Coram Deo Academy is currently accredited through Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) which falls under the umbrella of AdvancED.

To earn and maintain accreditation from SACS, schools must:

1. Meet the SACS standards for Quality Schools (see Standards)
2. Engage in continuous improvement
3. Demonstrate quality assurance through internal and external review

Key Dates for Coram Deo Academy's Accreditation Process

December 2006- The Flower Mound campus was accredited
June 2008- The Carrollton (Collin County) campus was accredited
Fall 2010- CDA will apply for District accreditation
Spring 2012- The target date for District accreditation award

Why SACS?

The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) is a non-governmental, voluntary organization that accredits more than 13,000 public and nonpublic institutions from early childhood through university. Since its beginning, the mission of SACS has been to help schools improve student learning. Today, SACS is the largest accrediting agency in the world.

What is accreditation?

An accredited school seeks feedback from an external group of professionals through peer review and is expected to demonstrate quality assurance to its stakeholders.

Accreditation and school improvement involve three major components:

Meeting standards: The school must commit and adhere to the appropriate, research-based standards for accreditation. Every school must demonstrate compliance to an applicable set of standards. A school demonstrates adherence to the standards by an initial self-analysis (Guided Self-Study), annual reviews, and on-site evaluations (Quality Assurance Reviews) every five years.

Engaging in continuous improvement: An accredited school is one dedicated to qualitative development. SACS expects a school to engage in a continuous process of improvement.

Providing for quality assurance: Accredited schools provide quality assurance by delivering on promises and demonstrating institutional integrity. SACS expects the school to demonstrate institutional integrity and trustworthiness within its community and the educational community at large. Focused on results, quality assurance requires a school to document what it has accomplished and use the results to inform future improvements.

Benefits to Schools

• Accreditation provides schools at all levels with a proven process for raising student achievement.
• Accreditation helps ensure that schools have access to the resources necessary for translating their vision into reality.

Benefits to Teachers

• Educators also gain valuable information about effective practices in other schools by serving on Quality Assurance Review teams. Through participation in the accreditation process and use of the resources available from SACS, educators improve their ability to analyze and use data to make sound educational decisions.
• Teachers at accredited schools gain recognition of service toward state certification.

Benefits to Students

• Several recent studies of schools actively engaged in school improvement through accreditation revealed that verifiable gains in student achievement occurred in a significant majority of the schools.
• In addition to raising student achievement, accreditation eases the transfer of credits from one accredited school to another.
• Accreditation benefits students who participate in specific sports programs; apply for federal and state grants and scholarships; or seek admission to military programs, colleges and other postsecondary institutions that require students to come from regionally accredited schools.
• A valedictorian from an accredited private school receives the monetary stipend given by the state of Texas to those attending public schools, amounting to one year free tuition.

Benefits to Parents, Business Community, and General Public

• Accreditation assures parents, the business community, and the public that the school is committed to raising student achievement, providing a safe and enriching learning environment, and maintaining an efficient and effective operation.
• Regional accreditation assures parents, businesses, and the public that an accredited school adheres to standards that are based on successful professional practice and the latest educational research, and that the school is continuously trying to become even more effective.

What does SACS require for teacher qualification?

A teacher must be

"fully qualified to perform the duties assigned… All teaching employees have either a state credential, meet regional accrediting standards, meet national or federal standards or regulations, or a portfolio of educational and professional accomplishments that reveals they are fully qualified to perform the duties assigned to them in the school."