Seton Home Study School: An Assurance of Academic Excellence

Seton Home Study School is accredited by the Middle States Association Commissions on Elementary and Secondary Schools (MSA-CESS). The MSA is one of the original six regional accreditation agencies established in the United States and today accredits hundreds of schools throughout the world.

Accreditation is a method of quality assurance designed to acknowledge schools that operate with a high standard of educational principles and practices. Accreditation is voluntary, not mandatory.

Seton’s accreditation has benefits both for us as a school, and for you as a family with enrolled students.

Accreditation is not simply a matter of paying a fee and receiving a piece of paper with a seal of approval. Accreditation is much more than that. First, it presupposes a commitment to improvement and excellence in the attitude of the school and staff.

This attitude must be evident in our efforts toward enhancing the quality of the education we provide and the efficiency of our services, so as better to assist our families.

The effectiveness of our practices must be demonstrated to the accrediting agency through a series of performance reports based on self-evaluations and surveys that are submitted during the accreditation period, culminating in an on-site review by MSA members every seven years. In a way, this is like participating in an ongoing audit to make sure we are doing the best job we can.

What accreditation means for us

Looking outward, being accredited is good for Seton Home Study School because it means that Seton is valued in the world of education. An external organization, MSA, assesses Seton for its performance on world-wide established standards, and we meet or exceed those standards.

Because we meet or exceed these standards, and have the accreditation to prove it, Seton is accepted as a peer by other institutions, and this acceptance serves to validate homeschooling in the eyes of educators everywhere.

Looking inward, Seton’s directors and staff use the accreditation process of self-examination to ensure that we always meet or exceed the standards we have set for ourselves as a Catholic homeschool program.

What Accreditation Means For You

Seton Home Study School’s accreditation is good for you because it puts you in a strong position. If family members ask, if local authorities ask, if your neighbors ask, if the parish priest asks, you can answer with confidence that your child is enrolled in a rigorous private school, recognized and accredited as such.

When your high school student submits applications to colleges and universities, admissions committees will recognize the name of Seton Home Study School, and they will not wonder about the readiness of your child. Admissions committees will trust the transcripts because they come from an accredited school.

If you transfer from Seton high school to another high school, your credits are more likely to be accepted by your new school. If you live in a state that maintains stricter regulations concerning homeschooling, you already know how valuable it is to be enrolled in an accredited school.

What Accreditation Does Not Mean

Accreditation does not mean that Seton Home Study School will ever be less Catholic. The accrediting agency does not interfere with our school identity or the school mission. In fact, the accrediting agency’s purpose is to make sure that we are fulfilling our mission.

We state our mission; the accrediting agency does not. Our mission has always been and will always remain the Catholic education of Catholic children in Catholic families.

That strong Catholic standard will never be altered, so you can always depend on Seton to provide you with wholesome materials, solid religious grounding, and a Catholic perspective.

Accreditation also does not mean that Seton Home Study School will become less rigorous in its approach to academics. We recognize that the path to changing our society lies in young people who know how to analyze issues from a Catholic perspective and are able to defend truth.

The Board of Trustees, the president of the school, the faculty and staff of Seton Home Study School remain completely committed to the goal of educating young Catholics to be of strong mind as well as strong principle.

The essential skills of analysis learned in literature, precision and logic learned in mathematics, and coherence learned in English will never be abandoned.

Knowledge of human nature and important ideas learned in history, along with a healthy appreciation for the power of creation learned in science, will continue to be brought home to Seton students, as they pursue an education in advance of what many of their peers undertake elsewhere. Seton Home Study School will not lower its standards.