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## International Affairs Office, U.S. Department of Education 12/2007

<http://www.ed.gov/international/usnei/us/accred-school.doc>

Accreditation and Quality Assurance:

School-Level Accreditation

There are no specific federal laws or regulations governing the
recognition of associations that accredit primary and secondary schools,
and the U.S. Department of Education has no oversight role with respect
to school accreditation. Most states have laws requiring or encouraging
accreditation for public schools and state-chartered private schools.

Schools that possess accreditation and state approval by authorities
recognized at the state level are considered to be recognized schools in
the U.S. education system. In addition, private schools that are
accredited by other associations recognized by the federal Departments
of Defense, Homeland Security and State are also considered to be
recognized.

FEDERAL RESOURCES

While the federal government has no control over school-level education,
it does recognize and support overseas U.S. public and private schools
as well as approve domestic schools that seek to admit international
students.

[**SEVIS Approved Schools
Map**](http://www.ice.gov/sevis/map/approvedschoolsmap.htm) is the
Department of Homeland Security's interactive directory of schools
approved to admit international students. It includes both secondary and
postsecondary entries.

[**Office of Overseas Schools**](http://www.state.gov/m/a/os/) is the
Department of State's agency assisting international private schools
offering U.S.-style education. It includes links to recognized schools
and associations.

[**Department of Defense Education Activity
(DODEA)**](http://www.dodea.edu/home/index.cfm) provides information and
links to overseas U.S. public schools recognized and operated by the
federal government to serve the children of U.S. personnel stationed
abroad.

STATE RESOURCES

States approve or license, and in some cases accredit, public and
private schools operating within their jurisdictions.

[**ECS Guide to State School Accreditation
Standards**](http://www.ecs.org/clearinghouse/14/38/1438.htm) provides
information on state regulations and references to relevant state laws.
Compiled in 1998.

[**ECS Guide to Recent State Activities in
Accreditation**](http://www.ecs.org/html/IssueSection.asp?issueid=5&s=What+States+Are+Doing)
provides update information on changes in state accreditation policies
since 1998.

[**CCSSO Interactive Map of State Education Agency
Websites**](http://www.ccsso.org/chief_state_school_officers/state_education_agencies/index.cfm)
provides links to state websites, where information on school
accreditation can be found.

ACCREDITING AGENCIES

Schools are accredited by various agencies, including the school
commissions of the regional accrediting agencies (public and many
private schools) plus other national agencies.

Each of the recognized regional accrediting agencies for postsecondary
institutions also has one or more commissions for the accreditation of
schools. These include:

> [**Middle States Association Commission on Elementary Schools
> (MES-CES)**](http://www.ces-msa.org/)
>
> [**Middle States Association Commission on Secondary Schools
> (MES-CSS)**](http://www.css-msa.org/)
>
> [**Middle States Association Commission on Institution-Wide
> Accreditation (MES-CIWA)**](http://www.ciwa-msa.org/)
>
> [**New England Association Commission on American and International
> Schools Abroad (NEASC-CAISA)**](http://www.neasc.org/caisa/caisa.htm)
>
> [**New England Association Commission on Independent Schools
> (NEASC-CIS)**](http://www.neasc.org/cis/cis.htm)
>
> [**New England Association Commission on Public Elementary and Middle
> Schools (NEASC-CPEMS)**](http://www.neasc.org/cpes/cpes.htm)
>
> [**New England Association Commission on Public Secondary Schools
> (NEASC-CPSS)**](http://www.neasc.org/cpss/cpss.htm)
>
> [**North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School
> Improvement (NCACASI)**](http://www.ncacasi.org/)
>
> [**Northwest Association of Accredited Schools
> (NAAS)**](http://www.boisestate.edu/naas/)
>
> [Southern Association Commission on Accreditation and School
> Improvement (SACSCASI)](http://www.sacscasi.org/)

[Western Association Accrediting Commission for Schools
(ACSWASC)](http://www.acswasc.org/)

[**Commission on International and Transregional Accreditation
(CITA)**](http://citaschools.org/) is an organization of 6 recognized
school accreditation agencies, providing information on standards,
procedures, and accredited schools in the United States and elsewhere.

[**National Association of Independent Schools
(NAIS)**](http://www.nais.org/about/index.cfm?itemnumber=145844&sn.ItemNumber=14828&tn.ItemNumber=10241)
provides information on private school accreditation and links to
recognized state accrediting agencies and accredited schools.

[**National Council for Private School Accreditation
(NCPSA)**](http://www.ncpsa.org/) is an organization of 17 state and
national accrediting agencies for private schools that adhere to similar
standards. The site provides links to associations and accredited
schools.

See also: [Postsecondary
Accreditation](http://www.ed.gov/international/usnei/us/accred-postsec.doc)

**[Federal Recognition and
Approval](http://www.ed.gov/international/usnei/us/accred-fed.doc)**

**[State Approval of Schools and Postsecondary
Institutions](http://www.ed.gov/international/usnei/us/accred-state.doc)**

**[Other Quality Assurance
Provisions](http://www.ed.gov/international/usnei/us/qualassurance.doc)**

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