Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte Achieves National Accreditation

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Nov. 5, 2014 - PRLog -- Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte (CCDOC) has achieved national renewed accreditation through the New York-based Council on Accreditation (COA). COA evaluated all aspects of Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte’s programs, services, management, and administration.

The accreditation process leading to successful accreditation assures that an agency adheres to best practices in the field of human services. Clients are the true winners! The standards driving accreditation ensure that services are well-coordinated, culturally competent, evidence-based, outcomes-oriented, and provided by a skilled and supported workforce.  Upon submission of written evidence of compliance to standards and following a site visit by peer reviewers, the Council on Accreditation certified that Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte had met the criteria for re-accreditation. Catholic Charities was first accredited in 2007.

An endorsement of COA and the value of its accreditation process is reflected in it being named by the US State Department as the sole national independent accrediting body under the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption to accredit intercountry adoption service providers. Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte is also Hague accredited for international adoptions.

“Catholic Charities is extremely proud of our association with such an outstanding body of organizations.  The display of the COA seal means that our benefactors, clients, and colleagues can be assured that Catholic Charities holds itself to the highest standards of practice,” says CCDOC Executive Director and CEO Dr. Gerard A. Carter, Ph.D.  “This is especially critical to us as we seek to serve some of our most marginalized and vulnerable neighbors under the auspices of the Catholic Church’s charitable outreach.  It has been and continues to be a privilege to carry out this work with the assurance that our efforts are guided under these best standards developed by COA.”

Founded in 1977, COA is an independent, not-for-profit accreditor of the full continuum of community-based behavioral health care and social service organizations in the United States and Canada. Over 2,000 organizations — voluntary, public, and proprietary; local and statewide; large and small — have either successfully achieved COA accreditation or are currently engaged in the process. Presently, COA has a total of 50 service standards that are applicable to over 125 different types of programs. To learn more about COA, please visit COAnet.org.

Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte serves the poor and vulnerable regardless of race, ethnicity, or religion, with offices in Charlotte, Winston-Salem, Asheville, Greensboro, and Murphy.  The agency provides a variety of services: adoption and pregnancy support, counseling, family outreach, refugee resettlement, citizenship services, food pantries, economic development, disaster relief, respect life, social concerns education and advocacy.  The mission of Catholic Charities Diocese ofCharlotte is to strengthen families, build communities, and reduce poverty.