St. Croix Central High School has received full accreditation from the Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools, ending a period of probationary accreditation.
The news came in a letter from the commission pre-dated Dec. 1, and was contained in a Saturday news release from Gov. John deJongh, Jr.
“This is great news for the students, faculty and staff of CHS," deJongh said in the statement. "I am pleased that through determination and hard work, critical areas were addressed to the satisfaction of Middle States and the once-issued probationary accreditation was lifted and full accreditation granted."
The accreditation takes effect Tuesday and is good for three years.
The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools is one of six regional accrediting organizations for higher education institutions recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation and the United States Department of Education. Middle States is responsible for accrediting educational institutions in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico as well as the U.S. Virgin Islands.
DeJongh’s announcement noted that there were several issues that had resulted in the probationary status, primarily the school’s electrical system, the renovation of the vocational buildings and the installation of lockers, and he congratulated the school staff and the Department of Education for their hard work in resolving them.
“These were long-standing issues and through a joint cooperative approach by the two departments, they have been addressed," the governor said. "The three areas require additional monitoring to see that the projects are brought to completion, but enough work was completed to satisfy the requirements of MSA.”
In the Official Notification of Accreditation document, Middle States Commission President Henry Cram noted that Central High meets all standards for accreditation; it adheres to all MSA policies and meets the requirements of the self-study protocol used.
In receiving the news, Education Commissioner LaVerne Terry said accreditation was achieved because of the perseverance, hard work and dedication of many, who over the years made it their mission to ensure that Central High School would be fully accredited.
“The Central High School administrators, faculty, students, staff and school community should be commended for this great accomplishment. I want to also commend Commissioner Darryl Smalls and his staff at the Department of Public Works for working with the Department of Education and the Central High School to ensure that this dream could be realized. “
Central High School Principal Chermaine Hobson-Johnson said Saturday she was pleased that the school is now fully accredited.
“On behalf of the school’s administration, faculty, staff and student body, I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who worked tirelessly towards this goal for Central High School," Hobson-Johnson said. "We are also mindful that accreditation is an ongoing process. We must prepare ourselves to work as diligently to maintain this accreditation as we did to secure Central’s full accreditation. I am very pleased with the decision that has been rendered by Middle States to grant CHS full accreditation.”