UPDATE: Full WASC Mid-Cycle Report
On Tuesday, the WASC representatives’ multi-day visit ended with a report-out to the community. Although we will be sharing the full report with you as soon as it has been made available, we are extremely proud of the results of their findings and want to share a brief summary with you, below.
During their visit, the two WASC Accreditation Commission representatives, who were part of the full WASC accreditation team in 2017, met with all stakeholders – parents, students, faculty. The purpose of their mid-cycle visit was to evaluate if SSIS is meeting the goals and recommendations given during the accreditation process and realizing the mission of the School.
What were the Results?
In a total of seven commendations (celebrations) and four recommendations, the overall results were extremely positive. The WASC representatives were impressed with the many improvements that have been made since their last visit.
This is what their findings emphasized:
- The visible excitement about the aspirations for the future of the school, particularly Vision 2030, described by WASC as a “set of aspirational goals for the next 10 years for SSIS;”
- Our supportive, positive and engaged parent community;
- Students are continuing to achieve at high levels across the school;
- Purposeful reflection around current status and future needs has led to more efficient and prioritized systems thinking;
- The excellent collection and analysis of student achievement data that is used to inform instruction and assessment, to further student learning;
- The many learning opportunities for students across the school;
- The ambitious master facilities plan;
- The responsiveness of SSIS to students’ social-emotional needs and to English as an Additional Language (EAL) support needs.
For the recommendations that the WASC representatives outlined, they repeatedly assured our community that there was no doubt that SSIS is already working on all of these recommendations, and that we should continue with the great work we are doing with particular focus on:
- Conveying our work around our Vision 2030 to the whole learning community;
- Ensuring we have the necessary resources to continue to fully document and implement a guaranteed and viable curriculum;
- Continuing to use data to systematically shape instruction and assessment;
- Making sure that the new schoolwide assessment policy is understood and implemented as appropriate, across all divisions.
With these excellent results, we want to thank our parents, our students and our faculty for all that you have done and continue to do to ensure such high-quality student experiences.
The feedback from the WASC mid-cycle team made us even more proud of our community, a community that understands that all we do is in service of our students, and supports the environment we are building for learning and growth.
About WASC and the WASC Mid-Cycle Visit
SSIS is accredited by the accrediting agency, WASC (Western Association of Schools and Colleges). Every six years, SSIS conducts a self-reflection on our programs, procedures, and policies, and submits a comprehensive self-study to the WASC commission.
WASC ensures that accredited institutions hold the highest quality of standards and effectiveness in developing and sustaining educational programs. In short, accreditation verifies the quality of an SSIS education to colleges and universities.
