By Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


Livingston County Catholic Charities has achieved national re-accreditation.

The non-profit earned the achievement through the New York-based Council on Accreditation (COA) after what was said to be a rigorous reaccreditation process. LCCC has been accredited since 1997 and providing professional services to county residents since 1985. It provides various services that include mental health and substance abuse counseling; prevention of elder abuse, neglect and exploitation; foster care and adoption services; special ministries, senior outreach services; as well as Be Our Guest Adult Day – a day program for persons with dementia and other memory-related diseases.

Organizations pursue accreditation to demonstrate the implementation of best-practice standards in the field of human services. The COA evaluated all aspects of LCCC’s programs, services, management, and administration. The COA accreditation process involves a detailed review and analysis of an organization’s administration, management, and service delivery functions against international standards of best practice. The standards driving accreditation ensure that services are well-coordinated, culturally competent, evidence-based, outcomes-oriented, and provided by a skilled and supported workforce.

To achieve COA reaccreditation, LCCC first provided written evidence of compliance with the COA standards. Thereafter, a group of specially trained volunteer peer reviewers confirmed adherence to the standards during a series of on-site interviews with trustees, staff and clients. Based on their findings, the COA’s Accreditation Commission voted that LCCC had successfully met the criteria for reaccreditation.

LCCC Executive Director Mark Robinson said “For our agency, accreditation involves the full organization, Coworkers and Board Members, along with input from our community partners and our clientele. We believe that this comprehensive process enhances service delivery, outcomes, transparency and accountability.”