Georgia Accrediting Commission
| File:Georgia Ac Com logo.gif | |
| Founded | 1904 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Dr. Joseph S. Stewart |
| Location |
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| Origins | University of Georgia |
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Area served
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State of Georgia |
| Mission | "To establish standards promoting instruction of high quality for children in Georgia and to encourage schools to meet the established standards."[1] |
| Website | http://www.coe.uga.edu/gac/index.html |
The Georgia Accrediting Commission is a nonprofit educational accreditation organization founded in 1904 "to stimulate the schools to achieve and maintain a high level of professional integrity and competence.[2]" Its purposes are stated as to provide standards for Georgia's schools and to promote high quality education to meet those standards. The organization is governed by the Board of Directors and is financed by the University of Georgia.[1]
History
Walter B. Hill of the University of Georgia hired Dr. Joseph S. Stewart as Professor of Secondary Education July 1, 1903. During the 1903-1904 school year, publishing the first list of accredited schools in 1904.
In 1934 the group held in the Georgia High School Accrediting Commission of a constitution. The Constitution identifies four members must be Georgia College Association, four members of the Association of Schools of Georgia, and the High School Supervisor of the State Department of Education, was to serve as ex officio member. For three years, Mr. TJ Dempsey, Jr., supervisor of the State High School in the State Department of Education, was Secretary of the Georgia High School Accreditation Commission. In 1937, J. Harold Saxon became the University High School Inspector, the title held by Dr. Stewart, and Secretary of the Georgia High School Accreditation Commission. In 1941, the office was moved to the Georgia Department of Education in Atlanta with Mr. WE Pafford serving as Executive Director Georgia High School Accreditation Commission. July 1, 1985, Dr. John Hulsey, Jr., School of Education at Georgia Southern College, succeeded Mr. JA Mize, and the office moved to the campus of Georgia Southern College, Statesboro. In 1941, he became the Official Gazette of the Georgia High School Accrediting Commission, unrelated to any institution. In 1944 the organization changed its name to the Georgia Accrediting Commission and expanded its membership on the Board of Directors to include two representatives from primary schools to be selected by the Association of Directors of the Primary School. In 1947, primary schools were listed as accredited schools. In 1974, the Commission initiated the accreditation of kindergartens. In 1986, the Committee on Education Accredited bodies for special purposes, for the first time.
During the 1989-1990 school year field test standards were developed. The standards were field-tested during the 1990-1991 school year. July 1, 2002, Dr. Carvajal L. Brown, a professor emeritus at the University of Georgia assumed the role of Executive Director.
The Commission began accrediting Non-Traditional Education Centers in August 2005.
When Dr. Stewart started his work, he found four four-year public high schools in the state and seven four-year private high schools in the state. Literally, the development of high schools in the state of Georgia and the Georgia Accrediting Commission parallel each other at every step of the way.[3]
Board of Directors
The Board of Directors is composed of teachers, instructional supervisors, school administrators, Regional Educational Service Agency personnel, Georgia Department of Education personnel, and college personnel.[1]
- Dr. C. Thomas Holmes, Chairman. Professor, Department of Educational Leadership, University of Georgia
- Mr. Graham P. Lowe, Jr., Vice Chairman. Teacher, Deerfield-Windsor School
- Dr. Betsy Box, Director, The Bedford School
- Mr. Adam Brett, Thomas Jefferson Academy
- Ms. Carol Burke, Fannin County Middle School
- Dr. Russell Cook, Director, Northeast Georgia RESA
- Dr. Angela Evans, Kennesaw State University
- Ms. Lucy Floyd, Principal, Franklin County Middle School
- Ms. Jennifer Head, Teacher, Pulaski County Elementary School and Middle School
- Mr. William T. Henry
- Mr. Beauford Hicks, Superintendent, Mitchell County Schools
- Mr. Keith Humphrey, Superintendent, Lanier County Schools
- Dr. Larry Johnson
- Mrs. Teresa McCuen, Assistant Principal – Testing and Gifted Baldwin High School
- Mr. Phillip K. Murphy, Superintendent, Bacon County Board of Education
- Dr. Patti Newman, Principal, Lanier Elementary School
- Ms. Debbie Smoak, Director, Madison Presbyterian Church Preschool
- Dr. Carvin L. Brown, Executive Director
