Accreditation
St. Mary’s High School is a St. Louis Archdiocesan High School accredited by the North Central Association: Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement. North Central Accreditation Seals are recognized across the United States and around the world.
To Be Accredited, Schools Must:
Meet High Standards--The standards require that the school has a clear vision and purpose; has effective and responsive leadership; has a rigorous curriculum taught through sound, research-based methods; collects, reports and uses performance results; provides adequate resources and support for its educational programs; and values and communicates with its stakeholders.
Engage in Continuous Improvement--Schools must implement an improvement plan based on student performance and school/community data that include clear goals for raising the achievement of all students. Schools also must document growth in student performance and organizational effectiveness.
Demonstrate Quality Assurance through External Review--Schools must be evaluated by a team of professionals from outside the school on a periodic basis.
North Central Accreditation through the AdvancEd Process
Since 1931, St. Mary’s High School has been participating in the Missouri High Schools Accreditation process. The idea of school accreditation was first developed more than 100 years ago by American universities and secondary schools. Maintaining accreditation is of the utmost importance to every educational institution in the United States. While the process and the accreditation agency names have changed over the years, being accredited becomes even more important to American high schools as we take on expanded curriculums, diverse populations and the demands of preparing students for a rapidly changing future. When a school is accredited, stakeholders can be assured that the school has qualified teachers, a rich and sound curriculum, a range of student activities and support services and transferability of credits from school to school. To keep accreditation the school must meet the AdvancED standards, engage in a continuous process of improvement and demonstrate quality assurance through internal and external review.
“The standards require that a school have a clear vision and purpose, effective and responsive leadership, and a rigorous curriculum taught through sound, research-based methods. In addition, a school must collect, report, and use performance results, provide adequate resources and support for its educational programs, and communicate effectively with all stakeholders. To demonstrate continuous improvement, schools must implement an improvement plan based on student performance and school/community data that include clear goals for raising the achievement of all students. Schools also must document growth in student performance and organizational effectiveness.”
(AdvancED, Advancing Excellence in Education Worldwide document, 2009)
If you would like to read more about the Quality Assurance Review (QAR) visit from October 2010, click here. St. Mary's is proud to have received extraordinary recognition and an outstanding 4 commendations. Should you have any questions about the St. Mary’s accreditation process, please do not hesitate to contact me. May God bless each and every parent, alum and friend of SMHS. We could not do this without you!
Jane Goff
Associate Principal
A Marianist Education
Catholic High School serving young men in the Marianist tradition.
Characteristics of Marianist Education (CME):
- Educate for formation in faith
- Provide an integral, quality education
- Educate in family spirit
- Educate for service, justice and peace
- Educate for adaptation and change