Welcome A Message from the Director Welcome to the Colorado State Office of the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement (NCA CASI), also know as Colorado North Central. We proudly accredit approximately 150 schools across the state including early childhood centers; public elementary, middle and high schools; faith-based schools; college prep schools; and post-secondary/vocational schools. Our member schools serve student populations ranging from 12 to more than 3,000 for a total of more than 113,000 students in Colorado NCA accredited schools.
Now, it is time to take a closer look at Colorado NCA CASI. While we have provided quality accreditation and consulting services since the early 1900s, we are responding to the current realities of accountability and accreditation in our state and across the country by instituting a new accreditation process. NCA CASI, along with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Council on Accreditation and School Improvement (SACS CASI) and the National Study of School Evaluation (NSSE), joined together to form one strong unified organization called AdvancED.
As our parent organization, AdvancED brings research-based accreditation standards. Accompanying these standards is a unified, clear and powerful accreditation process designed to help schools continuously improve. This new accreditation process helps accredited schools examine their improvement efforts using a systemic approach encompassing the schoolwide tasks, processes and conditions that support continuous improvement and alignment toward better student performance. This process engages the entire school community in a continuous process of self-evaluation, reflection, and improvement.
In addition, accredited schools receive valuable feedback on a cyclical basis from knowledgeable colleagues participating on Quality Assurance Review teams. Visiting team members regularly report that they have benefited as much as anyone from the experience of serving on a team. We all get better with NCA CASI!
I hope you'll take a closer look at us and AdvancED to see how we have improved to better meet the needs of Colorado schools.
Russ Ramsey, Director
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