What is accreditation and why is it important ? National Academic Higher Education Agency
- Accreditation is the evaluation tool used to ensure a high level of quality in higher education...
- Accreditation is the process that gives public recognition to institutions that meet certain standards...
- Accreditation is the schools mark of legitimacy...
Accrediting agencies in the U.S. are privately owned State registered organizations who have taken it upon themselves to assure the quality and standards of higher education. NACHED is one of the oldest accrediting organizations of national scope, initially incorporated in 1974 and reincorporated in Washington DC in 2007.
The U.S. Department of Education Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008.
Efforts of the Department of Education to dictate the establishment and measurement of student achievement standards were stopped decisively by the the Higher Education Act of 2008, which prohibits the Secretary of Education from regulating student achievement or any other accreditation standards.
This was a hard-fought battle and is a significant victory for established national accrediting agencies such as NACHED. Other provisions in the law related to accreditation include:
- A requirement that accreditation standards respect the stated mission of the institution of higher education, including religious missions
- Several revisions to due-process requirements for accreditation agencies
- Provisions dealing with distance education, growth monitoring, teach-outs, disclosure of agency actions, and transfer of credit
- In related provisions, the new law also makes substantial changes to the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI).
When Will This Take Effect ?
The provisions regarding accreditation went into effect when the bill was signed into law on August 14, 2008. From this date on, the Department of Education is prohibited from regulating any of the accreditation standards listed in Section 496(a)(5) of the new law. All of the other accreditation provisions are subject to future negotiated rulemaking.
Full text of the Higher Education Opportunity Act 2008 on Accreditation :
Click to download in PDF format.
What does the new law mean to students and graduates of NACHED accredited institutions ?
The U.S. Department of Education does not play a role in accrediting schools, colleges and student achievements. Some academic lobbying organizations of doubtful reputation have claimed ''recognition'' by the Secretary of Education and have fooled the general public to believe the falsehood that the U.S. Department of Education authorized them to grant accreditation to public and private schools, colleges and universities.
The truth is that the Department of Education does not accredit educational institutions, and has no authority to recognize national or regional accrediting agencies for the purpose of establishing quality control.
The only form of ''recognition'' that may be granted by the Secretary of Education is for Title IV funding purposes only, this is the nearly 60 billion dollar congressionally approved annual money stream that flows from taxpayers to mainly state universities and community colleges.
Since the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 authorizes State registered accrediting organizations like NACHED to operate with or without Title IV ''recognition'', we have chosen to maintain our academic integrity and to adhere to State accreditation standards while not soliciting federal tax payers' funds.
Source : Department of Education
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