Missouri School Improvement Program
The Missouri School Improvement Program has the responsibility of reviewing and accrediting the 524 school districts in Missouri within a five-year review cycle. The process of accrediting school districts is mandated by state law, and the specific responsibilities of this section are outlined both by State Board Rule and in Senate Bill 380.
School district reviews are conducted each year for approximately twenty percent (20%) of the 524 districts, and reports covering the areas of resource, process and performance are developed. These reports are reviewed by a Department School Improvement Committee and a summary of each report and the committee's recommendations regarding accreditation for each district are presented to the State Board of Education for its approval. Each district also submits a School Improvement Plan which addresses the concerns identified in the review report and may request a re-review in order to improve its accreditation rating.
This section's primary responsibilities include conducting training sessions (for team leaders, team members, counselors, superintendents and others), mailing and processing materials used in the review process (advance questionnaires, team training materials, team member packets, district procedures handbook, and performance worksheets), arranging for the on-site review, overseeing the total review process, serving as team leaders or team members, coordinating school reviews mandated through other sections (i.e., vocational, special education, special state and federal programs, etc.), extracting and processing information for the resource and performance reports, and editing and correcting the three sections of the reports after the on-site review.
Staff members (including the ten Area Supervisors) provide technical assistance on the MSIP process to district personnel individually and through training sessions held throughout the state, through a variety of printed materials and through the School Improvement Plan development and review processes. Assistance in carrying out on-site reviews is provided by Department staff members from other sections, teachers and administrators from local districts and representatives from higher education.