AISB has been providing an international education for students in Bucharest since 1962. In the early days the school sought accreditation, or the license to operate from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges. This accreditation has two sides: the rst is so that our program is acceptable to colleges and universities and the second is to follow internationally prescribed rules for schools.

Our rst accreditation was in 1983. The process of gaining and keeping accreditation is a lengthy
one and must be applied for every 10 years. The accreditation process begins 18 months before the evaluative visit by surveying the community for their impression of the school and its services. The community, which is de ned as the Board of Trustees, the parents, alumni, students, administration, teachers and support sta are all asked to complete an on line survey from Endicott University. This is a comprehensive opinion survey involving every aspect of the school in areas like teaching and learning, school facilities, school policy, and school nances. In our recent case, there were two evaluators who came to our campus for a 2 day visit and they con rmed in a report to the Board that we were ready to begin the self evaluation (called the “self-study”).

The school is currently nishing the year long “self-study” of selected groups of parents, teachers, sta , students and board members. The self-study also evaluates the details of the curriculum, facility, governance and instruction and evaluates such things as our health o ce and food service.

AISB now applies for accreditation from three agencies. We seek accreditation from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges in the USA, from the Council of International Schools, a worldwide consortium of international schools, and from the International Baccalaureate Organization. The International Baccalaureate Diploma is accepted in 145 countries, including Romania. These accreditations give AISB not only recognition but credibility. For our graduates, it means they can attend universities and colleges in Europe, the USA and other parts of the world.

AISB is also recognized by the Romanian Ministry of Education as a school licensed to o er a foreign curriculum in Romania. Every year we must submit information to the Romanian Ministry of Education to remain current.

Accreditation is important for the school’s reputation and for the students and alumni who have
studied at AISB. In November 2013 we will welcome almost 20 evaluators from Europe and North America. They will visit every classroom, review our curriculum and its delivery, and evaluate our facility, emergency procedures, governance meetings and nancial status. This is a very thorough review and will end with recommendations that will assist us in planning our strategic plan for the next 5 to 10 years.

Why should this matter to you? Recognition by these organizations provides a positive picture of the school and by extension, adds prestige to your AISB education. This in turn is something that our alumni share with current and future employers and friends. It also ensures that AISB is in a constant state of improvement and a contributing member of the community. 

Read the entire WORLD Magazine Summer 2013 edition here: https://issuu.com/urbanbrand/docs/world_summer2013