The Council For Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) Equity Survey

Introduction

The higher education system in the United States of America consists of many different types of institutions that afford quality education to the diverse people who make up the nation’s population. The system, which is largely independent from federal government regulation, consists of institutions that are public, private, rural, urban, vocational, liberal arts, research-focused, secular, religious, minority-serving, among a host of other designations. Accreditation is employed to assure quality within this diverse community, and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) is the non-governmental agency that fortifies the accreditation process by way of recognition.

The Council for Higher Education Accreditation, as an advocate for quality in higher education,

“Supports and works to advance the role of accreditation in maintaining the core academic values of higher education – commitments to institutional autonomy, academic freedom and institutional mission.”

Inherent in its advocacy is its commitment to cultivate and support,

“…an environment that demonstrates appreciation for and values the diversity of its institutions of higher education, accreditors, board and staff, and all who are served by these groups.”

On December 3, 2021, CHEA posted the 2021 CHEA Recognition Policy and Procedures, which included a new standard, Standard 3.A., that states:

“A recognized accrediting organization demonstrates that it manifests a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.”

After a year of implementation, CHEA sought to gauge how CHEA-recognized accreditors addressed, or were positioned to address, the standard. Accordingly, CHEA launched a survey in February 2023 for the primary purpose of learning how CHEA accreditors understand and operationalize the singular construct of equity. CHEA recognizes 63 accreditors in the United States of America (USA), of which eight (8) are institutional, four (4) are national faith-related, and 51 are programmatic.

Methodology

Survey questions were developed by...Read More