Dive Brief:
- The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau continues its push into for-profit higher education with a probe that involves the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools, accreditor of Everest campuses, and ITT Educational Services, among others.
- Inside Higher Ed reports it is not clear whether the investigation is centered on the colleges the ACICS oversees or the accreditor itself, which would be unprecedented.
- While ACICS says the CFPB is overstepping its consumer watchdog authority by crossing into Department of Education territory, Center for Responsible Lending policy counsel Maura Dundon said the CFPB could make a case by accusing ACICS of aiding and abetting its accredited for-profits in fraud.
Dive Insight:
The Center for American Progress recently singled out ACICS for its accredited institutions’ dismal student outcomes. On average, they had higher levels of student borrowing, debt, and default, and lower graduation rates than the average outcomes of students attending schools connected to other accreditors. If the CFPB mounts a case against ACICS, it could breathe new fire into the accreditation overhaul process already being discussed in Washington.
Accreditors have been criticized for holding up innovation as the gatekeepers to federal funds, or being too strict. Then, of course, they’ve been criticized for being too lax in allowing institutions like Corinthian Colleges to maintain accreditation until they close. Both issues likely will be discussed as part of the Higher Education Act reauthorization process.
