Dive Brief:
- Sen. Lamar Alexander, the ranking Republican on the Senate's education committee, released three policy papers this week exploring accountability, accreditation, and data collection in higher education.
- Inside Higher Ed reports the papers outline proposals to hold colleges and universities more accountable for student outcomes, including their ability to repay student debt.
- The proposals concerning accreditation could mark drastic changes to the industry, according to Inside Higher Ed, and include ways to reduce federal control and increase the likelihood of accreditation for alternative programs.
Dive Insight:
Sen. Alexander is pushing for a rewrite of the Higher Education Act by the end of the year. The act was first passed in 1965 to provide greater financial resources to students and higher education institutions. The latest authorization, approved in 2008, expired in 2013. Alexander’s overhaul could provide for significant changes in the higher education landscape, especially if his ideas about accreditation gain approval by the committee and then Congress. With increasing competition in post-secondary models, traditional colleges and universities have maintained the upper hand, partly because they’re still the most likely to have a stamp of approval. Accreditation changes, however, could substantially shift the playing field.