The Fort Atkinson Senior Center was officially reaccredited earlier this month.
According to information released by the City of Fort Atkinson Wednesday, the reaccreditation was received “after months of hard work on the part of senior center staff and volunteers.”
Sharing some history, the released noted that in 1978, the National Institute of Senior Centers developed national standards for senior center operation and management. The Wisconsin Association of Senior Centers (WASC) took those standards and in 1987 adapted them for senior centers in Wisconsin. This became one of the first senior center accreditation programs in the nation. The WASC accreditation program is designed to allow all senior centers to go through the process, enabling even the smallest and most rural centers to strive to operate at the highest level of service.
The self-assessment guides senior centers to review nine areas of management to ensure the program is operating at the highest of standards. The assessment can be invaluable in developing and implementing programs and services for older adults. Staff, participants, volunteers and community members were included in the review of the senior center. Once a self-assessment is completed, a peer review is conducted through the WASC Accreditation Committee. The accreditation self-assessment takes place every five years, the release continued.
Additionally, the release noted that Fort Atkinson received its first accreditation in 2016 and recently completed the process of being reaccredited, with approval granted on Feb. 11 by the WASC board of directors. There are about 25 senior centers in the state of Wisconsin that are accredited, according to the release.
“The process of listing goals to achieve for the center over the next five years along with policies, history and operating procedures enables the Fort Atkinson Senior Center to truly say that it is in the Top 25,” Chris Nye, Fort Atkinson senior center director, was quoted as saying in the release.
An accreditation committee of area older adults, senior center volunteers and staff went through the standards from July 2021 to January 2022 and have produced a document that is the newest blueprint for operation at the Fort Atkinson Senior Center, the release concluded.
Chris Nye, director of the Fort Atkinson Senior Center is seated in his office. The Fort Atkinson Senior Center recently received reaccreditation from the Wisconsin Association of Senior Centers, making it one of about 25 across the state that are accredited. “The process of listing goals to achieve for the center over the next five years along with policies, history and operating procedures enables the Fort Atkinson Senior Center to truly say that it is in the Top 25,” Nye said in a recent press release. File photo/Chris Spangler.
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