Accreditors Anticipate an Executive Order on Accreditation in the Coming Weeks

HEADLINES

Accreditor Urges Academe to ‘Rage’ Against Challenges to Higher Ed. It’s Also Revising Its DEI Standards (Chronicle of Higher Education, April 10, 2025) Accreditors anticipate President Trump to issue an executive order on accreditation in the coming weeks, according to several speakers at the meeting. The specifics remain unclear, but the order is expected to take aim at DEI, make it easier for institutions to change accreditors, and ease the creation of new ones. Neither the White House nor the Education Department responded to requests for comment.

Texas Must Embrace Accreditation Reform: Why HB 1705 Matters (Opinion) (The College Fix, April 10, 2025) Texas stands at a crossroads with two companion bills winding their way through the Texas Statehouse that aim to reform accreditation by allowing public institutions to choose from more than a dozen vetted accreditors, enhancing flexibility and competition. By expanding the definition of “recognized accrediting agency” beyond the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, the two bills align Texas with federal policy, harness state resources, and ensure our higher education system serves the people, not bureaucrats.

Burgess Owens Introduces Bill Codifying Protections for Schools Against DEI Mandates (Washington Examiner, April 8, 2025) Rep. Burgess Owens (R-UT) introduced legislation on April 10 to ensure that a higher education institution’s accreditation is not contingent upon it having to adopt “political litmus tests” such as diversity, equity, and inclusion mandates. The Accreditation for College Excellence Act of 2025 would prohibit education accreditors from pushing an educational institution to implement “partisan, political, or ideological viewpoints” in order to receive Higher Education Act funding or accreditation. The bill would also protect religious institutions’ ability to maintain their code of conduct and adherence to religious practices. 

Why Is Accreditation Important? (Accredited Schools Online, April 4, 2025) Advisors nearly unanimously encourage prospective college students to apply to accredited colleges and universities. However, that advice alone fails to answer an important question: Why is accreditation important? College accreditation is a complex — and often obtuse — process, and it can be difficult for the unacquainted to understand why accreditation is important. Cynthia Jackson Hammond, president of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA), told Accredited Schools Online that there is immense value in the U.S. college accreditation system. “Accreditation by a recognized accreditor is important for students and families because the institution’s accreditation signifies that the institution has met rigorous standards of academic accountability,” Jackson Hammond said.

Texas High Court Considers Dropping ABA Accreditation as Requirement to Practice Law (Reuters, April 4, 2025) The ABA's legal education council "appreciates" the Texas Supreme Court's consideration of its continued role in accreditation, said Jenn Rosato Perea, the ABA's managing director of accreditation and legal education. The council's primary purpose is "contributing meaningfully to the production of effective and ethical lawyers," she added. Texas' move comes as the ABA faces mounting pressure from the Trump administration and other Republicans to end its diversity and inclusion requirement for law schools.