- U.S. President Donald Trump’s plans to overhaul accreditation in higher education took a significant step forward May 22 after a negotiated rulemaking committee approved a slate of regulatory changes meant to change the way accreditors evaluate colleges and universities. However, the new framework – which the American Council on Education says “extends the core responsibilities of accreditors into complex and politically sensitive areas,” could still face legal challenges before it is finalized and takes effect in July 2027.
- The new framework is meant to implement the ideas behind a 2025 executive order that calls for the creation of new accreditors, getting rid of policies that support diversity, and a sharper focus on issues such as “intellectual diversity.”
- The Education Department is casting the consensus reached on the new framework as “another important step toward bringing long-overdue reforms to America’s antiquated quality assurance system,” but some observers, according to ACE, argue the framework will “weaken baseline accountability while simultaneously saddling campuses and accrediting agencies with new administrative and compliance demands.”
The bigger picture:
U.S. Under Secretary of Education Nicholas Kent says the approval of the new framework is part of a “broader transformation of our higher education system: lowering costs, simplifying repayment, connecting education to workforce needs, strengthening accountability, and restoring confidence in our accreditation system.”
A statement from the Education Department purports that the new framework will, among other things, streamline credit transfer policies, reduce accreditation cost burdens, and open the market to new competition by eliminating the requirement that accreditors exist for two years before they get formal recognition from the federal government. “These changes will encourage the formation of new accreditors, increasing competition and choice,” the Education Department states.
The new framework, which is expected to be finalized this fall, also purports to “protect” academic freedom and “promote” intellectual diversity. “Too many institutions have become echo chambers focused on discriminatory ideology and unlawful discriminatory practices,” the department states.
