NCA SI Protocol

NCA's school improvement protocol promotes continuous school improvement by providing a model for schools to follow that identifies student performance goals that focus on student learning, develops a comprehensive plan and measures the results continuously.

School Improvement Resources:

• Data Conversion Tool for Documentation Report
• NCA School Profile Template
• School Improvement Action Plan
• Handbooks "Writing and Evaluating Student Performance Goals" and "Developing the School Profile"
• Preparing the Final Documentation Report
• Documentation Report Template (with Directions)
• Documentation Report Template (blank)
• Strategy Sources
• Professional Learning Communities and the NCA School Improvement Process - Janice K. Colliton, Ph.D.
• Sample Size Chart
• Instructions for Completing the Demographics Update

The rubrics can be found on the NCA-CASI website:

• Peer Review: Documentation Visit Report Form (Chair)

Suggested School Improvement Activities

Phase 1: Making/Renewing the Commitment

• Explain the School Improvement process.
• Re-establish support for the school improvement process.
• Discuss and clarify equity.

• Select steering committee and internal chair.
• Assign tasks (Profile, Timeline).
• Identify roles (Faculty, Administration).

• Examine Environmental Scan data.
• Build the School Profile.
• Analyze profile data.
• Create a triangulation of data to support goals.

• Develop or revisit the mission.
• Select appropriate goals.

• A committee may be appointed for each target area (in a smaller school, this work is done by a committee of the whole).
• The school develops a preliminary improvement plan containing interventions that rely on standardized assessments and locally developed (district, building, classroom) assessments, along with examples of a documentation system to track progress in each target area.

Phase 6-7: Implementing and Monitoring the School Improvement Plan

• Collect Baseline Data.
• The school improvement plan is implemented; student performance is documented; the school improvement plan is monitored and adjusted if appropriate.
• There is continued implementation of the school improvement plan and collection of data; student performance is monitored; the school improvement plan is adjusted, if appropriate.

Phase 7-8: Implementing… Documentation of Results

• There is continued implementation of the school improvement plan and collection of data.
• School assembles documentation including mutiple years of data on student performance in each goal area.
• Documentation serves to inform staff of additional goal areas for further focus.

School will host a Quality Assurance Review (QAR) every 5 years.