Our Standards

The Standards of Accreditation, adopted in 2020, are principle-based and focus on educational quality, accreditation clarity, and contextualized flexibility. To assist schools in implementing them, the ATS Board of Commissioners has adopted a set of “self-study ideas” that accompany each standard (see Standards of Accreditation with Self-Study Ideas), as well as a Self-Study Handbook. For further information about how the Standards of Accreditation are implemented and interpreted, schools should also consult the new Policies and Procedures, adopted by the membership and Board in 2020. An annotated version of the new standards with notes explaining various revisions approved in 2020 is also available. The Ten Educational Principles Guiding the Standards of Accreditation provide a broad basis for better understanding the Standards and they articulate key commitments of the Standards.

The ATS Commission also offers an Accrediting Liaison Officer (ALO) Hub, a centralized resource designed to help schools understand and use the Standards of Accreditation and the Policies and Procedures. The Hub includes practical tools, explanations, and tips for anyone involved in accreditation work, including those preparing self-studies or hosting evaluation visits. It is especially helpful for ALOs but is available to anyone who wants to learn how the accreditation process works.

Note about Notations (now warnings)

Previous versions of the Standards of Accreditation and the Policies and Procedures used the term “notation” to refer to instances where a member school was not meeting or not fully meeting one or more standards. The Policies and Procedures now uses the term “warning.” Policies and Procedures III.G describe the term as: “Issuing a warning is a public action (the lowest level of three public sanctions; see III.H-I for the other two) that is taken when the Board determines that an accredited school substantially meets the standards but is at risk of not meeting one or more standards."

"The Board may issue a warning based on information from an evaluation committee (for a comprehensive or focused visit), a required report, regular monitoring activities, or other appropriate sources. Issuing a warning is a reviewable action (see VIII.A).” Section III.G.1 of that document further states: “In issuing a warning, the Board will cite the standard(s) that the school is at risk of not meeting and stipulate any reports and/or visits required of the school, within a timeframe specified in the Board’s action letter to the school [typically not to exceed two years].”