Athens Drive one of 60 to receive global excellence in education award

Athens Drive Magnet High was one of just 60 educational institutions that was recently recognized as a 2024 Cognia School of Distinction.

 

The award recognizes schools and systems that truly stand out in their service to students. Cognia, the global nonprofit school improvement organization, presents the award to schools that complete a rigorous application process. Schools that receive the award effectively implements high-quality instruction, show consistent organizational effectiveness, and maintain a commitment to continuous improvement.

 

“This is a top honor from Cognia. It was a whole-staff effort to complete the rigorous accreditation process,” said Amanda Boshoff, Principal at Athens Drive Magnet High. “We are incredibly proud to be one of the 60 from across the globe to be chosen for this award.” 

 

Many members of the Cognia global network seek accreditation from Cognia, which is earned as the result of extensive internal preparation and a review by a team of outside educators. 

 

Public schools in North Carolina each go through an accreditation process that often lasts for several years. 

Athens Drive Magnet High administration team worked together with staff members to apply for their re-accreditation with Cognia, which they last received in 2018. This is the first time that the school has received the Cognia School of Distinction Award. 

 

Assistant Principal Taneshia Harris helped lead the charge for the re-accreditation. She said Athens Drive Magnet High hit on nearly all of the markers that Cognia was looking for in a School of Distinction. 

 

“One thing that helped us in obtaining such a high score in our accreditation process are our magnet and STEM curriculum offerings, and that we’re a community-based school” said Harris. “We were able to accurately share what is happening on our campus and all of the things that we offer our students.” 

Cognia’s Performance Standards for accreditation are based on ever-expanding research and understanding of learning, and define high-quality education for today’s world.

 

Athens Drive also received the 2024 Dr. Ronald P. Simpson Magnet School of Merit Award of Excellence, given annually to the top magnet school in the country. 

The school’s magnet theme is Medical Sciences and Global Health Initiatives, making Athens Drive the perfect home for students interested in a career in the health sciences. Areas of concentration range from agricultural sciences, animal science, to global health initiatives. The curriculum is both relevant and rigorous for a pathway to careers in the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) fields. 

 

Each school or system earning the Cognia accreditation effectively implements high-quality instruction, shows consistent organizational effectiveness, maintains a commitment to continuous improvement and demonstrates energetic and sustained commitment to learners. Athens Drive has a history of doing so, and sets itself apart with its rich legacy. 

 

The school, the first to offer a career academy to students in Wake County more than three decades ago, has an active and robust group of highly successful alumni. Hundreds of alumni who now have careers in the medical sciences field are involved with the school and share their experiences and information with the student body. 

 

The school also offers student experiences that include STEM teaching and learning across disciplines, relevant connections between the core curriculum and current topics in medical sciences and global health, community partnerships that offer hands-on learning opportunities, and collaboration with extensive university and corporate partnerships for real-world connections.

 

During the 2023-2024 school year, Cognia conducted approximately 1,952 accreditation engagement reviews. Of the 60 institutions recognized this year, 41 schools and 11 systems are in the U.S. across 23 states and Puerto Rico, and eight are international schools across five countries. The number of institutions reviewed and those that earn this designation vary from year to year. Winners carry the designation for one year.

 

“Congratulations to the 2024 Schools and Systems of Distinction for demonstrating excellence in education in meeting the Cognia Performance Standards,” said Cognia president and CEO Dr. Mark A. Elgart. “These institutions are benchmarks of school quality in their commitment to continuous improvement.”

 

Based on their 2023–2024 Cognia Accreditation Engagement Review results, these schools and systems demonstrated evidence of high-quality teaching and learning. Institutions were evaluated and provided evidence of growth in learning, a healthy culture for learning, engaging and high-quality instructional environments, and effective leadership for learning—all characteristics Cognia expects to see in quality schools.

 

Candidates for Cognia Accreditation and re-accreditation participate in a rigorous evaluation process that includes a period of self-assessment, an evaluation conducted by trained external, third-party evaluators, and an improvement phase focused on the evaluation’s results. The Cognia Performance Standards for K-12 accreditation are based on the latest research and understanding of learning, teaching, and leading. Once accredited, an institution engages in a similar engagement review process at least every six years to maintain Cognia Accreditation.