South Shore Vocational Technical High School : NEASC Accreditation Visit for October 2013

South Shore Vo-Tech is in the midst of preparing for an October 2013 visit. Thirty educators from across New England will spend four days at the school as part of the decennial accreditation process sponsored by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.

Below is a press release on this topic which includes our recently adopted school mission and goals.

I want to thank all of our faculty members who are undertaking this process as a means for reflecting on the school's strengths and areas for future growth. This accreditation visit will help us chart the next 10 years of vocational technical education for the South Shore Vo-Tech community.

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South Shore Vocational Technical High School

Press Release

September 17, 2012

Superintendent-Director Tom Hickey announced that the South Shore Vocational Technical High School is undergoing a yearlong self-study process as part of its October 2013 accreditation visit from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC).

The NEASC self-study process involves faculty and the South Shore Vo-Tech community. “We are committed to ongoing data collection and reflection on how our school fulfills its mission, and we welcome this review,” Hickey said. On October 7-10, 2013, a team of 30 vocational and academic educators from New England will evaluate all aspects of the school’s operations.

Hickey noted that a Steering Committee was formed last year to oversee all aspects of this self-study and accreditation visit process. The Steering Committee co-chairs are Math instructor Jane Lombardi and Electronics instructor Vincent Barba, along with Mark Aubrey, Jeanne Boretti, Toni Bourgea, Matthew Fallano, Christopher Johnson, Alison Thibodeau, and Bob Francis.

“Our steering committee and entire faculty and staff are committed to getting the most out of this valuable exercise,” Hickey said. Last school year the faculty and School Committee approved a revised school mission and goals statement. The revision from 2007 preserves the school’s core vocational mission in the 21^st century.

SOUTH SHORE VOCATIONAL TECHNICAL SCHOOL MISSION AND GOALS

Mission Statement

To provide technical, academic, and social experiences so that our students can do the following:

■ be college- and career-pathway ready;

■ achieve competency in technical and academic standards; and

■ develop work habits that foster independence, self-awareness, civic-mindedness, and commitment to personal growth.

SCHOOL AND STAKEHOLDER GOALS

In order to fulfill our mission, the SSVT community will use the goals below as a guide to assess our current effectiveness and to plan for the future.

School Goals

1. School Climate: Provide our students with a safe and supportive environment that empowers them to develop advanced technical, academic, and social skills for college and career pathways.

2. Facility: Maintain a clean, safe, environmentally- and fiscally-conscious facility that meets the needs of the school and community.

3. Community: Utilize multiple means of communication to engage current and prospective all students, parents, staff, and program advisors.

4. Curriculum & Instruction: Teach current core content and technical standards to develop students who are college- and career-pathway ready.

5. Assessment: Measure and report student achievement and work habits based on technical, vocational, and core content standards, and to use these results to improve instruction.

6. Transfer Skills: Identify and develop skills that cross all content areas, such as critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, work ethic, and sense of personal responsibility.

7. Literacy Practices: Identify and develop strategies to build strong content knowledge by responding to the varying demands of audience, task, purpose, and discipline in a variety of forms.

8. Equipment & Technology: Utilize current industry-standard equipment for our vocational technical programs, and current instructional technology tools and resources for all programs.

9. Student Engagement: Help students develop strong, positive relationships with teachers and peers via co-curricular and extracurricular programs that shape their intellectual, physical, social/emotional development, and work ethic.

10. Instructional Support: Provide a continuum of support services to help all learners meet their academic and technical goals.

11. Student Recruitment and Retention: Implement recruitment and retention strategies that lead to sustained full school enrollment, steady student retention, and preparation for college- and career-pathways.

Staff Recruitment and Retention: Identify, recruit, develop, and support highly qualified administrators, instructors, and support staff dedicated to fulfilling the school’s mission.

Stakeholder Goals

South Shore Vocational Technical High School’s success depends on its stakeholders: people who have a shared interest and commitment to the school district. South Shore Vocational Technical High School’s stakeholders will strive to meet the following goals:

Our School Committee, School Council, Parents’ Association, and Educational Foundation will support the mission of the school by advocating for resources and actions that ensure continuous school improvement.
Our instructors, administration, and support staff will develop strong, positive relationships with our students and parents. Faculty and administration will stay current in program and academic standards, will use effective strategies to help students learn, and will support students’ enthusiasm for their studies. Instructors and administrators will assume the primary responsibility for achieving school goals. Support staff will provide essential services that assist in the overall school mission and function of the school district.
Our industry partners, area colleges, program advisors, alumni, and co-op employers can support our students with relevant and challenging experiences that complement their high school education. They will provide SSVT instructors and administrators with advice on how to consistently improve our capacity to fulfill our mission.
Our parents will develop strong, positive relationships with the school and their children’s teachers. They will remain informed about school activities, and be active participants in the emotional and intellectual development of their children.
Our students will be college-and career-pathway ready, able to think critically, problem solve, and listen actively in their shop, workplace, and classroom setting. Our students will be self-aware, understanding the value of strong work habits. They will take initiative, and they will be innovative and tolerant.