EDITORS' CORNER
A group that accredits physical therapy programs received a warning letter Monday from a U.S. Department of Education official, telling it to “formally” rescind its diversity, equity, and inclusion requirements.
The letter to the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education came from Education Under Secretary Nicholas Kent, Inside Higher Ed reports.
The commission recently suspended its requirement telling accredited schools to promote “a culture of justice, equity, diversity, inclusivity … belonging, and anti racism.”
However, Kent wrote that the commission also should “formally” rescind the requirement, because it “would lead to students being treated differently on the basis of their race,” a civil rights violation.
Kent told the commission to provide a series of reports to the department over the next year that explain “what actions the agency has taken to eliminate standards that violate federal law,” according to the report.
He also sent a similar letter Monday to the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, which accredits universities such as Princeton and Cornell.
Although the commission suspended its DEI requirements, Kent wrote that they should be formally revoked so that they do not violate federal civil rights law, according to the report:
Specifically, he pointed to Guiding Principle Three in the standards, which calls on institutions to “reflect deeply and share results on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the context of their mission.” The currently suspended standard urges institutions to weigh such efforts in their policies and processes, curriculum and services, assessments, and resource allocations.
But MSCHE officials pushed back in a Monday night statement, noting that the accreditor has launched a review of its standards, “which will include changes to our already-suspended DEI criteria,” among other changes. The accreditor expects to launch its new standards in July.
A Democratic leader on the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity, a federal advisory group on higher education accreditors, criticized Kent’s letter, Inside Higher Ed reports:
Bob Shireman, a Democratic appointee to the bipartisan, 18-member board, voiced objections to how ED handled concerns on DEI.
“The contorted logic in the letters is appalling: the Administration threatens accreditors and they respond by suspending their policies to allow for review, and then the Department treats that as an admission of guilt?” Shireman wrote in a text message to an Inside Higher Ed reporter. “This feels like an abuse of authority, not to mention an abuse of the process.”
In December, Under Secretary Kent announced plans to crack down on higher education accreditors’ DEI requirements, calling the groups a “political weapon” of the left, The College Fix reported previously.
“Instead of focusing on student outcomes and accountability to taxpayers, accreditation has functioned as a shield for incumbent institutions, or worse, as a tool for political and ideological enforcement,” Kent said.
He said the Trump administration plans to take bold steps to “correct past abuses” and “end the practice of using accreditation as a political weapon.”
While some accreditors have stopped their DEI requirements in response to the Trump administration, others still have such goals.
One, the Council on Social Work Education, includes “Anti-Racism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion” as one of its competencies. This requires institutions to provide examples of “specific and continuous efforts” to promote their DEI curriculum, The Fix reported previously.
MORE: Social work accreditor says colleges should teach students to ‘advocate for’ DEI
