NEASC & International Baccalaureate
Understanding the NEASC & IB Accreditation Process
ACSD is proud to be the first U.S. public school district to undertake the unified approach toward joint accreditation by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) and International Baccalaureate (IB).
NEASC and IB are independent nonprofit organizations that support schools with best educational practices. Our partnerships with them offer guidance and resources for our schools. They each offer their own process to evaluate schools:
-
NEASC focuses on whole-school improvement and growth. NEASC accreditation evaluates the health and function of our district and schools in their entirety, including organizational structure, safety, finance, and resources.
-
IB provides the framework for our curriculum. Their evaluation assesses how our schools and educators are learning and working together to implement a high-quality curriculum for all students.
District-wide accreditation encourages a vertically aligned PK-12 approach to goals, promotes cohesiveness across a district, and supports district initiatives and priorities.
Students, staff, and community members formed ‘Learning Principle Teams’ to analyze evidence submitted by our educators toward NEASC and IB reaccreditation. In April 2025, the LP Teams presented their findings for how these learning principles show up in ACSD. Highlights included evidence of a deep commitment to real-world learning, collaboration, reflection, inclusion, and student-centered practices across our schools PK-12th grade classrooms and schools.
Where are we now? We are now in the final phase of our NEASC/IB accreditation process. In October 2025 a team of professionals from IB and NEASC will join us for a series of meetings for our final peer evaluation visit.
In 2023, principals from our nine ACSD schools submitted reports to NEASC. These reports assessed each school and the District against the NEASC foundational standards. The NEASC visiting team issued an initial report in May 2024 highlighting areas of need. The team returned in the Fall of 2024. You can read their report here.
In the 2024-2025 school year, we entered the evidence-gathering phase of assessment, where we sought parent and community involvement to assess how our school communities and districts are doing.
- We reflected and gathered evidence about what is happening in our schools. This reflection helped us determine if the work we’re doing in our schools is having the impact we intend.
- This was a wonderful process for our community because, for the most part, it didn't involve extra work, but simply meant sharing the good work our teacher and staff are already doing.
- This evidence let us go beyond standardized math and literacy data to tell the whole story of our schools. It showed us where we are thriving and where we need to lean in to strengthen our work.
What role have our staff, caregivers, and community members played?
Over the past 2 years, everyone has played a role in this process. In 2024, the NEASC/IB team visited and met with administrators, staff, students, teachers, and caregivers. In 2024-2025, we entered the evidence gathering phase where we assessed the ACSD community on 5 (LP 1, 3, 6, 7, and 9) of NEASC’s Learning Principles. Our teachers and staff, students, caregivers, and community members submitted evidence toward the 5 Learning Principles. We then created 5 Learning Principle Teams based on the 5 Learning Principles we picked. The teams were made up of ACSD teachers, staff, students, parents, and community members. The teams will assessed the evidence submitted and presented back to the ACSD community about how we are doing toward each standard.
NEASC & IB ACCREDITATION
