If your school is discussing expanding their program consult with your Conference

Superintendent and Union about the process.

H. Stephen Bralley, M.Ed.

Director of Secondary Education, North American Division

Substantial Change of Program

encounter

Substantial Change Form

Senior Academy Application Form

ubstantial Change of Program requests most often occur when a school seeks to change its status from an elementary to a junior or senior highschool, they also occur when a school seeks to offer remote learning or significantly changes or expands their program. Pre-Covid these requests happened once or twice every few years, post-Covid the Office of Education has been processing such requests at a rate of 3-4 per year. It’s another sign that Adventist Education is growing as schools seek to expand their offerings to an increasing student population.

As AI becomes more common in content creation, teachers also need to be able to spot work that was created by AI. This helps maintain academic integrity and teaches students the value of original thought. Being familiar with AI provides teachers with the background to guide students through decisions about when and how to use AI appropriately. This allows us to help students find a balance between using technology and developing their own critical thinking and problem-solving skills. For teachers, understanding AI is not just about keeping up with technology, but also about shaping responsible, creative, and thoughtful future citizens.

Students, parents and other school stakeholders expect that quality Adventist education will be ensured by appropriate accountability measures. This substantive change in program policy is intended to guard the integrity of the school evaluation process and maintain the credibility of accreditation and the accrediting agencies in assessing school quality. The North American Division Office of Education as officers of the NAD Commission on Accreditation, the representative authority of the Adventist Accrediting Association (AAA) for K-12 schools in North America will conduct a special on-site evaluative (SCP) visit to schools substantially changing their program.

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Why does a substantial change process exist?

Spring 2024

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