Early Childhood Program

The New England Association of Schools and Colleges, through its Commission on Public Elementary and Middle Schools, recently voted to begin the process of accrediting free standing pre-school programs.  The Commission currently interacts with pre-schools through the elementary accreditation process. Pre-school programs in and of themselves are not accredited, but the school which houses the pre-school is permitted to extend the range of its accreditation to Pre-K. For example: a K-5 school that wishes its pre-school program to be included in the accreditation process will be accredited PreK-5. Pre-school programs, up to this point, have not been treated as stand alone units. 

 

The Commission has now initiated action to develop NEASC standards and protocols for stand alone early childhood education programs, devising a specific protocol for self study and peer review and follow-up. The Commission views this as an opportunity to ensure that early childhood programs are quality programs with an opportunity for continuous self-improvement and alignment with the other schools within its public school system.

Currently, the Commission on Public Elementary and Middle Schools has developed a self-study document, based on the State of Connecticut’s Standards for Preschool and Readiness Programs (CT PLUS), which is the foundation of the Early Childhood Program self-assessment process. Schools must complete the self-study process in a timely fashion, clearly identify strengths and needs of the school in relation to the CT PLUS standards, and be prepared to present the results of the self-study to a peer review committee for on-site review and verification.