By Delphine Michaud, Lower School Director
“It was great to be part of a process that deeply explored all aspects of our school and incorporated parent voice in such a meaningful way. I learned a lot more about ISB and have an even greater appreciation for our successes as well as the areas that need to be developed. I’m grateful for the role I played in this process. We’re halfway there! Thank you to the parents and ISB staff who helped us achieve the departmental reports for the first phase of our NYSAIS self-study work.” – ISB Parent
This year, ISB embarked on the New York State Association of Independent Schools accreditation process. This process includes a year-long self-study, culminating in a report that will be written and submitted to NYSAIS by June 2014. Next year, a NYSAIS visiting committee, made up of educators from other New York independent schools, will come to visit ISB for three days, assessing the information shared in our report and, ultimately, making recommendations to NYSAIS regarding accreditation for ISB.
Beginning this past November, the ISB community (faculty, administrators, and parents) began an in-depth examination of how ISB lives out its mission through its activities, policies, and best practices. The process of the self-study asks representatives from every part of the ISB community to reflect on the institution, where it is today, and its evolution since the last self-study, which in our case really means from Year 1 of ISB’s existence. This process is also an opportunity to celebrate ISB’s accomplishments with an eye toward the future, using the in-depth research and reflections that arise from the committee work to guide future strategic planning.
Co-chairs Delphine Michaud and Laura John-Mora began the first phase of this work by asking ISB community members to sit on committees. Each of these groups – comprised of parents, administrators, and faculty members – was asked to focus on one of ten specific sections related to ISB’s work (see list below). Committee members participated in three two-hour meetings, during which they reflected on a set of guiding questions related their committee’s focus area, finishing their Phase 1 work by compiling their findings into a report.
These reports have now been submitted by the Phase 1 committees for review and editing by the co-chairs in preparation for Phase 2 of ISB’s self-study.
The co-chairs are now busy reaching out to parents, faculty members, and administrators to form committees for the second phase of the self-study. Each of these new committees will take on the task of carefully reading and reviewing one of the Phase 1 committee reports. The goal of each Phase 2 committee is to bring a strong, probing, and critical perspective to the assigned Phase 1 report, generating recommendations and clarifying questions to ensure that the final version is complete and reflective of that department’s successes and challenges. The co-chairs will also be reaching out to ISB’s Student Council leaders in order to incorporate the student voice into the self-study report.
With just half of the self-study process complete, ISB’s strong and engaged community of parents and staff have shared such thoughtful reflections and insights about the school, and the co-chairs look forward to the next phase of the process.
Stay tuned for more NYSAIS self-study updates in the coming months.
