Catholic schools to take part in Middle States Accreditation

Twenty-six Catholic elementary schools in the Diocese of Buffalo will participate in the diocese’s System Accreditation with Middle States Accreditation (MSA). Previous to this year, the Diocese of Buffalo was the only diocese in New York that didn’t require accreditation of its schools.  More than 90 percent of Catholic schools nationwide achieve some type of school accreditation.

The first step of accreditation is a self-study which has begun this school year. One of the major steps of a self-study is surveying stakeholders. All 26 schools (24 parish, two regional) will launch their student and adult surveys during Catholic Schools Week. Students in grades 5-8 will be asked to complete the survey in school during the week of Jan. 29. All adult stakeholders (administrators, teachers, staff members and parents/guardians) will be emailed a survey to be completed by Feb. 9.

“This survey effort represents our public launch of accreditation and we hope it will signal to our parents our commitment to school improvement,” said Dr. Timothy Uhl, secretary of Education/Superintendent for the diocese.

The surveys cover perceptions about school quality, climate, and needs for the future. The diocesan District Planning team will analyze the survey results from school and diocesan perspectives to formulate action plans for improvement.

“As a principal who has guided a school through accreditation before, I find the MSA surveys to be a very valuable resource,” said Maria Wangler, principal at Christ the King Catholic School and co-chair of the District Planning team.