Ste 240-199 The Southern Association of Independent Schools (SAIS), founded in 1953, is a U.S.-based voluntary regional accrediting association of more than 380 independent elementary and secondary schools with a combined enrollment of more than 220,000 students throughout the South.

It establishes accreditation criteria and evaluation procedures by which private schools are reviewed.

[1] SAIS oversees a voluntary process of self-evaluation and continuous improvement, the accreditation review of educational quality provided by each member school.

[15] SAIS began accrediting schools outside the United States with the acceptance of Escola Graduada Sao Paulo in Brazil in 1954.

[18] The organization argued before the Supreme Court in 1976 for the right of independent schools to discriminate based on race.

"[14] SAIS was described in 2005 as "a nongovernmental, voluntary organization that today accredits more than 13,000 public and nonpublic institutions from early childhood through university.

[20] SAIS developed standards and self-study processes for independent schools with SACS.

Participating schools must meet standards listed in the SAIS Accreditation Guidebook, responding in writing to each indicator.

The chair and visiting team report to the SAIS Accreditation Committee, evaluating whether the school has met the standards and performed a thorough and adequate self-study.