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Volume 3

 

February 2012


The AdvancED Arkansas State Office is busily getting prepared for the training workshops for 41 districts/schools that will be hosting on-site visits during the 2012-13 school year. The workshop for the district training will be held on March 29, 2012, at the DoubleTree Hotel in Little Rock and the training for the schools will be held on March 30, 2012, also at the DoubleTree in Little Rock.  Each of the workshops will begin at 8:00 a.m. and will end at 3:00 p.m.  More information about other training and workshops will be forthcoming.

I want to thank the many administrators and teachers that have willingly agreed to serve on school/district on-site team visits, not only for this school year, but for many, many, years.  Our increasing numbers of schools and districts participating in the AdvancED Accreditation Process have been the result of the continued strong support from school staff and district leadership who genuinely believe that the ultimate focus of the visits is to strengthen and improve student performance.

Emma Bass, Ed.D.
Director, AdvancED Arkansas

Quick Links
 
New AdvancED Standards Unveiled

Just as schools and districts are subject to a rigorous process of review and continuous improvement, so are AdvancED Standards.  In order to comply with the AdvancED policy that requires the AdvancED Standards to be reviewed every five years, a Standards Committee began meeting in the fall of 2009 to review the current Standards, which have been in place since 2007.  This review allowed the Committee to look at current education quality and research, as well as the knowledge gained from everyday application by accredited schools and districts.  As a result of this review, the AdvancED Standards have been rewritten.  The new version includes five Standards: 

  1. Purpose and Direction
  2. Governance and Leadership
  3. Teaching and Assessing for Learning
  4. Resources and Support Systems
  5. Using Results for Continuous Improvement

The new Standards will be implemented for the 2012-13 school year, but now are posted for viewing on both of the Accreditation Resources and Tools Web pages for Schools and School Systems.  Select the item labeled 2012-13 school year.  Schools and school systems hosting visits in the 2011-2012 school year will continue to use AdvancED’s current Standards.  If you have questions, please feel free to contact our office.

Release of ASSIST in Progress

AdvancED’s Adaptive System of School Improvement Support Tools – ASSIST – is focused on building organizational capacity to accelerate student performance by giving schools and school systems the tools and support they need to truly achieve continuous improvement and accreditation.

Currently all schools and school systems in the AdvancED Accreditation Network have access to the ASSIST Improvement Planning component, which enables them to build goals (including measurable objectives, strategies, and activities) and create improvement plans. Schools/systems can create any type of plan and multiple plans with this component.  Please keep in mind that you are not required to complete an Improvement Plan using this component.  You will have the ability to attach a copy of your ACSIP to the Assurances during the year of your External Visit, if that is your preference.  We do encourage you to explore and use the tools that are available for your use.

Additional ASSIST components and enhancements are coming soon.  Institutions that have an External Review scheduled during the 2012-13 school year will have access to the new AdvancED Accreditation Protocol, including the Self-Assessment of the new AdvancED Standards for Quality Schools and Systems, AdvancED Assurances, the new Executive Summary, and Stakeholder Surveys beginning in March.  Also beginning in March, schools and school systems that are not scheduled for a 2012-13 External Review can request the ability to administer Stakeholder Surveys. 

AdvancED International Summit 2012  

Registration for the AdvancED International Summit 2012 now is open.  The Summit will take place June 24-26, 2012 in Washington, D.C.  With the Summit theme of Creating the Future: Accelerating Excellence, the event will engage state and national education leaders and policymakers in an exploration of strategies for designing effective learning systems for the future.  Attendees will:

  •  Hear innovative ideas and practices in education. 
  • Interact with colleagues and session leaders to share what's working, what's not and how to move forward.
  • Build strategic partnerships that will expand their professional network. 
  • Be at the forefront of innovation and leadership in education.

At the Summit you will help develop a roadmap designed to advance thinking at the national and state levels; let your perspective inform the future through policy and practice.  Click here to view Summit details and register today.

Did You Know? 
All Accreditation Resources and Tools now are in one, convenient location.  These resources are only available to institutions involved in AdvancED Accreditation.  Many of the tools and resources have been updated and new ones have been added.  These resources have been placed in a repository created only for schools and districts involved in the accreditation process, if you need assistance in locating this information please call the state office at 888.560.9622.
Are Your School/District Demographics Current?
Many of our schools and districts have new administrators, addresses, phone numbers, and especially e-mail addresses.  Since the information in our Accreditation Management System is our primary source for contacting you, please take a moment to make sure the demographic information for your schools is correct.  To update your demographics, go to www.advanc-ed.org and  log-in with your e-mail address and password.  After logging in, place your mouse over the Accreditation tab, and click on Demographics Update.  If you have not logged into the website before or if you need assistance, please contact our office.

 
AdvancED, the home of NCA CASI and SACS CASI, is dedicated to
advancing excellence in education worldwide.

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