ArchivedAssuringQualityinHigherEducationKeyIssues.pdfVIP

A NATIONAL DIALOGUE: The Secretary of Education’s Commission on the Future of Higher Education ISSUE PAPER Fourth in a series of Issue Papers released at the request of Chairman Charles Miller to inform the work of the Commission Assuring Quality in Higher Education: Key Issues and Questions for Changing Accreditation in the United States Vickie Schray Summary: Accreditation in the United States has evolved over the years in response to the changing higher education environment. There are at least three major changes in the current environment. One is the growing demand for increased accountability. Another is reduced funding and rising costs and pressures to find more cost-effective solutions in every aspect of higher education. Finally, there is the changing structure and delivery of higher education including new types of educational institutions and the increasing use of distance learning that allows institutions to operate on a national and global scale. This paper seeks to describe the current accreditation system and frame the key issues for discussion. Introduction For more than 100 years, the accreditation system in the United States has been used as the primary vehicle for defining and assuring quality in the delivery of higher education services. In this complex public-private system, recognized accreditation organizations develop quality standards and manage the process for determining whether institutions and programs meet these standards and can be formally accredited. Accrediting organizations play a key “gatekeeper” role in higher education because accreditation is used to determine whether higher education i