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We award diplomas. This literally describes my absolute favorite job duty, the one I perform every year on graduation day. It also succinctly describes the overall endeavor of a high school. In complex times over the years, I’ve found it helpful to focus in on this essential goal of what we do. It’s why we all come to school every day. Everyone in our community – teachers, families, students, etc. – are working towards the goal of that diploma and the weight it carries.
It would be fair, thus, to ask why the diploma our students walk away with after having met Sequoia’s graduation requirements holds weight. It is, after all, just a piece of paper. What does it really represent? Who decides? This is where the process of accreditation comes in.
This January, a team of educators will visit Sequoia. The team will include teachers, administrators, someone from the CA Department of Education. They are trained representatives of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC), which is responsible for accrediting schools in California, Nevada, Hawaii, Guam, among other places.
By the time they arrive, they will have carefully studied our WASC Self-Study Report which contains hundreds of pages of comprehensive school data, goals, strengths, action items. The report synthesizes what we do well, what challenges us, and where we want to be in six years. After almost a year of analysis, input, and dialogue, we are putting the finishing touches on ours. For the WASC process to have meaning, we become our own harshest critics. This conversation is lively and intelligent – an exciting reminder of what a dedicated, collaborative, and thoughtful staff we have here at Sequoia.
With input from staff, students, and parents, we develop a strategic action plan aligned with these Schoolwide Learner Outcomes (SLOs). This is WASC-speak for goals we strive for every student to attain, but you might also think of it as what makes a Sequoia High School diploma what it is. The way in which we allocate staffing resources and target professional development are directly tied to WASC goals and the accompanying action plan. Our last full WASC self-study was during the 2017-18 school year. At that time, Sequoia earned a maximum accreditation period of six years.
We make a promise through the accreditation process that Sequoia is a school where the best and brightest young people in one of the most dynamic communities in America are launching themselves into meaningful young adult lives. We live up to that promise through the integrity with which we approach our work. Sometimes my colleagues laugh at how much I enjoy the WASC process, which in many schools is treated as a chore or nuisance. But the joy I experience each year as the names of graduates are read on Terremere Field stems from that promise we make about what a Sequoia diploma stands for. I see this as a true privilege.
Stay tuned for more updates in this space as our accreditation visit draws nearer. Have a great week!
Best,
Sean
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