The AdvancED external Quality Assurance Review (QAR) team has announced that it will recommend Dalton Public Schools for five-year accreditation. Dr. Drew Moore, lead evaluator, presented the findings of the team after their 3-day visit to the district during a special called meeting Wednesday of the Dalton Board of Education.
Dr. Moore, Louisiana Council Accreditation Committee member and Field Consultant, expressed appreciation for all the work by the schools and district on the accreditation process. He stated that the team had visited 27 classrooms during their visit and had found our students to be extremely well behaved and respectful to their teachers and peers. The team interviewed 48 students, 35 teachers, 27 parents, 26 administrators, 7 support staff, and 5 school board members—a total of 128 stakeholders.
Dr. Moore said the external review process provides important validation and recognition, and delivers valuable feedback and direction for improvement. Its purpose is to evaluate the system, and that the standard ratings are indicators of how the system supports teachings and learning. He said that most schools and systems score between 2’s and 3’s on Standards, and almost no 4’s—4 is reserved for practices not commonly found among systems.
Dalton Public Schools received the following ratings for the five AdvancED Standards:
- Purpose and Direction – 3.0
- Governance and Leadership – 3.0
- Teaching and Assessing for Learning – 2.5
- Resources and Support Systems – 2.88
- Using Results for Continuous Improvement – 2.2
The team presented two required actions for the district:
- Develop a systemic alignment process to guide all practices, provide direction and support for schools, and maintain focus on the vision, mission and the product of the district.
- Assess the equity and implementation of current technology across the system to identify gaps, address needs, and guarantee readiness for the future through the revision of the current technology plan.
The QAR team recommended that Dalton Public Schools be granted another five-year term of accreditation, pending further review and final action by the AdvancED Accreditation Commission.
Dr. Moore thanked the other team members including Monika Wiley, Clayton County Schools; Kelly Wilson, Trion City Schools; Stacy Dickey, Lowndes County Schools; and Dr. Angela Pruitt, Lee County Schools (FL).
The board approved the report as presented.
dpsschools.wordpress.com 