ad hoc
Council for Educational Accountability
Council for Educational Accountability: The Council is not affiliated with any religious denomination, educational institution or service organization, or any other body. Endorsement of the Standard by the Council does not imply agreement by any religious, professional or educational body or any other organization. Conformance to the Standard is voluntary and not mandated by the Council.
Notice: The Standard is subject to review and updating at any time. Users are cautioned to obtain the latest edition to ensure accuracy.
CEA Mission: To ensure accurate instruction in Christian educational institutions in accordance with the professed beliefs of the institution; and be a leading authority and champion for Christian educational accountability.
"You must teach what is in accord with sound doctrine." Titus 2:1
"Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms." I Peter 4:10
The CEA S-100(1996) Standard is designed to ensure conformance to expressed beliefs and values at Christian educational institutions and service organizations. Conformance and certification to the Standard is voluntary and may be terminated at any time.
Certification to the Standard is achieved by successful completion of an externally conducted audit by licensed S-100 auditors. Maintenance of certification shall be accomplished by means of review and surveillance audits as defined in 3.2.
Certification of an organization to S-100 does not imply endorsement of the beliefs or activities of that organization by the auditors, accreditation body or CEA. Certification provides reasonable assurance to the public that the activities and teaching of an organization conform to the Statement of Belief of the organization. The Statement of Belief is solely the responsibility of the organization seeking certification, not of the auditors, accreditation body or CEA.
No attempt is made in CEA S-100 to specify the content of the Statement of Belief. The purpose of the Standard is to specify generic requirements that apply to all Christian educational institutions seeking certification. These elements (the certification requirements of 2.1-2.9) must be employed to assure compliance to the Statement of Beliefs.
This document defines the elements and process required to receive certification from the Council for Educational Accountability. Certification provides reasonable assurance that an organization teaches and acts in accordance with an expressed, formal set of beliefs, defined herein as the Statement of Belief. Parents, students, financial contributors and other interested parties may have confidence that the certified institution does not misuse funds in a manner contrary to the Statement of Belief, nor contain subversive personnel whose teaching or actions are contrary to the Statement.
The formal scope of the audit shall be specified by the organization seeking certification. The accreditation body shall specify the scope on the certification paper.
The accreditation body shall expressly and prominently list on the certification paper areas within the operational scope of the organization excluded from certification or given internal certification (see definition in the appendix). The organization may decide to exclude an area before or after the audit process. For areas that are excluded due to audit findings, the accreditation body shall list all unresolved noncompliances on the certification paper for each area that has been excluded.
Where internal certification is granted the accreditation body shall prominently list on the certification paper those areas for which internal certification is granted and the items of the Statement for which internal certification applies. Internal certification of an area involves the entire Statement of Belief.
Internal certification for an item in the Statement of Belief applies to the entire organization. Organizations may not choose internal certification of an item for a limited area.
When areas are granted internal certification the accreditation body shall include the following explanation on the certification paper:
Internal certification has been granted to the areas listed above. Internal certification does not guarantee that personnel in these areas accept the Statement of Belief in its entirety. As regards the teaching of students, use of funds, establishment of programs or any other activities of the organization, no evidence of a violation of the Statement of Belief was found within the limited scope of the audit.
When internal certification is granted for items in the Statement, the accreditation body shall include the following explanation on the certification paper:
Internal certification has been granted for the items listed above. Internal certification does not guarantee that all personnel accept this item. As regards the teaching of students, use of funds, establishment of programs or any other activities of the organization, no evidence of a violation of the Statement of Belief was found within the limited scope of the audit.
When internal certification is sought by the organization in response to audit findings outside the operational scope, the accreditation body will list these noncompliances on the certification paper as in 1.2.
2.1.1 Authority of Scripture
The Statement of Belief shall not contradict any teaching of Scripture, nor shall it imply or endorse any violation of Scripture to achieve conformance to CEA S-100 or the Statement of Belief.
2.1.2 General
The organization shall establish and formally document a coherent set of beliefs to which it shall conform. This Statement may include or reference creeds, articles, formulas, doctrines, etc., as appropriate. For the purposes of certification, only items for which objective evidence may exist shall be auditable. Items to which compliance cannot be objectively established shall not be included in the Statement. Lack of inclusion in the Statement for this reason shall not constitute a denial of the item, or its importance, by the organization.
2.1.3 Content
The Statement of Belief shall be perspicuous and concise and shall be written so as to minimize ambiguity of interpretation or meaning. Terms shall be defined as necessary within the document. Special care shall be taken to correctly and accurately state the belief of the organization in regards to controversial items.
Items in the Statement should expressly affirm or deny a belief; or permit or prohibit an action.
2.1.4 Availability
Copies of the Statement of Belief shall be made reasonably available to anyone who requests it. Upon achieving certification, copies of the certification paper shall also be made reasonably available to all who request it.
2.1.5 Modification
The organization shall establish and formally document the process by which a Statement of Belief may be changed, and assent to the change by affected personnel documented. The Statement of Belief shall be maintained per 2.9.
