School System Recommended for Reaccreditation

On Wednesday, the (DCSS) was recommended for National District Reaccreditation as a Quality School System through the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) and the Council on Accreditation and School Improvement (CASI) following a Quality Assurance Team visit from AdvancED professionals. The recommendation will be considered by the National SACS CASI AdvancED Commission in May.

In May 2007, the DCSS was awarded District Accreditation as a Quality School System through SACS CASI. District Accreditation is a process in which the School District identifies and sustains the implementation of a systemic continuous improvement process and monitors its schools for compliance with all AdvancED SACS CASI standards.

District Accreditation recognizes that increasing student achievement is more than improving instruction. It is a result of how effectively all the parts of the education system – the District, school, and classroom - work together to meet the needs of students. District Accreditation applies three pillars of accreditation - high standards, continuous improvement, and quality assurance – to an entire school district to ensure alignment and support between and among the District and its schools. The District Accreditation process provides a comprehensive framework for continually improving student achievement and District performance.

A reaccreditation visit is provided through AdvancED SACS CASI every five years and was conducted in the Douglas County School System March 25-28, 2012. AdvancED District Accreditation, a voluntary method of quality assurance designed primarily to distinguish schools adhering to a set of comprehensive educational standards, is a systems approach to improving student performance results over time.

The Douglas County School Board met in a called session on March 28, 2012, at 3 p.m. for the purpose of announcement of the SACS CASI AdvancED Quality Assurance Review (QAR) Team report and reaccreditation determination.

Team Leader Dr. James Brown presented a report on the team’s findings, and noted a written report would be provided to the School District within 30 business days. The team, he said, interviewed 571 stakeholders including five School Board members, 71 administrators, 174 teachers, 40 support staff, 111 students and 116 parents, community and business partners and visited eight schools: , Beulah Elementary School, , , , and .

“The visiting team wishes to thank you for the warm manner in which we were received and treated during our four day visit to your school district and city; it has truly been a pleasure,” said Brown. “We realize that this was a team effort but the QAR team would like to extend a very special thank you to Dr. Catherine Magouyrk and Dr. Rhonda Baldwin for attending to each of our needs during this brief stay with you.

“AdvancED came into being in 2006 when the National Study of School Evaluation, the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement, and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Council on Accreditation and School Improvement joined forces. It has most recently been expanded to also include the Northwest Association of Schools and College,” Brown said.

The Quality Assurance Team issued the following five commendations to the Douglas County School System:

1. Having established a systemic culture of learning with a relentless focus on student achievement and success. Student learning and performance have emerged as strong core values that permeate all levels of the system in both words and actions.

1. Demonstrating leadership values and practices that honor and exemplify hallmarks of the AdvancED District Accreditation protocol.

1. Having created district and school level learning communities where individuals share important core beliefs and engage in numerous practices that promote communication, collaboration, innovation, learning, and the exchange of ideas.

1. Having established extensive programs and services to meet diverse learner needs facilitated through collaborative partnerships

1. Having developed common assessments across all subject areas of the curriculum to inform instruction, monitor student performance, and enhance best practices implementation.

The team issued three Required Actions to the School District:

1. Administer and employ the district-wide initiative to provide technology infrastructures and equipment to support 21st century teaching and learning, and ensure that all instructional personnel receive continuous professional development to optimize its use and effectiveness.
2. Communicate to all stakeholders the plan to modernize school facilities across the district.
3. Design and implement an instructional plan that facilitates communication and collaboration as students transition within feeder patterns.

The team issued Standards Ratings for Seven Standards by which the School District was measured (Highly Functional is the highest rating followed by Operational and lower ratings):

1. Vision and Purpose: Operational       

2. Governance and Leadership: Highly Functional   

3. Teaching and Learning: Operational        

4. Documenting and Using Results: Operational       

5. Resources and Support Systems: Operational       

6. Stakeholder Communication and Relationships: Highly Functional        

7. Commitment to Continuous Improvement: Operational           

Following the presentation of the report, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Gordon Pritz and School Board Members thanked the team as well as the School District staff for their hard work.

“To have external validation from people all over the country with significant experience is very much appreciated,” Pritz said. “I appreciate the principals, parents, teachers, staff and students who have once again shown we are a student centered, customer-oriented system. We are very focused on providing a quality education for our students and are doing everything necessary to ensure they are well-prepared to become responsible individuals, independent thinkers, and productive citizens.”