Accreditation in the News: Coverage of the 2018 CHEA Annual Conference and CIQG Annual Meeting and Other Accreditation-Related Issues

March 19, 2018

HEADLINES

Rising Pressure for Transparency in HE (University World News [Special Supplement], March, 2018) A compilation of articles in University World News on the 2018 Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) 2018 Annual Conference and the CHEA International Quality Group (CIQG) Annual Meeting.

Ashford Seeks to Become a Nonprofit (Inside Higher Ed, March 14, 2018) “The conversion and merger will require approval from state and federal regulators as well as the WASC Senior College and University Commission, which is Ashford's regional accreditor.” (See also Bridgepoint Education’s Ashford U. Joins For-Profit Sector’s Trek to Nonprofit Status,The Chronicle of Higher Education [subscription required], March 13, 2018)

Base College Accreditation on Outcomes Not Inputs (RealClear Education, March 13, 2018) “Accreditation — the critical system for assessing whether institutions qualify for federal financial aid — is too focused on inputs, such as faculty degrees and shared governance, and pays far too little attention to outcomes, such as graduation rates, job placement rates, and wage growth.”  

Gov. Scott Signs Education Bills: No Free Speech Zones, Tighter Rules on Teachers’ Unions and No More USF-St. Pete Autonomy (Tampa Bay Times, March 11, 2018) “The bill also eliminates USF-St. Petersburg's autonomy by merging all of USF's campuses, including a campus in Sarasota-Manatee, into one system. Sponsored by Rep. Chris Sprowls, R-Palm Harbor, the move to strip USF-St. Pete's separate accreditation was touted as a move toward getting all campuses under the ‘preeminent’ status that USF is expected to achieve this year.”

Regents Endorse Consolidation For State's 12 Community Colleges (Hartford Courant, March 9, 2018) “The [Connecticut] Board of Regents for Higher Education voted unanimously Friday to approve a consolidation plan for the state’s 12 community colleges in an attempt to secure the financial future for the system. The cost-saving plan, which is expected to result in $28 million in savings and reduce the staff by about 200 people, will now move to the accrediting body, the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, for consideration at its April meeting.”