ACCREDITATION
REQUIREMENTS
Any
school, whether a public school or a non-public school,
seeking accreditation by the Indiana State Board of
Education must meet the same set of requirements: compliance
with legal standards, completion of a school improvement
plan, and review of student achievement indicators.
1.
LEGAL STANDARDS
Each
school will comply with the following legal standards.
- Health
and Safety
- Minimum
Time
- Staff-Student
Ratio
- Curriculum
Offerings
- Instructional
Staff
- ISTEP+
Participation
- Mandatory
Annual Assessment
- Accurate
and Timely Submission of All Reports
- Annual
Performance Report
Click to view a checklist
of legal standards. Click to view the accreditation law
(IC
20-31-4-6) and State Board accreditation rules (511
IAC 6.1) for citations to related laws and rules.
2.
STRATEGIC AND CONTINUOUS SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT AND ACHIEVEMENT
PLAN
Each
school will complete and provide to the Department
a copy of the school’s most recent revised strategic
and continuous school improvement and achievement plan.
Click
here to view the required components of the plan within an
optional format.
Click
to view the accountability law (IC
20-31-5) and State Board rules
(511 IAC 6.2) regarding the development of the school
improvement plan.
3. STUDENT
ACHIEVEMENT INDICATORS
The State
Board of Education will place schools in categories
based on school improvement and school performance on
the following primary indicators of progress:
- ISTEP+ English/language
arts and mathematics tests at Grades 3-10
- ISTEP+ science
tests and social studies tests at Grades 5,7, and
9
- Science
and social students tests when implemented at Grades
4, 6, and 8
- Core
40 end-of-course tests
Click
to view the accountability law (IC
20-31-8) and State Board rules (511
IAC 6.2-6) for more detailed information about how schools
will be assigned to categories.
ACCREDITATION
AS IT RELATES TO ACCOUNTABILITY
The
accreditation component of the accountability system
ensures that schools are meeting minimum standards
of educational programming and student achievement.
Schools can achieve accreditation under performance-based
accreditation or by implementing a
quality-focused approach to school improvement such
as the criteria for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality
Award for Education or those criteria of a national
or regional accreditation agency that are approved
by the Indiana State Board of Education.
CHANGES
TO THE ACCREDITATION PROCEDURE
The
amended rules require some changes to the procedures
for accreditation:
- Three-Year
Cycle - Indiana schools will be accredited
by the State Board on a three-year cycle. A school
holding accreditation under the former performance-based
accreditation system shall retain accreditation
until the amended system is fully implemented.
Click to view a listing of the year each public
school district has been assigned to for accreditation
review. Click to view a listing of the year each non-public
school wishing to be accredited has been assigned
to for review.
- Legal
Standards -
The accountability system emphasizes school improvement,
public reports, and accountability at all levels.
To meet this emphasis, the following legal standards
have been added:
- Mandatory
Annual Assessments
- Accurate
and Timely Submission of All
Reports
- Annual
Performance Report
- School
Improvement Planning - Requirements for
continuous school improvement planning have been
changed.
- Department
of Education will review the plan to assure
that all the required components are present IF
school uses the optional format approved
by the State Board of Education or any other
format that includes the components required
by law.
- Department
of Education review of the plan is not required IF
school implements a quality-focused planning
process such as the Malcolm Baldrige National
Quality Award for Education, a national or
regional accreditation agency that the State
Board has approved, or a planning model the
State Board has approved.
- Department
of Education will verify formal participation
in one of the State Board approved program
listed above.
- Every
Indiana school must submit a three-year school
improvement plan beginning June 30, 2002.
All schools must submit a new or updated
plan by June 30, 2005 and every third year
thereafter.
- Annual
review and revision by the school are also
required.
- Certain
procedures and timelines are required to
be followed at the district level before
the school submits its improvement plan to
the Department.
- Student
Achievement - Procedures for reviewing
information about student achievement have been
changed.
- Accreditation
will consider student achievement based on
the category to which a school is assigned
- Information
from a variety of assessment tools will be
sued to review student achievement and assign
schools to categories
- When
the assessment system is fully implemented,
assessment of student achievement will occur
at Grades 3-12
FIRST
STEPS TO GETTING ACCREDITED
Public
Schools - It is a requirement
for all public schools in the state of Indiana to
be accredited, including Charter
Schools. Public schools within larger districts
will have legal standards and student achievement
requirements reviewed in the year in which all schools
in the district are being reviewed. Click here to
view public
school accreditation year assignments. These
new schools will however; be required to submit a
school improvement plan by June 30th of the first
year they are open. They should also contact the
Indiana Department of Education prior to opening
to assure that they receive a school identification
number and other contact information is correct.
