A testament to continuous improvement
The right accreditation agency can help Catholic schools navigate the complexities of complying with the requirements of both government and Catholic education authorities while enhancing their reputations among prospective students. Loyola Academy, a Catholic, Jesuit college preparatory high school on the North Shore of Chicago, formed an accreditation partnership that has lasted for more than a century.
When Tim Devine became principal of Loyola Academy in 2023, Cognia had been the school’s accreditation partner for 110 years. Cognia’s approach compared very favorably to the many overly complex models Devine had seen in the past. He was especially struck by the nonprofit’s focus on continuous improvement, and the simple but elegant “if-then” structure in its theory of action methodology. Loyola Academy’s faculty’s experiences with Cognia have helped them understand that regular reflection on meaningful quantitative and qualitative data enables them to improve students’ pedagogical experiences. The school even expanded training on Cognia’s Effective Learning Environments Observation Tool® (eleot®) during the summer of 2023, enhancing the objectivity and effectiveness of classroom evaluations. Devine reported that the synergy between the nonprofit and Loyola ensures everyone is on the same page regarding goals and the means of achieving those goals.