Accreditation Visit Conducted By The Committee On Public Secondary Schools
By Editor at February 12, 2024 | 8:00 am | Print
Sixteen educators will conduct an on-site accreditation visit of New Britain High School on March 6- 9. The accreditation visit will be conducted under the direction of the Committee on Public Secondary Schools of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges. The visiting committee will be chaired by Don Gainey, Adjunct Professor, Bedford, MA. Mr. Gainey has had extensive experience in the Association’s accreditation process.
The purpose of this accreditation visit is to review and determine from an outside professional viewpoint the extent to which the school is meeting the Standards for Accreditation. As part of the evaluation, the visiting committee will meet with all school constituents, review the school’s self-study, visit a number of classes, and examine examples of student work submitted by the school. During the comprehensive self-study, the faculty attempted to identify the school’s strengths and determined those areas in which changes would be beneficial.
The chair of the visiting committee, Don Gainey, said, “Our purpose in visiting New Britain High School is to assist the faculty in its pursuit of quality education for its students.”
The members of the visiting committee are contributing their services to the school. This spirit of professional cooperation is one of the noted features of the New England Association. The goal of an accreditation visit is to stimulate a continuing drive for improvement in the school.
The members of the visiting committee are teachers and administrators from a variety of schools in the New England area. The New England Association of Schools and Colleges is a voluntary membership organization of more than 2,000 public schools, colleges and universities, independent schools, and vocational, technical, and career institutions. Of these, over 650 secondary schools have been accredited through the Association’s Committee on Public Secondary Schools. The Committee works with individual public schools to improve the quality of education through a continuous process of accreditation and evaluation.
The self-study at New Britain High School was co-chaired by Marianne Malliet (Science Department head) and Christi Tilton, (Curriculum Information Teacher). The Chief Editor for the standards reports was Cara Gerent. The names of Steering Committee members who directed the school’s efforts and worked closely with the NBHS staff during its self-study were:
- Andrew Zemaitis - Core Values, Beliefs and Learning Expectations
- Robert Ramsey - Curriculum
- Kim Bodnar - Instruction
- Yvonne Giarnella - Assessment of and for Student Learning
- Alessandro Parisi - School Culture and Leadership
- Mark Van Buren - School Resources and Learning
- Sondra Sanford and Carolyn Ganley - Community Resources for Learning
NEASC membership requires that a school undergo a self-study and formal evaluation at least once every ten years. The Steering Committee’s responsibilities will include coordinating a schedule of events for the school’s self-study, collecting reports from various subcommittees, and making necessary preparations for the evaluation committee’s visit.
According to Marianne Malliet and Christi Tilton, “The self-study included the completion of a comprehensive assessment of teaching and learning and the support of teaching and learning. The focus of the accreditation visit will be to determine the extent to which our programs and services carry out the school’s core values and beliefs about student learning and meet the Committee on Public Secondary Schools Standards for Accreditation.”
New Britain High School’s last accreditation visit was in 2005, and it has maintained continued accreditation since it was awarded NEASC membership in 1929.
The New England Association of Schools and Colleges is a voluntary membership organization of more than 2,000 public schools, colleges and universities, independent schools, and vocational, technical, and career institutions. Of these, approximately 650 schools have been accredited through the Association’s Committee on Public Secondary Schools. The Committee works with individual institutions to improve the quality of education at all levels through a continuous process of evaluation and accreditation.
New Britain High School parents are invited to attend a meeting with the NEASC visiting committee on Sunday, March 6th. If interested please contact Vice Principal Elizabeth Crooks via phone at 860-225-6300 x 601.
