U.S. Department of Education’s Recognition and Oversight of Accrediting Agencies

objectives of our audit were to assess (1) whether the U.S. Department of Education’s (Department) process for recognizing accrediting agencies ensured that agencies met the Federal recognition criteria and (2) the extent that the Department monitored agencies during the period of recognition. We found that as of June 2017, the Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE) had a formal process for reviewing agency petitions for recognition that incorporated the petition review procedures required under Title 34, Code of Federal Regulations, Section 602.32 (34 C.F.R. § 602.32). However, OPE’s process did not provide reasonable assurance that the Department recognized only agencies meeting Federal recognition criteria. We also found that OPE’s post-recognition oversight is not adequate to ensure agencies consistently and effectively carry out their responsibilities. OPE does not have an adequate plan for the post-recognition oversight of agencies and does not regularly perform reviews of high-risk agencies during the recognition period. OPE takes a reactive approach to post-recognition oversight and performs oversight activities for an agency only if it is alerted that compliance or other issues may exist at that agency. This could result in no oversight for some agencies, including newly recognized or higher risk agencies, for up to 5 years. In addition, OPE’s oversight approach may not identify significant agency issues soon enough to mitigate or prevent potential harm to accredited schools, students, or taxpayers.