Trump Administration Begins Process Of Revoking Columbia's Accreditation
HuffPost
An accreditation agency will now have to come up with a plan to address the alleged antisemitism on Columbia's campus.
The Department of Education on Wednesday announced that Columbia University “no longer appears” to meet accreditation standards due to student protests over Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza, threatening the Ivy League institution’s accreditation status.
President Donald Trump and his administration argue that the protests constitute antisemitism and have been using the issue as ammunition in a culture war against elite institutions of higher education.
The Department of Education does not issue accreditation itself. Rather, it recognizes accrediting agencies, such as the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, of which Columbia is a member.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon pressured the Middle States Commission in a statement.
“Accreditors have an enormous public responsibility as gatekeepers of federal student aid. They determine which institutions are eligible for federal student loans and Pell Grants,” she said.
