Trump’s Accreditation Overhaul Finalized

President Trump’s long-standing promise to overhaul college accreditation was fulfilled Thursday as the Education Department finalized regulations that include new standards for intellectual diversity and how accreditors police civil rights law. 

Some argue that the changes politicize the determination of which colleges get aid and puts Trump closer to his larger goal of reclaiming institutions from the “radical left.” The Education Department’s chief higher ed official, Nicholas Kent, said that the rule will instead shift focus of accreditors away from ideological and procedural requirements and toward student success.

“For too long, accreditors have effectively served as a cartel to protect their interests, rather than the educational value that institutions of higher education are expected to deliver for students,” Kent said in a statement Thursday. “The final rule creates a more competitive and transparent accreditation system while ensuring that institutions remain accountable for delivering meaningful outcomes for American students and families.”

ED didn’t substantially change the regulations it initially proposed, despite public comments urging the administration to rework the proposed rules for the groups that evaluate colleges’ quality. Dozens of higher education groups had argued the regulations could squash the traditional peer-review model among existing accreditors, lower the bar in determining which new ones qualify for federal approval and introduce new standards that violate colleges’ independence.

The department responded to those comments and more than 7,000 others in just over a month. Public records also show that the White House Office of Management and Budget did not accept any meetings to discuss the proposal during its eight-day review. The rule will take effect in July.

Critics warned this rule could ultimately turn a historically nonpartisan means for deciding which institutions qualify for federal student aid into another vehicle for advancing the president’s priorities.

“Y’all. Accreditation just got a lot more political,” Emily Merolli, a former department attorney who now is a partner at Sligo Law Group, said in a social media post about the new rule.

Mike Gavin, president of the Alliance for Higher Education, a nonprofit focused on protecting colleges from government overreach, said in a statement that he was not surprised by “the politicized nature of the rule” but warned that the administration will “weaponize” it and use it as leverage to control the higher ed sector and limit diversity of thought.

Others—including Rep. Tim Walberg, a Michigan Republican and chair of the House education committee—backed Kent.

“Accreditors should be focused on whether colleges are helping students graduate, find good jobs and get value for their tuition dollars—not imposing unnecessary costs or pushing ideological agendas,” Walberg said.