Seven-Year Accreditation Awarded to St. Margaret’s by CAIS and WASC

The California Association of Independent Schools and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges awarded St. Margaret’s a seven-year accreditation, following the completion of a multi-year accreditation process that included a self-study and visit from peer educators.

 

The school received high praise from the visiting CAIS-WASC accreditation team for aspects of St. Margaret’s academic, innovation and student life. Some of the strengths they recognized included:

 

“Receiving a seven-year accreditation term, the longest possible, validates and recognizes the extraordinary St. Margaret’s program that strives for academic excellence, ongoing innovation and a truly transformative experience for our students. This important milestone is a testament to our amazing faculty and staff, our strong leadership team, our visionary Board of Trustees, and many parent volunteers, all of whom are tremendously dedicated to their work with students and our St. Margaret’s mission, core values and vision for the future,” said Head of School Will Moseley. “We are incredibly grateful to Jeneen Graham who led our accreditation process as Academic Dean and ensured we presented ourselves accurately and thoroughly to our accrediting bodies, and to the accreditation team for spending quality time getting to know us and providing valued feedback to our school from which we will continue to grow and advance for our students and families.”

 

The school completed a thorough 262-page self-study detailing every aspect of the school, written as a collaboration by every faculty and staff member on campus and led by 18 steering committee members. The self-study took two years to compile and write, and was submitted to CAIS and WASC in November.

 

Upon completion of the self-study, the final step was a visit by the accreditation team over four days in February. The team, made up of peer educators from schools across California, observed all parts of the school’s academic curriculum, innovative programs and student life. They also held meetings with members of the St. Margaret’s community including school leaders, faculty students, PTF members, church leaders, Breakthrough SJC and Special Camp.

 

Accreditation is a peer-review process that fosters excellence and encourages school improvement through discovery, dialogue and compliance. Through a self-study and visit from peer educators, the process assesses and validates strengths and reveals areas of opportunity. Numerous St. Margaret’s school leaders and faculty have participated in accreditation teams for other NAIS-WASC schools, including Mr. Moseley, Dr. Graham, Chief Financial and Operating Officer David Bush, and Executive Director of Advancement Jonathan Tufo.

 

St. Margaret’s last completed the accreditation process in 2012. The current accreditation is through the 2024-2025 school year.