This page describes the voluntary certification process of the Kentucky Board of Education for non-public schools in Kentucky.
Any private, parochial or church schools, wishing to pursue Certification from the Kentucky Board of Education (KBE) will comply with the follow the process. PART I describes the process available to non-public schools serving students preschool through the 12th grades. This does not apply to schools that serve students who are only in preschool or preschool and kindergarten or a stand-alone kindergarten. PART II describes the process available to preschools, preschools and kindergartens and stand-alone kindergartens.
PART I
1. Contact one of the accrediting agencies recognized by the KBE and the Kentucky Non-Public School Commission (KNPSC) and make the necessary arrangement to complete the required process to become accredited. (For a list of the recognized accrediting agencies, contact the KNPSC at (859) 283-6230.)
2. After successfully engaging in the accreditation process, contact the KNPSC and initiate the process to have the Commission present the school to the KBE for either one-year Interim Certification for schools that are in the process of completing accreditation or for the applicable Full Certification as defined by the recognized accrediting agency.
3. After the necessary documentation is reviewed by the KNPSC a decision is made by the full commission regarding approval of the schools applying for Certification.
4. Upon an affirmative vote by the KNPSC the recommended schools are presented to the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) for presentation to KBE for certification.
5. After consideration of the KNPSC recommendations, the KBE grants Certification.
6. The schools granted Certification will receive a letter from KDE staff confirming the Certification by KBE. This letter will include the beginning and ending dates for the Certification.
PART II
1. Contact one of the accrediting agencies recognized by the KBE and make the necessary arrangement to complete the required process to become accredited. (For a list of these accreditation agencies, contact the Kentucky Department of Education.)
2. Submit to KDE the following: a copy of the documentation of current accreditation; documentation of teacher credentials; a completed Teacher Credential Form and for Kindergarten teachers, an appropriate Kentucky teaching certification, for preschool teachers, credentials meeting 704 KAR 3:410 and 704 KAR 20:284.
3. KDE staff will review the documentation to determine whether or not the school is in compliance. When the school meets all of the requirements, schools will be submitted to the KBE for Certification. For schools that are currently undergoing self-study in preparation for accreditation, the schools may request Interim Certification, which may be extended only once. The one-year Interim Certification will be based on documentation that the schools: are actively engaged in a self-study process accreditation, with a time line for applying for accreditation; meet the Kentucky teacher credential requirements mentioned above; have classrooms which score at least a total of 6.0 on the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale Revised (Clifford and Harms, 1998) as validated by an independent evaluation approved by KDE for these purposes. All arrangements and costs for the onsite visits by the independent validator shall be borne by the non-public program.
4. Schools granted Certification will receive a letter from KDE staff confirming the Certification by KBE. This letter will include the beginning and ending dates for the Certification.