Protecting Students and Taxpayers: The Federal Government's Failed Regulatory Approach and Steps for Reform

For nearly half a century, the federal government has largely outsourced the determination of which colleges and universities are eligible to receive federal taxpayer money--in the form of student grants and loans--to member-based, geographically oriented accrediting agencies. This outsourcing of responsibility, however, has failed to protect consumers and taxpayers. It is time to acknowledge that Congress must reform and modernize the process for determining college and university eligibility for federal funds. This report presents a variety of suggestions for reform that include: (1) Separating eligibility for federal education funding from the accreditation process; (2) Ensuring transparent performance metrics; (3) Allowing for expedited self-certification by colleges, universities, and other education providers; (4) Allowing and encouraging new agencies for higher education quality assurance, and giving institutions the opportunity to choose from a range of qualified, approved accrediting agencies; (5) Creating institutional-level and student-level accountability for quality assurance; and (6) Expanding the number of states designated as accrediting agencies. It is hoped these common-sense changes will be considered and the United States can have a fully functional system of higher education quality assurance that protects the taxpayer investment in student financial aid.