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Summit Preparatory School's academic accreditation:
an assurance of accountability to our parents and students.
 From the school’s inception, the Board of Directors of Summit Preparatory School has insisted on excellence; meeting the highest standards, providing accountability as assurance to our families that their children receive the best education possible. Regional accreditation through the Northwest Association of Accredited Schools was the first step toward that assurance and the addition of the state of Montana’s Board of Public Education/Office of Public Instruction accreditation definitively addresses accountability and assurance to our families in keeping with our Board’s vision of excellence.
Accreditation by the Montana Board of Public Education meets the NAAS’ expectation that their member schools strive to meet state accreditation standards, NAAS accreditation standard 2.12, and gives Summit its highest commendation for that attainment. Montana accreditation assures that high academic standards and accountability is met and makes us unique among therapeutic boarding schools in Montana as the only school that has earned this distinction. Our state accreditation assures:
- A comprehensive academic program of rigor and relevance in all subject areas based on standards and benchmarks toward diploma award
- Montana certified teachers who teach only in their areas of licensure
- Montana certified administrator, librarian, guidance counselor and special education teacher
- Instructional time per course that exceeds requirement for credit award
- In-district tuition at Flathead Valley Community College
- In-state resident acceptance to Montana state colleges and universities
In combination with our state and regional accreditation; Summit is a candidate school member of the Pacific Northwest Association of Independent Schools. PNAIS is a voluntary regional accrediting body for independent schools with the mission to promote quality education in an independent setting.
Summit also received accreditation by the Council on Accreditation (COA). COA is an international, independent, not-for-profit, child- and family-service and behavioral healthcare accrediting organization. It was founded in 1977 by the Child Welfare League of America and Family Service America (now the Alliance for Children and Families). Originally known as an accrediting body for family and children’s agencies, COA currently accredits over 45 different service areas. Among the service areas are substance abuse treatment, adult day care, services for the homeless, foster care, inter-country adoption and private education.
The following is from a press release from the Council on Accreditation (COA):
COA’s commitment to maintaining the highest level of standards and quality improvement is designed to identify providers that have set high performance standards for themselves and have made a commitment to their constituents to deliver the highest quality services. COA is proud to recognize Summit Preparatory School as one of these outstanding providers.
COA accreditation is an objective and reliable verification that provides confidence and support to an organization’s service recipients, board members, staff and community partners. The COA accreditation process involves a detailed review and analysis of both an organization’s administrative operations and its service delivery practices. All are “measured” against national standards of best practice. These standards emphasize services that are accessible, appropriate, culturally responsive, evidence based, and outcomes-oriented, In addition, they confirm that the services are provided by a skilled and supported workforce and that all individuals are treated with dignity and respect.
Because COA reviews and accredits the entire organization, not just specific programs, you can have confidence in the credibility, integrity and achievement of your entire organization.
COA congratulates Summit Preparatory School for their hard work and wonderful achievement and is proud to have it as part of COA’s Community of Excellence.
If you would like to know more about our accrediting bodies, please visit their websites by ‘clicking’ on their logo below:
   
 High School graduation is predicated on program graduation, and requires students to have a minimum total of 20 credits reflecting the minimum subject area requirements shown below:
4 credits in Language Arts
2 credits in Mathematics
2.5 credits in Social Studies (1 credit each Global History and U.S. History, 0.5 credit of Government or Economics)
2 credits in Science
1 credit in Health Enhancement
1 credit in Practical Arts
1 credit in Fine Arts
The recommended minimum subject area requirements for college-bound students are as follows:
4 credits in Language Arts
3 credits in Mathematics including Algebra 1, Geometry, and Algebra II
3 credits in Social Studies (1 credit each Global History and U.S. History, 0.5 credit each of Government and Economics)
3 credits in Science including at least two lab sciences
2 credits in Foreign Language
1 credit in Health Enhancement
1 credit in Fine Arts
1 credit in Practical Arts
Due to the small size of our school, Summit Preparatory School does not rank its graduates.
Summit Preparatory School's grading scale is as follows:
90 to 100% = A (4 grade points)
80 to 89% = B (3 grade points)
70 to 79% = C (2 grade points)
60 to 69% = D (1 grade points)
0 to 59% = F (0 grade points)
The following abbreviations are used on Summit Preparatory School's transcripts:
RS = Running Start (concurrent high school/college credit)
TR = Transfer Credit
NTC = Nontraditional Course (Independent Study Course)
For transcript information, please contact our registrar, Shelley Eberhardy at seberhardy@summitprepschool.org.
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