The Council of Recognized Accrediting Commissions (C-RAC) reiterates it serves as a voluntary organization with a long history of being a leading voice for accreditation at the national level. For over the last half a decade, each C-RAC member has served as an institutional accreditor, and since July 1, 2020, C-RAC members have taken advantage of opportunities to expand beyond traditional regional boundaries serving students and institutions across the country.

DECATUR, Ga. - The Board of Trustees of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) has approved a new name and brand identity for the organization. Effective September 1, 2026, the organization will be known as The Commission on Colleges and Universities. The new identity highlights the organization's growth as a national accreditor serving institutions in the United States and abroad, while reaffirming its commitment to educational qual

Washington, DC – The Council of Recognized Accrediting Commissions (C-RAC) today announced that Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) President, Dr. Mac Powell, will become chair of the organization effective July 1, 2026. Dr. Lawrence Schall, President of New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE), will serve as vice chair. Dr. Powell, who is completing a two-year term as vice chair and will serve a two-year term as chair, succeeds Middle S

In January, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) announced its intent to establish the Accreditation, Innovation, and Modernization (AIM) negotiating rulemaking committee. The committee was tasked with developing proposed regulations on a variety of accreditor-related topics, such as simplifying ED’s regulations for recognition and review of accrediting agencies and revising ED’s criteria and regulations for accrediting agencies to emphasize student achievement and outcome

Washington, DC — The Council of Recognized Accrediting Commissions (C-RAC) submitted comments to the U.S. Department of Education on proposed Workforce Pell regulations in response to its March 9, 2026, notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) following the Accountability in Higher Education and Access Through Demand-Driven Workforce Pell (AHEAD) negotiated rulemaking committee.

C-RAC raises questions about not having a voting seat where resulting rules could impact millions of students at 3,000 colleges and universities WASHINGTON, DC — The Council of Recognized Accrediting Commissions (C-RAC) today issued a formal statement regarding its nominee for primary negotiator representing institutional accreditors not being selected as a voting member of the upcoming Accreditation, Innovation, and Modernization (AIM) negotiated rulemaking committee. Despit

The Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE), the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU), and the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC) are collaborating with the National Accreditation Commission (NAC) to deploy NAC’s AIHub platform to align education with labor market demand.   Together, MSCHE, NWCCU, and WSCUC collectively serve more than 900 institutions and 6.3 million students across 20 states and territories. Through this

Washington, DC — The Council of Recognized Accrediting Commissions (C-RAC) submitted comments to the U.S. Department of Education in response to its proposed interpretive rule addressing the use of the terms “national” and “regional” by federally recognized accrediting agencies. C-RAC expressed support for the Department’s efforts to ensure that outdated references to “regional accreditation” are removed from federal, state and institutional communications and policies. C-RAC

Washington, DC – Earlier this month, the Council of Recognized Accrediting Commissions (C-RAC) nominated Dr. Heather F. Perfetti, President of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) and Chair of C-RAC, to serve on the U.S. Department of Education’s Accreditation, Innovation, and Modernization (AIM) negotiated rulemaking committee representing institutional accreditors recognized by the Secretary of Education. Today, C-RAC is pleased to announce their nomi

The WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC) today announced that its public-facing Key Indicators Dashboard (KID) now organizes program-level return on investment data by field of study, allowing institutions, students, policymakers, and other stakeholders to compare outcomes for specific disciplines across institutions and against national benchmarks. “As demand grows for clearer, program-level insight into postsecondary outcomes, organizing data by field of s

DECATUR, GA – The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) has been awarded a $239,120 grant from the Lumina Foundation to support a multi-year initiative focused on strengthening the alignment between higher education programs and regional workforce needs across the accreditor’s membership. The grant will support the development of a data-driven framework to help SACSCOC’s more than 780 member institutions better assess workforce prioriti

REDMOND, WA — February 2, 2026 — The Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU) Board of Commissioners authorized President, Dr. Selena M. Grace, to explore a potential name change, signaling the organization's evolution from regional to one with a national scope. The decision follows the 2020 U.S. Department of Education policy change that removed regional designations among accreditors. Since then, NWCCU has operated as an institutional accreditor with author

Washington, DC – January 27, 2026 – Today, the Council of Recognized Accrediting Commissions (C-RAC) nominated Dr. Heather F. Perfetti, President of Middle States Commission on Higher Education and Chair of C-RAC, to represent institutional accreditors on the Accreditation, Innovation, and Modernization (AIM) Committee for the upcoming negotiated rulemaking.

Washington, DC – The Council of Recognized Accrediting Commissions (C-RAC) sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Education providing comments in response to the December 11, 2025, request for information on updates to the Accreditation Handbook.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Council of Regional Accrediting Commissions (C-RAC) today announced that it has formally changed its name to the Council of Recognized Accrediting Commissions, effective immediately. The name change reflects significant shifts in federal regulation and practice that have reshaped the accreditation landscape over the past several years. In 2020, federal regulations eliminated regional boundaries for accrediting commissions, recognizing that institutiona

Sacramento, CA – The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) released a new white paper, Leveraging Program-Level Data to Strengthen Student Outcomes: A Framework for ACCJC Institutions , offering the Commission’s perspective on the growing importance of program-level return on investment (ROI) data in shaping the future of higher education. Building on ACCJC’s 2025 integration of an institutional ROI metric into its Student Achievement Dashboards , t

The Learning Evaluation and Recognition for the Next Generation (LEARN) Commission released its final report,  Recommendations to Transform Policy and Practice to Meet Changing Needs , outlining national guidelines to better recognize undergraduate learning in all its forms and apply that learning toward credentials. The recommendations aim to advance learning mobility, improve transfer pathways, and modernize credit evaluation policies and practices across higher education.

DECATUR, Ga. – The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) Board of Trustees has approved a revision to its Substantive Change procedures that allows member institutions to offer additional educational programs at already approved off-campus instructional sites (OCISs) that were previously limited to certificate programs. The update removes a longstanding limitation requiring institutions to seek new approval when expanding beyond certifi

CHICAGO — The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is launching this week a process to evaluate and endorse organizations that provide short-term credential programs, such as certificates, microcredentials, badges or other alternative credentials. As a leading higher education accreditor, HLC is applying its expertise to establish a reliable source of quality assurance for students, employers and others navigating this growing market. Endorsement of providers by HLC also is ex

The New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE) is pleased to announce the Recognition of its inaugural cohort of eight high-quality, providers of non-credit programming. At its September 2025 meeting, the Commission recognized the following organizations: Central Connecticut State University (CCSU) , New Britain, CT; Great Bay Community College, Portsmouth, NH; Kennebec Valley Community College, Kennebec, ME; MCPHS University, Boston, MA: New York University, New York