PRESS RELEASE: DFI Statement on Department of Education’s Action to Reform Broken Accreditation System

WASHINGTON—The Defense of Freedom Institute for Policy Studies (DFI) released the following statement from President and Co-Founder Bob Eitel on the U.S. Department of Education’s newly announced actions to reform higher education accreditation:

The Defense of Freedom Institute applauds the Trump administration for taking bold, necessary action to restore integrity, accountability, and competition to our broken accreditation system. For too long, accreditors have leveraged their Title IV gatekeeper status to stifle innovation in American higher education and to require ideological litmus tests that undermine civil rights and academic freedom on campus.

DFI has long argued that the Biden administration’s unlawful 2022 guidance on accreditation illegally obstructed state-led reforms like those in Florida under Gov. Ron DeSantis. We urged the Education Department to rescind this guidance, and we appreciate that President Trump and Secretary McMahon have delivered.

Eliminating bureaucratic barriers to changing accreditors and lifting the moratorium on recognizing new ones will foster a competitive, student-centered accreditation landscape. DFI stands ready to support these reforms, as well as those that ensure that every student has access to a high-quality, high-value education.