‘Buckle Up’: Trump Official Pledges to Fix Accreditation
Josh Moody
December 17, 2025
The first NACIQI meeting with Trump appointees in place featured fiery rhetoric against accreditors and questions about diversity, equity and inclusion.
President Donald Trump’s skepticism of the current accreditation system bled into Tuesday’s National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI) meeting—the first since Education Secretary Linda McMahon and other officials were confirmed.
The Trump administration has cast accreditation as beset by alleged woke priorities, a theme repeated Tuesday along with pledges to shake up the system. Concerns about a supposed pervasive liberal ideology among such bodies prompted an executive order in April that threatened to strip federal recognition from accreditors that require institutions to engage in unlawful diversity practices. The Department of Education is also seeking public comment on accreditation reform, which officials have said is to increase transparency and efficiency, and is planning to update the rules for accreditors next year.
