News from the Council for Higher Education Accreditation – Fall 2022

September 22, 2022

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and the Importance of Ethics

Sonny Ramaswamy
President
Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities


On July 18, 2022, CHEA hosted the second in its series of webinars on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI). These one-hour webinars feature leaders from the accreditation community discussing DEI from the accreditation and the institutional level.

This webinar featured Dr. Sonny Ramaswamy, President of the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU). In the webinar, Dr. Ramaswamy addressed the importance of ethics to DEI, as well as the impact of DEI on student success. Following is excerpts from his remarks.

“The definition of ethics refers to the moral principles that govern a person’s behavior and morality. A sense of ethics calls for us to address diversity, equity and inclusion and to create an environment where everyone feels that they belong. It is more than simply being included: It is a sense that they belong at an institution or organization.

“The vision we articulated is that NWCCU promotes student success, which, by definition, indicates that the institution values diversity, equity and inclusion. We look for more than a DEI statement, we look for evidence that ‘the needle is moving when it comes to creating a truly inclusive institution.

“Our concern with equity is that there is justice and fairness to all the policies we have, whether it is at NWCCU or our member institutions. We don’t want higher education or accreditation to be in “lock step” when it comes to DEI; that is why we are not prescriptive in our standards. Rather, we want to see commitment to the underlying principles and ethics of diversity, equity and inclusion.

“In the end, everything needs to flow upwards and outwards from the needs of students. That is why we are all here. Our members have really embraced this focus on students, DEI and student success.

“But it is also important to remember that we are a constantly evolving society, so we need to adhere to a continuous improvement philosophy. When it comes to DEI, as with other aspects and principles of higher education, it is never ‘one and done.’”

“If you subscribe to the idea of being ethical – of having moral principles – does it not behoove you and me to address inequities in higher education and elsewhere? If not, the word ‘ethical’ is empty.”

We thank Dr. Ramaswamy for his insightful comments on this important issue. A recording of the full webinar is available on the CHEA Website.


Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: Educational Outcomes and Opportunities

Darrell Cain
Interim President
Everett Community College


As the interim president of Everett Community College (EvCC) and a member of the Board of Directors of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation, I recognize that diversity, equity, and inclusion are assurance values needed to maintain quality for educational outcomes and opportunities. 
 
At EvCC, we recently launched a new strategic plan which outlines how we choose to hold ourselves accountable for ensuring student success. Our plan includes the goal of eliminating opportunity gaps for racialized groups in transfer and completion by 2027. 

For this goal to be achieved, all college members must assume accountability and be part of the transformation process. Faculty and staff participate in training and development. Incoming members of the EvCC family are asked specific questions about how their values around equity align with ours. 
 
The definition we use for equity, a process by which individuals are provided access to the correct amount and types of resources, opportunity, and support needed to achieve equal footing with others, helps us to center the experiences of underrepresented students. 
 
We regularly disaggregate data to understand where patterns of inequity exist and examine how our systems and structures have led to these inequitable opportunities. This data helps inform new opportunities for training and policy revisions. 
 
We are not where we want to be, and much work needs to be done, but we are committed to equitable transformation for a sustainable future.


Government Relations: A Busy Time for the U.S. Department of Education

There have been a number of activities by or affecting the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) recently. All of these activities have the potential to affect higher education accreditation and accredited institutions. CHEA follows these activities closely and shares information with members through the CHEA Federal Update and Accreditation in the News.

Recent activities include:

  • On August 4, 2022, the full U.S. Senate confirmed Dr. Nassar Paydar to serve as USDE Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary education, the senior position in the Office of Postsecondary Education, which oversees higher education and accreditation. Click here to read comments by USDE Secretary Dr. Miguel Cardona.
  • USDE published a new rule concerning Title IX regulations affecting how institutions deal with sexual harassment, assault and discrimination. The proposed rule drew more than 230,000 comments during the public comment period.
  • USDE proposed new regulations affecting student loan borrowers, arbitration, borrower defense repayment, institutional accountability and other issues related to student loans and student borrowing.
  • The rule with the greatest impact on accreditation USDE’s proposed rule that would implement statutory changes in the American Rescue Plan Act. The regulations will change the 90/10 rule, which requires institutions to get at least 10 percent of their funds from non-federal education sources. Included in the 90 percent calculation will now be Veterans Administration educational funding as well as Title IV financial aid. The new rules also clarify change in ownership rules including for-profit to non-profit conversions and specify notification to USDE and students. Directly affecting accreditation is the rule’s extension of Pell Grants to incarcerated individuals, which would restructure how state and federal corrections officials would work with accreditation to assess institutions’ eligibility to offer educational programs in prisons.
  • USDE released several guidance documents addressing the responsibilities of institutions and accrediting organizations when an institution seeks to change accreditors. In a blog post on USDE’s website announcing the new documents, USDE said that guidance was issued to ensure that institutions are held to high standards, to maintain the integrity of the Federal Triad of USDE, state governments and accrediting organizations and to preserve accreditors’ role in oversight as intended in the Higher Education Act.
  • More than a year after the initial recommendation by the USDE’s National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI), USDE formally terminated recognition of the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS). The accreditor subsequently announced that it would not appeal USDE’s decision in federal court and will disband by 2023. ACICS-accredited institutions have 18 months to find another accreditor, though under conditions set by USDE.

CHEA’s Federal Update covers government activities and announcements with an impact on accreditation. To ensure that you are receiving the Federal Update, sign up here: https://www.chea.org/subscribe-chea-ciqg-newsletters.


CHEA to Launch Arbitration Program in 2023

CHEA will launch an Arbitration Program to provide an impartial process with trained arbitrators to facilitate non-binding arbitration between institutions of higher education and recognized postsecondary accrediting organizations. The arbitration is designed to address and resolve disputes regarding adverse final accreditation decisions (denial, withdrawal, or termination of accreditation of an institution).

Full details about the arbitration program will be sent to CHEA members on November 1. The program will launch January 2023 and a comprehensive overview of the program will be provided at the 2023 CHEA/CIQG Annual Conference later that month.

Recently, CHEA produced a short video with questions and answers about the Arbitration Program. The video is available on the CHEA website. Take a few minutes to view this video and hear Jan Friis, CHEA’s Senior Vice President for Government Affairs, discuss how the new program will benefit CHEA members and the accreditation community.


The 2023 CHEA/CIQG Annual Conference

The 2023 Annual Conference of CHEA and the CHEA International Quality Group (CIQG) will take place on January 23-26 at the Capital Hilton Hotel in Washington, DC. The conference’s theme – Maintaining and Improving Quality Assurance: Today and Tomorrow – sets the tone for a conference focused on continuous improvement in accreditation and quality assurance and how institutions and accrediting organizations can help to advance academic quality and student success.

The event will be in-person and will bring together approximately 400 attendees from across the United States and around the world, attracting participants from colleges and universities, accrediting organizations, higher education associations, government and media.

Registration for the Annual Conference will open on October 15. In the weeks ahead, look for information from CHEA on session topics and speakers. We look forward to seeing you in Washington, DC in January!