I disagree, however, with his call for federal involvement in what is—and should remain—a state prerogative. The Education Department shouldn’t “solicit applications” from alternative accreditors and then pressure states to accept its choices. Centralizing reform in Washington would simply relocate the same political and special-interest pressures to a more distant arena.
The infrastructure for competitive private accreditation already exists. Many institutional accreditors oversee colleges and universities nationwide, and many state teacher licensing authorities recognize multiple accrediting bodies for training programs. If states ended the exclusivity they grant the Liaison Committee on Medical Education, these organizations and others could enter the field. Dr. Goldfarb’s suggestion that the Florida-led six-state Commission for Public Higher Education expand into medical school accreditation could likewise spur broader competition.
Reform should decentralize accreditation, not nationalize it. Expanding federal authority risks entrenching the very politicization critics seek to escape.