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Administrator's Message
'Twas the Night Before Accreditation!
For the staff at TRCS, this week feels a little bit like the week before Christmas. For the last several years, we've been anticipating the visit from our Accreditation Team. From October 23rd to October 26th, they'll be here on our campuses reviewing all of the work we've done to "prove our mettle," as my Grandmother used to say.
What does this mean? TRCS has had a solid history of providing excellent academics that prepare almost 90% of our students to enter college. We've produced young adults who are actively prepared to "impact the world for Christ," like our mission states. However, this accreditation process will help us prove to the world outside of our immediate school community that we really ARE a quality resource for education.
To describe this process in simpler terms, accrediting organizations provide a list of areas that your school must prove their ability in according to different standards. We're using the "REACH 2.0" standards through the Association of Christian Schools International, as well as the "AdvancEd" protocol. "REACH 2.0" consists of eight "Standards," each of which have anywhere from five to eighteen "indicators" of success. They are:
Standard 1: Philosophy & Foundations
Standard 2: Governance & Executive Leadership
Standard 3: Home & Community Relations, Student Services
Standard 4: Personnel
Standard 5: Instructional Programs & Resources
Standard 6: Student Care
Standard 7: Character, Values & Spiritual Formation of Students
Standard 8: Continuous School Improvement Plan
The team that visits our school is comprised of administrators from other
private schools in the Northwest region. They review the hundreds of evidence documents we've compiled, tour our facilities, visit our community members, and at the end, they'll report their findings. These findings include not only our areas of success, but also our opportunities for improvement. (Accreditation for schools is a regular cycle which we will revisit every five years to maintain our status as an accredited school.)
After the exit report, they'll make a recommendation to the Northwest Accreditation Commission, and, God willing, our accreditation will be official shortly after that! In celebration for all of the work our staff has put in to this process, we've declared October 28th a K-12 school holiday this year! Our amazing staff deserve it for all of the extra work they've poured into this process of "organizational sanctification!"
Please keep us in your prayers next week - and stay tuned for the final results!
Erin Hart
TRCS Administrator
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