NWAIS Accreditation Visit

From March 9 to 12, French International hosted its Northwest Association of Independent Schools (NWAIS) accreditation visit. The re-accreditation is an opportunity for our school to celebrate progress and acknowledge areas for improvement as part of our continuous efforts for growth.

The NWAIS accreditation visit is part of a longer process that begins with a 12—to 18-month self-study during which we evaluate programs, enrollment, advancement, governance, finances, technology, health, facilities and safety. 

The NWAIS process also included a preliminary visit in the fall from the chair and co-chair of the evaluation team. They came to our school in September and met with faculty and staff. They gave us advice on the self-study and prepared our team for what to expect during the spring visit.

The accreditation team arrived on Sunday, March 9. It was comprised of eight school professionals from schools in Washington, Oregon, and Utah. We hosted a welcome reception for the group where they met faculty, staff, and some members of the Board of Trustees.

On Monday morning, everyone hit the ground running with the official visit. Over three days, the team met with all faculty, every member of the leadership team, other administrators, the Board of Trustees, students, and parents. They visited classrooms and observed the school in action from morning drop-off to Aftercare and everything in between. The goal was to get a full picture of our school operations, learning, culture, and environment. Everything that makes us French International!

On Wednesday afternoon, the chair and co-chair of the team met with all French International faculty and staff. The protocol for the final meeting is for the chair and co-chair to read the major commendations and major recommendations. After reading these, the chair and co-chair leave and aren't able to take questions because the data needs to be fully vetted by NWAIS. They send the official report to the NWAIS, and the NWAIS board votes on our school's re-accreditation in early summer. We should receive the official report from the accreditation team in July or August.

The NWAIS, International Baccalaureate Organization, and French Government are the three accrediting bodies that regularly evaluate French International. This holds our school and programs to high standards as we provide a high-quality education to our students. The NWAIS accreditation is an important part of both our Program and Presence pillars. We want to continuously evaluate how we educate our students and establish good relations with our colleagues in independent schools across the Northwest. Thank you to everyone who worked on the self-study and ensured a smooth and fruitful NWAIS accreditation visit.