ACCREDITATION - SACS

Commission On Elementary And Middle Schools

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, GA 30033-4097

SACS Five Year Self Study Report

News Releases

Atlanta, Georgia, The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, through its Commission on Elementary and Middle Schools, has awarded accreditation to Holy Spirit Regional School. The announcement was made during the Association’s 103rd Annual Meeting in Atlanta December 6-9, 1998.

Accreditation is based upon an evaluation of each school to determine if the needs of the students and community as well as the standards of the commission on Elementary and Middle Schools are being met. The evaluation process includes a self-study by each school’s faculty and a review by a visiting committee of professional educators representing the Association.

Founded in 1895, the Southern Association is a voluntary, non-governmental agency composed of more than 11,000 accredited colleges and universities, secondary, middle, and elementary schools. Headquartered in Decatur, Georgia, it is one of six regional accrediting associations in the United States and serves 11 Southern states; Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia as well as Mexico, Central and South America, and islands of the Caribbean.

The purpose of regional accreditation is school improvement, which focuses on student performance. To maintain accreditation, each accredited school must conduct a continuing program of educational improvement, meet standards of accreditation, submit annual reports which certify the completion of plans for educational improvement as well as assessment of the school’s ability to meet standards, and be reevaluated by outside teams of professional educators at five-year intervals.

Through regional accreditation, faculty, students, and parents benefit by knowing that teaching conditions in accredited schools meet necessary requirements and that efforts are continuously made for school improvement which focus on student performance.

“Citizens are assured of accountability and of value for their tax dollars because SACS member schools meet standards and maintain regular reevaluation. Communities with accredited schools can be confident that their institutions compare favorably with other schools not only within the region but throughout the nation,” said Dr. Stephen M. Baker, Executive Director of the Commission on Elementary and Middle Schools.

Accredited schools are a plus for the community and for those who are interested in relocating their families and businesses in Huntsville, Alabama.