2.2 ADMINISTRATIVE RESPONSIBILITY
2.2.1 Compliance to Statement
2.2.1.1 General
The organization shall ensure understanding, agreement and adherence to the Statement of Belief by all affected personnel in the organization. The Statement of Belief must be relevant to the mission and goals of the organization. Evidence of the agreement of all personnel in the audit scope to the Statement shall be documented.
2.2.1.2 Personnel Affected
Employees and volunteers recognized by the organization shall be deemed within the audit scope if they are within an area required to be actively compliant to an item in the Statement, as described in 2.2.3.
Students, customers and other recipients of the services of the organization shall be deemed outside the audit scope except as specified in 2.3.1, 2.3.4 and 2.3.5.
2.2.1.3 Membership in Other Organizations
Holding membership in another organization with formally defined beliefs contrary to the Statement of Belief shall constitute objective evidence of noncompliance except for internal certification. Written documentation from the member stating disagreement with the contrary belief of the other organization and agreement with the relevant item of the Statement shall be accepted as evidence of compliance.
2.2.2 Administrative Representative
A senior administrative official shall be designated as responsible for maintenance of and adherence to the Statement of Belief. The official shall have the necessary authority and means to achieve this goal.
2.2.3 Active Compliance
For each item of the Statement, the organization shall define which areas, if any, shall or shall not be actively in compliance with the item. An area within the operational scope not required to be actively in compliance with an item in the Statement may still be declared noncompliant if it is found to be in violation of the Statement, unless it has previously been excluded per 1.2. In the absence of evidence of a violation of the Statement, lack of evidence of compliance to an item in the Statement may warrant an observation at the discretion of the auditor.
2.2.4 Organization Roster
The organization shall maintain documentation listing all personnel (including recognized volunteers) within the operational scope. This documentation shall indicate the major roles and responsibilities of all personnel, as well as the administrative and supervisory structure of the organization. The documentation shall be available for the auditor to review, shall be up to date and accurate for each audit, and shall be maintained per 2.9.
2.3 SPONSORSHIP AND CONTRACTOR REVIEW
2.3.1 General
The organization shall not sponsor or contract with any other party, if the activities carried out under sponsorship or contract with the second party result in a violation of the Statement.
This requirement shall not be construed to mandate that all activities within the operational scope of the organization must receive official approval and sponsorship from the administration. All parties acting without the official knowledge of the organization shall be deemed out of scope.
2.3.2 Oversight
The organization shall be responsible for ensuring that the contracted or sponsored party does not violate the Statement within the operational scope of the organization. This shall be accomplished as described in 2.6.
When violations of the Statement by an external party occur, they shall be investigated as described in 2.4.1. Responsibility for the violation within the organization shall be identified. If distinct responsibility cannot be identified, the administrative representative named in 2.2.2 shall be deemed responsible. The responsible member of the organization shall be held accountable for preventing recurrence of the violation, as described in 2.5.
Material provided to the organization by the external party shall be controlled as described in 2.8, Control of External Material.
2.3.3 Solicitation
Solicitation by an external party within the operational scope of the organization shall be deemed a violation of the Statement if legal means to prohibit the solicitation exist, the organization is aware of the solicitation, and the solicitation involves a violation of the Statement of Belief. This shall include solicitations to join or support groups whose teaching violates the Statement (per 2.2.1.3), and encouragement of behavior or beliefs contradictory to the Statement. This requirement is valid for any solicitation made within the operational scope, regardless of whether the recipients of the solicitation are in any way related to the organization or not.
2.3.4 Unsponsored Violations
The organization shall not permit a violation of the Statement by an external party within its operational scope if it is aware of the problem and lawful means exist to prevent the violation.
2.3.5 Sponsorship of Noncomplying Parties
The organization may sponsor or allow external parties who do not agree with the Statement to express themselves in defined forums within the operational scope of the organization. The forum must be overseen by other parties or members of the organization who are in agreement with the Statement.
2.4.1 Investigation
The organization shall establish and document procedures by which allegations of violations of the Statement are investigated and conclusions achieved.
All allegations of a violation of the Statement within the audit scope of the organization shall be investigated according to this process. Where applicable this shall involve the program review procedure established per 2.6.
The allegation, investigation and conclusion shall be documented per 2.9.
Where internal certification applies allegations of violations outside the operational scope of the organization need not be documented or investigated, at the discretion of the organization.
2.4.2 Corrective Action
Corrective action shall be taken in response to each identified violation of the Statement. Documentation shall be maintained for each corrective action per 2.9.
2.4.3 Availability of Documents
An index of allegations, investigations, conclusions and corrective actions shall be maintained per 2.9. The index, allegations and investigative documentation shall be considered confidential documents. Access to these documents shall be controlled in a documented manner. The auditor shall have access to these documents as required in the audit process.
A secondary index of allegations that have been found to be partly or wholly true shall also be maintained per 2.9. This index, the allegations it lists, and documentation of conclusions and corrective actions shall be made reasonably available to anyone who requests it.
