Where Presidential Candidates Stand on Accreditation Reform

February 16, 2016

Where the Candidates Stand on Higher Education (e21, February 10, 2016)
“[The author] divided the candidates’ proposals into several areas of reform: student loans and grants, college accountability, tuition fees, private investment options for college finance, accreditation reform and alternative education, information access, new revenues, and other major proposals.”

Latest on Mount St. Mary’s: Accreditation, Parents (Inside Higher Ed, February 11, 2016)
“Inside Higher Ed asked the university's accreditor if it planned to examine what was going on, and received a reply that it did.”

Can Alexander and Murray Recapture Bipartisan Magic to Pass Higher Education Legislation? (The Washington Post, February 9, 2016)
In an interview, Senate HELP Committee Chair Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA) indicate that they have bipartisan agreement on a number of issues, including the need for accreditation reform.

Accreditor Threatens to Step In As Illinois Colleges Wait for State Funds (The Chronicle of Higher Education,  February 5, 2016)
“The Higher Learning Commission sent a letter to Illinois lawmakers on Thursday, saying it is obligated to move swiftly to protect Illinois students if the state’s budget impasse continues and public colleges are denied state funds.”

The Imperative of Measuring Student Learning Outcomes (University World News, February 5, 2016)
“’There is no shortcut to measuring the quality of higher education that bypasses student learning outcomes. Some proxies may correlate, but it is for learning gains that we go to university.’”

Four Questions Employers Ask About Job Applicants With Online Degrees (U.S. News & World Report, February 6, 2016)
“A major part of a program's legitimacy comes down to whether it's either regionally or nationally accredited. ​Accreditation entails an outside, legitimate authority verifying that an institution meets certain educational standards. The accrediting agency should be recognized by the U.S. Department of Education or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.”