AAUW Denounces Education Department Rule Turning Accreditation into a Political Test

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Education today made public a final rule rewriting how colleges are accredited. The rule is scheduled for publication in the Federal Register on October 30.

Accreditation decides which colleges can offer Pell Grants and federal student loans. The rule requires accreditors to judge whether colleges prioritize “intellectual diversity” among faculty. It restricts accreditor standards on diversity, equity, and inclusion. It also pushes accreditors to rate colleges on graduates’ earnings.

AAUW CEO Gloria L. Blackwell issued the following statement:

“Accreditation exists to protect the quality of a student’s education. This rule turns it into a political test. Colleges won’t wait to be punished. They will cut the mentoring programs, women’s centers, and student parent supports that help students finish their degrees. The Department should not use accreditation to scare colleges away from lawful work that opens doors to higher education.”

The Department received more than 7,000 public comments and made no substantive changes. The rule takes effect July 1, 2027, but accreditors may begin adopting it as early as January 1, 2027.

In September, AAUW urged the Department to withdraw the proposal. We argued that the rule exceeds the Department’s authority under the Higher Education Act, invites political interference in what colleges teach and research, and will push colleges to drop lawful programs that support students.

AAUW is calling on Congress to conduct oversight of the rule before accreditors begin putting it into practice. We will keep working to protect students’ access to higher education and colleges’ freedom to teach.

Read AAUW’s comment letter on the initial proposal.

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AAUW is the nation’s leading organization for equity in higher education and women’s economic empowerment. Founded in 1881 by women who defied society’s conventions by earning college degrees, AAUW works to expand women’s access, opportunity, and equity through research, advocacy, education, and philanthropy. Since 1888, the organization has invested more than $150 million in women scholars, researchers, and community change-makers. Learn more at aauw.org.