Where it is deemed necessary by the organization it shall establish and
document procedures to prevent violations of the Statement of Belief. This may
include but is not limited to all aspects of the following activities:
a) Examination
of new material for use within the operational scope.
b) Addition of new
personnel and sponsorship or contracts with other parties.
c) Establishment
of new programs or activities, or expansion of existing programs. Preventive
measures shall be maintained per 2.9.
The organization shall establish and document procedures by which programs,
including events and activities, within the operational scope are assured to be
in compliance to the Statement. This shall include the following:
a) The
means by which material utilized is examined as it relates to the Statement.
b)
The means by which agreement and compliance to the Statement by program
personnel is documented.
c) The means by which compliance to the
Statement by contracted or sponsored personnel within the operational scope is
established.
Program review is not mandatory for all programs. It shall occur at the discretion of the organization, and under conditions specified in 2.4.1.
2.7.1 General
All documents produced within the audit scope or utilized within the operational scope of the organization shall be in compliance to the Statement of Belief. If noncompliant documents must be utilized they shall be controlled as described in 2.8.
2.7.2 Document Index
The organization shall maintain an index of all published material by the organization or its personnel. Published material that does not deal in a relevant manner with any item in the Statement shall not be included in the index. The organization may maintain copies of published material listed in the index at its discretion.
2.8 CONTROL OF EXTERNAL MATERIAL
The organization shall be responsible for identification of material utilized within its operational scope that is or may be in violation of the Statement of Belief. This does not apply to personal material used by organization personnel unless it is brought into the operational scope.
Material which has not been reviewed and may be in violation of the Statement shall be marked as such. Material which is known to be in violation of the Statement shall be prominently marked with warnings indicating noncompliance to the Statement.
The organization shall be responsible for maintaining records required for certification to this Standard. This includes all records mentioned in other sections of the Standard which reference this section. Records shall be maintained in an orderly fashion, and should be readily retrievable upon appropriate request.
Historical records (records which are not maintained and updated as living documents) must be maintained for a specified period by the organization. This period must be documented for each type of historical record and shall not be less than the time period between surveillance audits, or as specified in the certification paper.
Records may be stored in any media but must remain legible and accessible during their retention period.
3.1 ACHIEVEMENT OF CERTIFICATION
(1. Examine ISO9001 process, 2. Understand differences between ISO9001 process intent and CEA S-100 intent, 3. Implement improved/altered certification process, describe here.)
3.2 MAINTENANCE OF CERTIFICATION
(1. Cover changing the audit firm registered under, 2. Cover updating to a revised Standard, 3. Changes to the Statement of Belief, ref. 2.1.5, 4. Timing, schedule and scope of review and surveillance audits.)
(Conditions leading to loss, defined as well as possible, Loss of certification is always total; period of TBD time must pass; full scale recertification required)
3.4 TERMINOLOGY (Describe how certified organizations may describe their certification)
Where referenced in the Standard, terms listed below have the given definition.
A. Audit Scope
The scope of the audit is defined as all objective evidence which hassignificant material, spiritual or intellectual effects relevant to the Statement of Belief, and is produced under the control, direction or auspices of the organization.
In regular certifications the audit scope includes any public expressions of belief of organization personnel outside the operational scope of the organization, as they relate to the contents of the Statement. In limited certifications the audit scope excludes any public expressions of belief of organization personnel outside the operational scope of the organization.
B. Internal Certification
Internal certification may be granted to an area, or for an item of the Statement of Belief. It occurs when the personal beliefs, public expressions outside the operational scope of the organization, and other external activities of personnel are deemed by the organization to be outside the scope of the audit.
C. Noncompliance
A noncompliance is an objective audit finding in violation of the Statement of Belief or a certification requirement described in section 2 of this Standard.
D. Noncompliant
Noncompliant areas are those which were externally audited by the audit firm responsible for granting certification, and which have unresolved noncompliances.
E. Observation
An observation is an audit finding that indicates imperfect conformance to the Statement but is not sufficient to establish a noncompliance. A lack of appropriate emphasis in teaching key doctrines or lack of action regarding an expressed goal of a service organization are examples of observations. Observations by themselves do not prevent certification nor demand retraction of certification once achieved.
F. Operational Scope
The operational scope of the organization is the range of activities occurring under the direction of the administration of the organization. It includes all activities, programs and events under the control, sponsorship or endorsement of the administration. (Compare with Audit Scope.)
G. Organization
Organization refers to the organization that is being audited with the goal of obtaining certification to CEA S-100, with the exception of 2.2.1.3.
H. Party
The second party, or external party, also referred to simply as party, refers to any individual, group or organization not fully within the operational scope of the organization seeking certification.
I. Publish
Publish refers to any public communication of belief, including writing (book, article, e-mail), speech (including recordings in any medium, such as video or audio tapes), and any other form of communication.
J. Statement of Belief
The Statement of Belief is the sum total of Articles, Creeds, Formulas, Doctrines and other auditable statements defined by the organization as its official teaching. Also referred to as the Statement.
K. Uncertified
Uncertified areas are those areas within the operational scope of the organization that were excluded from the external audit process, for any reason.
E-mail: CEAS100@AOL.COM
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