Louisiana higher ed task force says yes to joining new accreditation agency
Gov. Landry created the Higher Education Reform Task Force in July, intending to reorient the state’s higher education away from DEI and to seek membership in the Commission for Public Higher Education.
Since then, the task force has met three times and voted on Nov. 13 in favor of joining the new accreditation agency.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry’s higher education task force has voted to support the state’s joining an accreditation agency composed of six other southern states, created to combat Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
Gov. Landry created the Higher Education Reform Task Force in July, intending to reorient the state’s higher education away from DEI and to seek membership in the Commission for Public Higher Education.
“This task force will ensure Louisiana’s public universities move away from DEI-driven mandates and toward a system rooted in merit-based achievement,” the governor wrote.
Since then, the task force has met three times and voted on Nov. 13 in favor of joining the new accreditation agency.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the formation of the Commission for Public Higher Education in June, in partnership with the Texas A&M University System, the University System of Georgia, the University of North Carolina, the University of South Carolina, and the University of Tennessee.
“Florida has set an example for the country in reclaiming higher education—and we’re working to make that success permanent,” DeSantis said at the time. “That means breaking the activist-controlled accreditation monopoly.”
President Trump signed an executive order in April, calling for the decentralization of accreditation agencies, which he accused of stymying his higher education reforms targeting DEI and gender ideology.
On Nov. 13, in addition to voting to join the new agency, the Higher Education Reform Task Force also recommended eliminating references to the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, the state’s current accreditor, in state documents.
If Louisiana decides to adopt the task force’s recommendations, the state would cease its partnership with the Southern Association.
Accreditation agencies nationwide have been backing away from DEI mandates following President Trump’s April executive order.
The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education eliminated its DEI department in September, following a shift in “evolving national priorities.”
A Do No Harm report from July reviewed the policies of ten medical accreditation agencies, finding that seven “have either eliminated diversity requirements, proposed eliminating diversity requirements, or pledged to not enforce these requirements.”
Before Trump’s executive order, several accreditation agencies, including the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, reemphasized their commitment to enforcing DEI standards at colleges and universities.
Campus Reform contacted Gov. Landry’s office for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
