Cognia recognizes 59 schools and 20 systems across the globe with award for excellence in education.


Cognia, the global school improvement organization that helps grow learners, teachers, and leaders, has launched an annual recognition program for Cognia accredited schools and districts. The Schools of Distinction earn this recognition based on the results of Cognia’s rigorous accreditation engagement review process. The 2021 Schools of Distinction listing (appeared) on the Cognia website.

“Congratulations to the schools and systems for demonstrating excellence in education in meeting the Cognia Performance Standards based on the results of their 2020–2021 accreditation reviews,” said Cognia President and CEO Dr. Mark A. Elgart. “Having earned the School of Distinction recognition, each of these institutions provides evidence of growth in learning, maintains a healthy culture for learning, supports engaging and high-quality instructional environments, and demonstrates effective leadership for learning.”

Member institutions in Cognia’s Global Network may seek accreditation. They participate in a rigorous evaluation process that includes a period of self-assessment, an evaluation conducted by trained external, third-party evaluators, and an improvement phase focused on the results of the evaluation. Cognia’s Performance Standards for accreditation are based on ever-expanding research and understanding of learning and define high-quality education for today and tomorrow’s world. Once an institution is accredited, it engages in a similar engagement review every five years to maintain accreditation. The schools and systems announced today are recognized for the results of their Accreditation Engagement Review in 2020–21.

During the 2020–21 school year, Cognia conducted more than 1,200 school engagement reviews for accreditation. This year, 59 schools and 20 systems have been recognized. The number of institutions reviewed and those that earn this designation will vary from year to year. Winners carry the designation for one year.

About Cognia

Cognia is a global, nonprofit improvement organization dedicated to helping institutions and other education providers grow learners, teachers, and leaders. Cognia offers accreditation and certification, assessment, and professional services within a framework of continuous improvement. Serving 36,000 public and private institutions from early learning through high school in more than 90 countries, Cognia brings a global perspective to advancing teaching and learning.