What is NCA CASI  and AdvancED?

The North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement (NCA CASI) is a non-governmental, voluntary organization that accredits more than 8,500 public and private schools in 19 states, the Navajo Nation, and the Department of Defense Dependents' Schools worldwide. NCA CASI  is a school improvement process by which a school self-evaluates and targets areas for improvement.  To earn accreditation, schools must meet NCA CASI's quality standards, be evaluated by an outside group of professionals, and implement a school improvement plan focused on increasing student performance.

AdvancED is the parent organization for the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement (NCA CASI). This unified organization creates the world's largest education community, representing 23,000 public and private schools and districts in 30 states and 65 countries and serving nearly 15 million students.  NCA CASI schools share a unified, clear and powerful accreditation process designed to help schools continuously improve. Schools and school districts began use of the AdvancED standards and accreditation process in the 2007-08 school year.  AdvancED is dedicated to advancing excellence in education through accreditation, research, and professional services.

Why is accreditation important?

    - Accreditation focuses a school on improving learning for all students.

    - Accreditation assures parents and the public that the school is focused on raising student achievement, providing a safe and enriching learning   environment, and maintaining an efficient and effective operation.

    - NCA CASI accreditation focuses all schools on improving student performance and, most importantly, provides a proven resource to use in raising student achievement.

    - Accreditation provides educators with a proven process for raising student achievement

    - Everyone is responsible for improvement and continued success of our school.
 

How does East Elementary Earn NCA CASI Accreditations?

1.   Meet High Standards

-          Students are taught by highly qualified teachers.

-          Class sizes are reasonable.

-          The curriculum is sound and rigorous.

-          Student services and activities are plentiful.

-          Schools are safe and financially stable.

2.    Engage in continuous improvement

-          We must continually improve performance.

-          We must implement a plan that contains clear goals for raising the achievement of all students.

-          We must document growth.

3.   Demonstrate Quality Assurance

-         An external peer review team will visit the school and report what the school is doing well and make recommendations for improvement.