What is COA? The Council on Accreditation is an international, independent, nonprofit, human service accrediting organization. Their mission is to partner with human service organizations worldwide to improve service delivery outcomes by developing, applying, and promoting accreditation standards. They envision excellence in the delivery of human services globally, resulting in the well-being of individuals, families, and communities.

Every four years we are required to review standards outlined by COA, ensure we have policies and procedures in place that meet the standards, and participate in an on-site review. Though our site review occurred in December of 2023, preparation for reaccreditation began 18 months ago. Currently, there are 509 standards that need to be followed. In order to show COA we are in compliance, we share hundreds of documents electronically that are reviewed prior to their visit. During their visit, the reviewers go through more documents but they also take time to interview staff, Board members, and clients.

We enjoyed our time with our site reviewers, Diane and Shannon. They made everyone feel very comfortable during their interviews and asked great questions! At the end of their time here, they could not say enough nice things about ECFA. Below are some of the things they had to say during our exit interview.

“It was heartwarming to see staff eating lunch together and playing games during this break time; it is evident you take care of your staff and this is reflected in the care given to your clients; your Board of Directors is transparent and involved, but they don’t overstep; your personnel files looked excellent; your supervisory notes were excellent and consistent; it was evident staff receive excellent training.

I’m impressed with the Intact program and how they meet their clients in their homes; I loved meeting with one of your adoptive moms who shared that she had emailed 15 agencies and you are the only one that responded and this response was within 10 minutes of the email she sent; the mom I met who was part of your Pregnancy Support Services program shared that she never felt judged or criticized by her worker and that the hardest part was when services needed to end; and I love that you offer affordable counseling – it is a great opportunity for those who need it but can’t afford it.”

I love all of the resources you have to give to your clients. It is evident you take safety very seriously – you have an incredible safety training for staff; you have great financial controls in place; staff are very aware of what all is involved in Performance Quality Improvement (Long-range planning, outcome measures, client satisfaction, file reviews, etc.); I can tell that leadership is committed to improvement: I like how all of the COA standards are integrated into your work; your case files are amazing – they are well organized and consistent within each program; client rights and confidentiality appear to be fundamental to who you are - staff are well educated about both of these things and they go over them with clients.”

Finally, Diane said this, “Everyone who walks through your doors will never be the same.”

Those words are beautiful, kind, and a testament to the amazing people at ECFA. We are looking forward to receiving COA’s final report.