Louisiana Partners with Southern States to Create New Accrediting Body

News Summary

Louisiana, alongside Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas, is establishing the Commission for Public Higher Education (CPHE) to provide an alternative to SACS. Announced by Governor Jeff Landry, this new body aims to address concerns from conservative politicians about existing accreditation practices. A task force has been formed to lead the initiative, promoting merit-based achievement over diversity efforts and seeking approval from the U.S. Department of Education for federal funding eligibility. The move reflects a growing conservative push against perceived liberal influences in higher education.

Louisiana will affiliate with several other Southern states, including Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas, to establish a new accrediting body known as the Commission for Public Higher Education (CPHE). This partnership aims to provide an alternative to the existing accreditor, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACS), which is responsible for evaluating higher education institutions in the region. Governor Jeff Landry announced the decision through an executive order on July 22, 2025.

The CPHE is designed to address dissatisfaction expressed by conservative politicians with traditional accreditation practices, which they believe impose values related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). As part of its mission, the CPHE will seek expedited approval from the U.S. Department of Education, enabling it to act as an accreditor for colleges and universities and allowing institutions under its purview to qualify for federal student aid.

To oversee the establishment of the new accreditation body, Landry has formed a Task Force on Public Higher Education Reform. This task force, responsible for providing recommendations on the CPHE, will be composed of 13 members, most of whom have been directly appointed by Landry or his legislative allies. Key members of the task force include Commissioner of Higher Education Kim Hunter Reed and Board of Regents Chairwoman Misti Cordell, among others. The task force is expected to convene its first meeting by August 31, 2025, and submit its recommendations by January 30, 2026.

One focus of the task force will be to plan a pilot program that allows for dual accreditation with both the new CPHE and SACS. Landry has emphasized that the task force’s objectives will prioritize merit-based achievement rather than DEI-driven requirements, a stance that aligns with recent conservative criticisms of the higher education landscape.

In the context of a growing conservative backlash against what some view as liberal influences within higher education, the CPHE initiative reflects a broader movement to reform accreditation processes perceived as ideologically biased. This has been echoed by prominent conservative figures who have suggested that traditional accrediting bodies operate as “woke accreditation cartels.” The approval process from the U.S. Department of Education is crucial as it would determine whether colleges accredited by the CPHE are eligible for federal student funding.

Although the structure and standards of the new accreditor are still being developed, this effort will require ongoing deliberation and input from a diverse range of educational stakeholders. Critics of the CPHE initiative have voiced concerns about potential politicization in the accreditation process, suggesting that it could undermine the credibility of higher education institutions in Louisiana and the broader Southern region.

This formation of a conservative alternative accrediting body emerges against a backdrop of recent discourse surrounding higher education, during which political leaders have increasingly called for reforms that address perceived ideological bias in accreditation practices. The implications of this initiative could reshape the accreditation landscape, impacting colleges and their respective students across the Southern states.

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• The Center Square: Louisiana Joins Other Southern States in Forming New University Accreditation Program
• Wikipedia: Higher Education Accreditation in the United States