STANDARDS for ACCREDITATION

Accreditation is the affirmation that a school provides a quality of education that the community has a right to expect and the education world endorses. Accreditation is a means of showing confidence in a school's performance. When the Commission on Secondary Schools accredits a school, it certifies that the school has met the prescribed qualitative standards of the Middle States Association within the terms of the school's own stated philosophy and objectives.

Given the unique variety found in the member schools of Middle States, the Commission on Secondary Schools offers a number of protocols for schools wishing to undertake the accreditation process. Regardless of the protocol, however, schools are expected to meet the CSS standards before accreditation will be granted or renewed. Two protocols developed by CSS specifically for its schools are Accreditation for Growth or AFG and Reflections on Standards of Quality or Reflections. Free workshops are offered by CSS to member schools on the utilization of either of these protocols. Other protocols have been accepted by CSS, and schools interested in using one of them should contact the CSS office for further information. In addition, CSS also collaborates with a number of other accrediting agencies to offer dual accreditation to schools interested in such an option.

CSS has enacted policies governing the adoption of standards. Currently there are four sets of standards used to award accreditation: