Accreditation is the educational community’s means of self-regulation through quality assurance and continuous improvement. The accreditation process is intended to strengthen and sustain the quality and integrity of education, making it worthy of public confidence and minimizing the scope of external control. In order to be deserving of this public trust, accredited institutions must affirm their accreditation in the following ways:
General Expectations:
An accredited institution:
- Adheres to the Middle States Standards for Accreditation;
- Uses its mission, beliefs, and goals as the basis for daily decision-making;
- Operates in the public interest and in accordance with ethical practice;
- Accepts responsibility for the level of performance of its students;
- Remains committed to continuous improvement in student learning and to its capacity to produce the levels of learning desired and expected by its community;
- Operates in a collegial and collaborative way with all its stakeholders; and,
- Sustains its focus on implementing recommendations, addressing monitoring issues and correcting stipulations that may be part of its notification of accreditation and fulfills its maintenance requirements to the Commission.
Policies of the Middle States Commissions on Elementary and Secondary Schools
Governance and Operations Policies
Advisory Committees
Child Protection
Committees of the Commissions
Complaints
Conflict of Interest
Cooperative Agreements
Financial Operations
Leadership Succession
Maintenance of Commission Records
Membership of the Commissions
Operation of the Commissions
Relationships with Other Entities
Staff and Volunteer Travel
Staff of the Commissions
Whistleblower
Membership and Accreditation Policies
Accreditation Actions
Accreditation Maintenance
Advertising, Student Recruitment, and Placement
Appeals from Adverse Accrediting Actions
Candidacy for Accreditation
Credit Hour Assignments (Postsecondary Institutions)
Dues & Fees
Enforcement of the Standards for Accreditation (Postsecondary Institutions)
Expectations for Accredited Institutions
Extension of Accreditation Term
Interruption to Educational Operations
Notices & Communications Accreditation Actions, Activities, Members
Representation of Accreditation Status
Scope and Categories of Membership
Self-Study and Accreditation Process
Shared and Part-Time Career and Technology Programs in Other Schools
Standards for Accreditation
Student Complaints (Postsecondary Institutions)
Substantive Changes
Teach-Out Plans and Agreements (Postsecondary Institutions)
Third-Party Comments (Postsecondary Institutions)
Transfer of Credits (Postsecondary Institutions)
Voluntary Withdrawal of Accreditation and Membership
