Strait Area Education-Recreation Centre Celebrated as Region's First Accredited School

Strait Area Education-Recreation Centre has been awarded accreditation through the Nova Scotia School Accreditation Program.

SAERC becomes the Strait Region's first school to receive the distinction.

The accreditation designation culminates five years of work by the Port Hawkesbury high school to set higher standards, increase student achievement and improve the school's overall performance.

"I want to congratulate the staff, students, the school advisory council and the Strait Regional School Board for their commitment to making their already fantastic school even better," Premier Rodney MacDonald said today, April 4, at a ceremony honouring the school.

SAERC was one of eight schools selected in 2002 to pilot the Nova Scotia Accreditation Program, a school-improvement process identified as a priority in Learning For Life II, the province's multi-year plan for education. There are now 229 schools working on school-accreditation plans.

"The Nova Scotia School Accreditation Program ensures that every one of our schools is continually improving, offering quality programs and ensuring that the academic needs of all students are being met," said Education Minister Karen Casey.

SAERC focused its efforts on improving student achievement in mathematics and language arts, and enhancing overall school performance by establishing strategies to improve the school's learning environment. The school demonstrated progress in raising student achievement in mathematics and literacy, and establishing a more welcoming learning environment for its 375 students.

"SAERC is a better place because of the accreditation process," said principal Shaun MacDonald. "It prompted us to look more closely at what we do, how we do it, how well we do it and, most importantly, how we can do it better.

"So many people -- staff, students, parents and members of the community -- are owed a debt of gratitude for their contribution to this initiative."

The school demonstrated to an external review team last June that it had successfully met its goal of improving student achievement in English by increasing the pass rate by 20 per cent. In mathematics, there are more students reaching the highest levels of student achievement and results are improving for students needing support.

The school also met its goal of creating a more safe and welcoming learning environment for students and staff.

The Nova Scotia School Accreditation Program requires schools meet a standard of excellence based on goals that are specific and strategic, measurable, attainable, results-based and timely (SMART).

Under the program, schools establish internal review teams to collect and evaluate data to identify strengths and areas needing improvement. Based on the areas needing improvement, schools develop goals and a five-year school-improvement plan.

The plan is examined by an external review team of independent educators and administrators who visit each school before approving it. Schools implement the improvement plan, and provide annual updates to school advisory councils. An accreditation team returns to the school after four years to assess progress. Schools receive accreditation after they show progress toward improvement-plan goals.