Kansas Statute charges the Kansas State Board of Education with the accreditation of schools, a process that provides official recognition of the school as having met a defined set of standards. Current accreditation regulations in Kansas are based on a school district accreditation model called Kansas Education Systems Accreditation (KESA), which was approved in 2016.

All public schools in the state of Kansas are required to participate in the state accreditation process. On the other hand, private schools are not required to do so. However, ALL private schools are required, through Kansas Statute to register with KSDE. Private schools operating in Kansas that do participate in the state's accreditation process are referred to as "Accredited Private Schools." Private schools that do not participate in the state accreditation process are referred to as "Non-Accredited Private Schools (NAPS)." Click here for more information about NAPS in Kansas. 

Kansans are demanding higher standards in academic skills, as well as employability and citizenship skills, and the need to move away from a “one-size-fits-all” system that relies exclusively on state assessments. This new vision for education calls for a more student-focused system that provides support and resources for individual success and will require everyone to work together to make it a reality. Through KESA schools are to focus on results and process to improve student learning.

The State Board receives recommendations concerning accreditation (K-12) from the KSDE Accreditation Review Council, (Be sure to link the right group to this.) a group of representatives from all facets and levels of education and from all regions of Kansas.