Mount St. Mary Academy receives re-accreditation from Middle States

KENMORE — Mount St. Mary Academy has been re-accredited by the Middle States Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools.

The Middle States Association is a worldwide leader in accreditation and school improvement. For over 125 years, Middle States has been helping school leaders establish and reach their goals, develop strategic plans, promote staff development, and advance student achievement.

Surveying and data collection over the past two years helped to inform the creation of objectives for Mount St. Mary Academy to strive for, and then the subsequent action plans that will allow the school to implement these objectives. The survey reached a large group of stakeholders, including current students, alumnae, employees and board of trustee members. Responses numbered over 500. The next steps would then be planned and monitored in the next seven years as MSM works on implementing the vision for students to have more belonging, engagement and academic success, and for their governance board and leadership to encourage wider community involvement.

 “The Middle State Association Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools has been impressed by our objectives, as well as the commitment of our formal planning team, made up of dedicated parents, students, administrators and alumnae,” said MSM Principal Katherine Spillman. “With the majority of planning complete and our 175-page ‘Self-Study’ submitted to Middle States, we then moved forward with a virtual visit from site-visit volunteers.” The on-site visits took place from March 22-24.

Representatives from Middle States were able to observe classes via Zoom calls. Teachers collaborated with the Middle States committee that was established at Mount St. Mary Academy, and showcased their robust curriculum, classroom management, and teaching style. After the site visit, Middle States met to discuss the data they had collected, and determined Mount St. Mary Academy had met all of the accreditation criteria.

According to the Middle State Association, an accredited school:

• Adheres to the Middle States Standards for Accreditation;
• Uses its mission, beliefs and goals as the basis for daily decision-making;
• Operates in the public interest and in accordance with ethical practice;
• Accepts responsibility for the level of performance of its students;
• Remains committed to continuous improvement in student learning and to its capacity to produce the levels of learning desired and expected by its community;
• Operates in a collegial and collaborative way with all of its stakeholders;
• Sustains its focus on implementing recommendations, addressing monitoring issues and correcting stipulations that may be part of its notification of accreditation and fulfills its maintenance requirements to the Commissions

Mount St. Mary Academy, founded by the Sisters of St. Mary of Namur, is a Catholic, private, college preparatory school for young women. Within a nurturing and academically challenging and inclusive environment, the academy strives to develop the whole person’s gifts and potential. Guided by Catholic tradition, and rooted in Gospel values, Mount St. Mary’s empower scholars to be leaders dedicated to lifelong learning, moral integrity, social justice, and service to and inclusion of others.