For the second time in a row, Martha’s Vineyard Community Services has received three-year accreditation for its Island Counseling Center, Disability Services and the CONNECT-to-end Violence programs from CARF International.

CARF accreditation represents a high standard of performance for health and human services providers. To receive accreditation an organization must undergo a three-day, on-site visit by a team of surveyors and meet exacting standards.

The CARF report states that “Martha’s Vineyard Community Services has strengths in many areas ... Persons served are treated with dignity and respect ... [and they] expressed a high level of satisfaction with the services received.

“The staff members and management are competent, motivated, responsive, and enthusiastic in providing services for the persons served [and] there is evidence of teamwork and cooperation throughout the organization.

“The organization balances a welcoming, supportive environment with close attention to positive outcomes.”

Community services’s executive director Julia Burgess commended the staff and board for the hard work they did to ensure that the entire agency was accredited from governance, to administration, to the various programs that we offer. “A three-year accreditation is not given lightly and demonstrates the high standards of care that we offer our clients,” Ms. Burgess said.

Martha’s Vineyard Community Services is a nonprofit organization providing health, education, and human services to the community. This year the organization is celebrating its 50th anniversary, having been founded in 1961.