Over the next 18 months, the entire school community will engage in the E3 process together by:
Creating a robust data library by
Collecting data specified by WCEA
Soliciting information from students and parents via survey
Collecting data specified by our work
Analyzing the data
Creating a 5-year plan
Hosting a visiting committee of Catholic School educators who will
Review data and documents
Visit all classes
Meet with stakeholders
Verify the Catholic educational quality of the school
Submit a recommendation for Accreditation Status
Wait for the Accreditation Status from the WCEA Secondary Commission
According to the requirements of WCEA accreditation, there are seven overarching principles that a school is meant to observe:
The Authenticity of the School’s Catholic Identity
The Organizational Efficacy of the School
The Excellence of Teaching and Learning
The Vitality of the Co-Curricular Programs
The Stewardship of Material Resources
The Commitment to Improvement
The Integrity of the Process of a Self-Study
Among these principles, authentic Catholic identity is considered the unifying thread and the heart of the accreditation process. In all its understandings and operations, a Catholic school should have a two-fold orientation: toward God and toward human life. This is formation in Christ and culture. Though each of the remaining six principles has inherent significance, Excellence of Teaching and Learning carries the greatest weight, because it constitutes the formation of students, followed by the Commitment to Improvement.
“Members of the O’Dowd community are eager to engage the WCEA E3 process with honesty, integrity, and inclusivity. This process of reflection will allow the school to celebrate its many and varied successes and strengths, but even more importantly, to discern and commit to mission-centered, data-informed, and innovative ways to improve the educational experience of our students,” Downs said.