ACTA in the NewsTrusteeship
Calling Foul on the Accreditors
In recent weeks the topic of accreditation—normally a dense and inscrutable process at best—has garnered a remarkable level of attention...
Report
Policymakers | Accreditation
Can College Accreditation Live Up to Its Promise?
July 1, 2002 by George C. Leef and Roxana D. Burris Download PDF Press Release
This investigation finds the system of college accreditation has done more to raise costs than to improve or even maintain educational quality, and that it gives students, parents, and public decision-makers almost no useful information about institutions of higher education. The study recommends changes in policy at the federal, state, and institutional levels.
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CONTENT
Accreditation
It’s Time for Congress to Dismantle the Higher Education Accreditation Cartel
Summary Higher education accreditation creates barriers to entry for innovative start-ups while being a poor gauge of program quality and student outcomes. What began as a voluntary system became a de facto requirement, with accreditors abusing their power. To harness the potential of new learning modes, policymakers should consider meaningful structural changes to this ossified […]
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PRESS MENTIONS
ACTA in the NewsTrusteeship
Group Criticizes Link Between Accreditation and Federal Student Aid
The federal government should no longer require a college to be accredited to award federal financial aid, a national group argues in a new report. The American Council of Trustees and Alumni questions the effectiveness of accrediting groups and calls for Congress to end the requirement when it reviews the government’s main higher education law […]
ACTA in the NewsTrusteeship
Accreditation System Is Misguided Failure, Trustees Group Says
The federal government’s system for accrediting colleges is a misguided failure that should be largely replaced with a simpler method that relies on key institutional data about cost and quality, a trustees group is arguing. The American Council of Trustees and Alumni, a conservative-leaning lobbying association led by Anne D. Neal, proposed in a report […]
ACTA in the NewsTrusteeship
Lawmakers at Hearing on College Accreditation System Call for More Accountability
A House of Representatives education subcommittee met Tuesday to assess the role of accreditation in higher education. Lawmakers largely criticized the country’s 50-year-old accreditation process, claiming that it fails to ensure academic quality, lacks accountability, and drives up college costs for administrators and students. Rep. Howard P. (Buck) McKeon, a California Republican and chairman of […]
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