MO School Improvement Program

The Missouri School Improvement Program has the responsibility of reviewing and accrediting the 520 school districts in Missouri. The process of accrediting school districts is mandated by state law and by State Board of Education regulation.

There are three types of MSIP reviews conducted during the 4th cycle.  Mini reviews that check statutory compliance fare for districts with full MSIP waivers.  Districts that are fully accredited but not fully waived receive reviews that are focused on the performance areas that are not showing adequate improvement.  Full reviews are reserved for districts with Annual Performance Reports (APR) indicating Provisional or Unaccredited status.  Reports for all districts are developed.  These reports (except for the mini reviews) are reviewed by the Department School Improvement Committee for clarity and consistency.  Recommendations regarding accreditation status are presented to the State Board of Education for its approval.  Each district must maintain and implement a comprehensive School Improvement Plan which addresses any concerns identified in the MSIP report.

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 eleven 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.