Pictured above: Students in Katie’s 1-2 Class on Mackworth Island back in 2011...when we last had our NEASC accreditation year.
This year, faculty and staff, with support from parents and board members, engaged in a yearlong self-study for the renewal of our accreditation through the New England Association of Schools and Colleges. The process began in the spring and summer of 2021, with preparation for an October “Foundation Visit.” In October, members of the evaluation committee visited FSP to meet with administrators and review documents and self-study materials related to the foundational (non-program) areas of the school: enrollment, governance, resources, staffing, and health and safety. The visiting committee made some helpful suggestions around health and safety protocols, and they supported our conclusions and goals around staffing, diversity, and enrollment.
Beginning during our August staff days in 2021 and continuing until March, teachers worked together to examine all aspects of our program. This process culminated with the submission of a report outlining the conclusions, questions, and aspirations that came out of our program self-study in advance of an in-depth “program visit.” On May 2-3, a visiting team of five educators came to campus to visit classes; meet with each staff member; and review policies, procedures, and curriculum documents.
The final report was submitted to the NEASC board by the visiting team in June. We expect to hear official news of our successful accreditation renewal this summer.
The key takeaways from the visiting committee’s report can be found in their list of major commendations and major recommendations, which are included below. The recommendations are all reflections of goals that our own self-study identified.
Major Commendations:
The Visiting Committee commends FSP for cultivating a mission-driven experience which permeates aspects of the life of the school.
The Visiting Committee commends FSP teachers for their dedication to their ongoing learning, curriculum development, devotion for honing their craft, noteworthy communication with parents, and for their genuine support of their students’ intellectual and emotional growth.
The Visiting Committee commends FSP for recognizing, valuing, and nurturing the unique reality of every student at each stage of their development and creating a safe, joyful experience for their learners.
Major Recommendations:
The visiting committee recommends FSP proceed with plans and coordination of the next Strategic Plan to address space, enrollment, staffing, technology, alternate revenue streams, plans for community outreach, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion work, and fundraising priorities.
The visiting committee recommends FSP devise communications structures to revisit, realign, and collaborate on aligning their vertical and cross-discipline curriculum, visual identities within the classrooms and community space, and instructional practices.
The Visiting Committee recommends FSP devote dedicated discernment time to its redesign of the Middle School program as it reaches its full capacity next year.
Friends believe that truth is continually revealed. In this spirit, we also understand that growth, learning, and improvement are a continual process. We welcome this feedback as one part of the ongoing process of reflection and revision.
The NEASC work has also afforded us an opportunity to reflect on FSP’s tremendous growth in the eleven years since our initial accreditation, and to recognize the remarkable constancy of the things we hold at our core. In 2011, at the time of our initial accreditation, FSP had an enrollment of 85 students and was in the process of looking for a permanent home. The 2011 visitors commended the school for the staff’s dedication to living the mission and establishing a culture of joyful learning, a culture that continues today.
Taken together, recommendations from our own reflection process and the committee’s insights have given us an excellent foundation to guide our professional work in the next five years as well as a starting place from which to launch next year’s Strategic Planning process. We are excited to use our NEASC work to cherish and preserve those things that make us FSP while we continue to grow into our future.