continuity and collaboration in planning for improvement, anchored in a common vision for education among all the system's schools; ensures that each school's improvement goals complement those of the school system.
Is cost effective for the school system and schools.
Provides the school system and community with validation and recognition for improvement efforts as well as recommendations, from an external team of professionals that are designed to further the system's improvement efforts.
Supports a system-wide approach to achieving results.
Is an integrated process that supports other accountability requirements such as those mandated by the state and federal educational agencies, and strengthens efforts to meet such requirements.
Provides recognition for the school system and its schools, students, teachers, and the community.
How does a district achieve District Accreditation?
District Accreditation requires commitment from the system's leadership and Board of Education. The school system must have in place or in development a quality continuous improvement planning process focused on improving student learning, and commit to achieving and maintaining the following requirements:
Demonstrate compliance with the AdvancED Accreditation Standards for Quality School Systems;
Identify and illustrate the system's framework for continuous improvement; and
Provide evidence of methods being employed to monitor and maintain quality assurance.
An external Quality Assurance Review Team makes a three day visit to the school system. The Quality Assurance Review Team gathers data and evidence during the visit by interviewing a wide range of system and school level stakeholders, as well as visiting schools through the school system.
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