Author: Sanjay Goel
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Accreditation of education institutes is a periodic and voluntary peer review to assure quality and promote organisational improvement. The accreditation process of higher education technically commenced in 1787 in the USA when the State of New York implemented a legislation mandating that the State University of New York’s Board of Regents members conduct annual visits and evaluations of each college within the state. In the late 19th century, higher education institutions in the USA began to expand rapidly, leading to concerns about the quality and consistency of these institutions. Accreditation-related developments taken to address this concern laid the initial foundations of the phenomenon that later became one of the most important and talked about global themes in higher education. Seven regional accreditors for higher education evolved in the USA, each responsible for accrediting degree-granting institutions within specific regions. These agencies or their predecessors emerged as independent associations during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, well before similar agencies appeared in other parts of the world. Many leaders of the best institutions in the respective regions played significant roles in founding these agencies.
- New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE)
In 1885, the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) was established in the USA by Charles W. Eliot, the President of Harvard University. As the first regional accreditation agency in the USA, it soon paved the way for some other regional and programmatic accreditation agencies in the USA, as well as a few national agencies in other countries. For over a century, it accredited K-12 as well as higher education institutions. In 2018, after a reorganisation of NEASC, a new independent agency, the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE) was separated out of it to focus specifically on the accreditation of higher education institutions in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont. It also accredits some international institutes. NEASC now only accredits the schools. Since 2021, its revised nine standards of accreditation include – Mission and Purposes; Planning and Evaluation; Organization and Governance; The Academic Program, Students; Teaching, Learning, and Scholarship; Institutional Resources; Educational Effectiveness; Integrity, Transparency, and Public Disclosure.
2. Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE)
Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (MSA) was founded in 1887 for accrediting institutions in the Mid-Atlantic region of the USA. Before 2013, it included three separate commissions for elementary schools, secondary schools, and higher education. The Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE), originally established in 1919 as part of the MSA, became an independent body in 2013 for accreditation of higher education institutions in Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. It also accredits some international institutions. Its accreditation process assesses the applicant institutions on the basis of fifteen requirements and seven standards – mission and goals; ethics and integrity; design and delivery of student learning experience; support of the student experience; educational effectiveness assessment; planning, resources, and institutional improvement; governance, leadership, and administration.
3. Higher Learning Commission (HLC)
The North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA) was founded in 1893 and was responsible for accrediting both K-12 and higher education institutions in the Midwest region of the USA covering the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. In 2000, the NCA was restructured, which led to the establishment of the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) for higher education accreditation and AdvancED (now Cognia) for K-12 accreditation. The five Criteria used for accreditation by HLC include – mission; ethical and responsible conduct; quality, resources, and support for teaching and learning; evaluation and improvement of teaching and learning; and institutional effectiveness, resources, and planning.
4. Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC)
In 1895, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) was created to accredit educational institutions in the southern states of the USA. Its division, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) focuses on accreditation of degree-granting higher education institutions in the states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and also some institutions in Latin America. Since 2018, it uses fourteen principles that are further detailed into several standards for accreditation. These principles are – integrity; mission; basic eligibility standards; governing board; administration and organization; faculty; institutional planning and effectiveness; student achievement; educational program structure and content; educational policies, procedures, and practices; library and learning/information resources; academic and students support services; financial and physical resources; transparency and institutional representation.
5. Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU)
In 1917, the Northwest Association of Secondary and Higher Schools was established for accreditation of the northwestern region in the USA. In 1974, it evolved into the Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges. In 2002, it was divided into two independent organisations, Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU) focused on higher education in the states of Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and British Columbia, and the Northwest Association of Accredited Schools (NWAAS) focused on schools. NWCCU uses two main standards for accreditation – student success, institutional mission, and effectiveness; and governance, resources, and capacity.
6. WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC) & 7. Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC)
Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) was established in 1962 for accreditation of educational institutions in the western region of the USA, i.e., California, Hawaii, Guam, American Samoa, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of Palau, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. It was created by merging several smaller accrediting associations including Western College Association (WCA) which was working since the early 1920s. In 2012, it got split into three independent organisations – the Accrediting Commission for Schools (ACS WASC), the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC), and the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC). WSCUC also accredits some international institutions. They accredit institutes in Since 2014, the ACCJC uses four standards or accreditation – mission, academic quality and institutional effectiveness, and integrity; student learning programs and support services; resources; and leadership and governance. Since 2022, WSCUC assesses the institutes on four standards – defining institutional mission and acting with integrity; achieving educational objectives and student success; assuring resources and organizational structure; and creating an institute committed to quality assurance and improvement.
Conclusion:
In summary, the seven regional accreditors of higher education, NECHE, MSCHE, HLC, SACSCOC, NWCCU, ACCJC, and WSCUC, are responsible for accrediting degree-granting institutions within specific regions in the United States. These accreditors share similar goals, processes, and functions in their mission to promote quality assurance, institutional improvement, and accountability in higher education within their respective regions. Their accreditation system is self-regulatory, with member institutions forming, adopting, and adhering to standards and policies. Additionally, their system relies on volunteer peer review. Some of these also accredit international institutions. All these accreditors are recognised by the US Department of Education (USDE) as well as the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) which was formed in 1996 and assesses the accreditors for recognition since 1998.
Before assessing institutes for their first accreditation cycle, these accreditors require eligible institutes to undergo the assessment process for the pre-accreditation candidacy status. This process typically includes a comprehensive assessment, including a self-study report, a peer review team visit, and compliance with the required standards. Different agencies allow a maximum duration of 4-5 years within which the institutes must apply for accreditation status. The candidacy stage allows institutions to demonstrate their commitment to meeting the standards set by accrediting agencies. Once an institution achieves accreditation, the accreditation status is granted for a period ranging from 7 to 10 years, depending on the accrediting agency. They all require a mid-cycle review during this period. A few of them even include a peer team visit as part of this mid-term review. These accreditors do not award a letter grade of a numeric score to the accredited institutes.
These accreditors have played a critical role in the growth of higher education in the US, with their early forms dating back over a hundred years when there were only around one million students enrolled in higher education in nearly one thousand institutions across the country. After the second world war, accreditation became very important for the government for ensuring that the funding followed students enrolled in institutions meeting educational standards. Soon, these accreditors established the fundamental elements of accreditation, including a mission-based approach, standards, self-study, peer visits, and periodic reviews. In the first stage of the accreditation process, the institutions assess themselves against accreditors’ standards and use the process for improvement. Since then, they have continuously improved the process by learning from experience, adapting to change, and refining the standards and the process. The trend in accreditation has shifted from a focus on resources to processes and finally to outcomes or effectiveness. The work of these agencies has contributed a lot to shaping the global landscape of higher education accreditation. Their current standards and criteria encompass mission and goals, ethics and integrity, student learning and support services, resources, governance, institutional effectiveness, etc. The standards, criteria, and processes of these accreditors serve as models for accreditors in other countries.
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Posted on April 24, 2023
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