Rockland — Sixteen educators will make an on-site evaluation of Oceanside High School from Sept. 23-26. The evaluation visit will be conducted under the direction of the Commission on Public Secondary Schools of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.

The visiting committee will be chaired by Britton Wolfe, principal of Biddeford High School. Wolfe has had extensive experience in the association's evaluation process.

"The purpose of this evaluation visit is to review and determine from an outside professional viewpoint the extent to which the school is meeting the Standards for Accreditation. As part of the evaluation, the visiting committee will meet with all school constituents, review the school's self-study, visit a number of classes and examine examples of student work submitted by the school. During the comprehensive self-study, the faculty attempted to identify the school's strengths and determined those areas in which changes would be beneficial," Forti said in a news release.

The chairman of the visiting committee, Wolfe, said, "Our purpose in visiting Oceanside High School is not to criticize it but to assist the faculty in its pursuit of quality education for its students."

"The members of the visiting committee are contributing their services to the school. This spirit of professional cooperation is one of the noted features of the New England Association. The goal of an evaluation visit is to stimulate a continuing drive for improvement in the school," Forti said.

The members of the visiting committee are teachers and administrators from a variety of schools in the Maine area.

The New England Association of Schools and Colleges is a voluntary membership organization of more than 2,00 public schools, colleges and universities, independent schools and vocational, technical and career institutions. Of these, more than 650 secondary schools have been accredited through the Association's Commission on Public Secondary Schools. The Commission works with individual public schools to improve the quality of education through a continuous process of accreditation and evaluation.