For more information regarding accreditation of newly
established public schools, contact our office.
Non-public
Schools - Non-public schools in the state
of Indiana are not required to be accredited. However;
they must register with the Indiana Department
of
Education and be assigned a non-public school identification
number. They must also submit a pupil enrollment
number each fall. Click
here for information about
how to submit the (Pupil Enrollment) PE Form that
is a required for non-public schools.
If
a non-public school would like to be accredited, it
will be required to comply with the same
requirements as public schools in the state of
Indiana. Consequences
for probationary accreditation of non-public schools
are different. Contact our office if your non-public
school would like more information regarding accreditation
in the state of Indiana.
To
view a listing of non-public schools that are accredited, click
here.
Kindergarten
and Pre-kindergarten Schools - The state of
Indiana does not accredit stand-alone kindergartens,
preschools, or combinations thereof. If they are
a part of a school that includes at least first grade
or more, the kindergarten becomes part of the accredited
school.
Pre-kindergarten,
nursery school, daycare, etc. are licensed in the
state of Indiana. Click
here to view information regarding early childhood
licensing and accreditation.
Post
Secondary Schools - The Indiana Department of Education
does not accredit schools beyond grade twelve. For information
on post high school education that offer degrees, please contact
the Commission of Higher
Education at 317-464-4400. Post high school education
facilities that offer professional trade licenses should contact
the Proprietary Education
Commission at 800-227-5695.
CHARTER
SCHOOL ACCREDITATION
A school
that becomes a charter school under Indiana law (IC
20-24) is immediately considered accredited by the State
Board of Education. (511
IAC 6.1-1-1) Due to the unique nature of charter schools,
the required components of accreditation (School Improvement
Planning, Legal Standards Compliance, and Student Achievement)
are addressed in the following ways:
School
Improvement Planning: According to Indiana law, a charter
entered under IC
20-24-4 may be used as a charter school’s three-year
strategic and continuous improvement plan. Click
here to view IC 20-31-5-2 regarding charter school improvement
planning.
Legal
Standards Compliance: The charter school and the organizer
are accountable to the sponsor for ensuring compliance with
applicable federal and state laws; the charter; and the Constitution
of the State of Indiana. Any legal standard required for accreditation
that falls into one of the above three categories would be
required for charter schools. Click
here to view IC 20-24-8 regarding charter school powers
and exemptions.
Student
Achievement: Requirements for the charter include evidence
of improvement in assessment measures including ISTEP and
Graduation Qualifying Exam. Click
here to view IC 20-24-4-1 regarding requirements for charter.
Although category consequences outlined in IC 20-31-9 do not
apply, charter schools are required to submit an annual report
to the Indiana Department of Education for informational and
research purposes. Furthermore, a sponsor may revoke the charter
at any time before the expiration of the term of the charter
if certain conditions are not met. Click
here to view IC 20-24-9 (Oversight and Revocation of Charters)
for more information regarding charter school accountability.
Click
here for a listing of current Indiana Charter Schools.
FREEWAY
SCHOOL ACCREDITATION
A school
that becomes a freeway school under Indiana law (IC
20-26-15-5) is immediately considered accredited by the
State Board of Education (511
IAC 6.1-1-1). Due to the unique nature of freeway schools,
the required components of accreditation (School Improvement
Planning, Legal Standards Compliance, and Student Achievement)
are addressed in the following ways:
School
Improvement Planning: The contract that a freeway schools
and the Indiana State Board of Education enter into serves
as the school improvement plan for a freeway school. Click
here to view IC 20-26-15-4 for contract designation. Click
here to view IC 20-26-15-8 for contract provisions and
requirements.
Legal
Standards Compliance: Freeway schools may choose to suspend
certain statutes and rules that are required for accreditation.
Click
here to view IC 20-26-15-5 for the listing of statutes
and rules that freeway schools can suspend.
Student
Achievement: Freeway
schools can establish a locally adopted assessment program
to replace the assessment of student under the ISTEP program
as long and it meets certain criteria. Click here to view
IC
20-26-15-6. The Indiana State Board of Education reviewed
Freeway School statutory requirements for ISTEP testing with
legal and program staff of the Department of Education. Board
members concluded that Board Approval of ISTEP+ testing waivers
is not in accord with the law. The situation today is different
from when the original Freeway law was passed. ISTEP is a
criterion-referenced test based on Indiana Academic Standards.
Click here to view IC
20-32-5-6 , Scores and test results. Freeway schools are
required to meet minimum educational benefits standards in
attendance, student achievement, and graduation rate. Click
here to view IC
20-26-15-7 for more details regarding freeway school accountability.
Contact the Division of School Accreditation Offices if you
would like additional information on the Freeway School Program.
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