U.S. Department of Education Issues Proposed Rule to Overhaul and Improve America’s Higher Education Accreditation System
Today, the U.S. Department of Education (the Department) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to reenvision America’s postsecondary quality assurance system. The proposed framework would simplify the Secretary’s process of recognizing emerging and existing accreditors; promote a better return on investment for students; safeguard against undue influence from private trade associations on accreditors; eliminate standards or policies that discriminate on the basis of immutable characteristics; and promote academic freedom, intellectual diversity, and research integrity.
For too long, accreditors – private, nongovernmental entities entrusted to serve as arbiters of educational quality and training – have acted as major gatekeepers to more than $100 billion in federal student aid annually. A small group of accreditors has dominated the higher education landscape for decades, driving up costs for American students and families and, in some cases, pushing colleges and universities to prioritize ideological agendas over a robust education focused on student outcomes, including whether students graduate on time, secure jobs in their field of study, and earn family-sustaining wages. The proposed changes would break up entrenched accreditation monopolies and reorient the sector to prioritize innovation, academic excellence, and student outcomes.
“At a time when Americans have lost trust in higher education, the Trump Administration’s proposed changes to the accreditation system are intended to reorient our quality assurance framework so that accreditors prioritize student outcomes rather than bureaucratic processes or the promotion of divisive and unlawful ideological agendas,” said Under Secretary of Education Nicholas Kent.“Instead of ensuring institutions offer high-quality educational programs that justify the time and cost of a college education, the antiquated accreditation system has contributed to inflated tuition, administrative bloat, and ideology-driven mandates on college campuses. The Department’s proposed changes to our higher education quality assurance system will improve college affordability, reconnect education to workforce needs, strengthen accountability, and restore confidence in our accreditation system.”
