‘This should not be a political fight,’ said Michael Poliakoff, a critic of the current accreditation system who sits on the federal committee that approves the accreditors themselves. ‘Things like graduation rates, return on investment for a college degree, job placement rates and loan repayment, these shouldn’t be partisan issues, these affect everybody.’
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Accrediting agencies are tasked with providing a level of quality assurance for higher education. With an accreditor’s stamp of approval, colleges unlock access to billions of dollars in Title IV funding—federal loans, grants, and campus-based aid. Unfortunately, accreditors do not consistently deliver on their role and fail to hold institutions accountable for poor student outcomes.
In a campaign video during his most recent run for the presidency, President Trump called the college accreditation system his “secret weapon” in his plan to reshape higher education.
The failure of Congress to reform the Higher Education Act since its last reauthorization in 2008 has had devastating consequences for America’s students and taxpayers. For too long, the federal response to rising costs and dismal completion rates has been to throw more money at the problem.
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