The Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU) has updated two Policies to reflect NWCCU’s practice and its compliance with the U.S. Department of Education’s Accreditation Handbook. Information on these revisions was provided to the institutional Accreditation Liaison Officers (ALO) during the town hall conversation on February 28, 2025.
The revised documents are linked below with a summary of changes to each and the impact on NWCCU member institutions.
Accreditation Actions Policy
Changes: (1) Clarified that Institutions accredited by another primary accreditor seeking to switch primary accreditors to NWCCU must seek approval of the United States Department of Education to switch accreditors before submitting an Application for Consideration of Eligibility. (2) Added information about the Notice of Concern action approved by Commissioners in Summer 2024.
Impact: (1) This change clarifies existing requirements for institutions not currently accredited by NWCCU seeking to change their primary accreditation to NWCCU. (2) The Notice of Concern option is a non-public action Commissioners may take when there is concern that the institution is approaching a Sanction if significant progress is not made in identified areas.
Receipt of Unsolicited Information Policy
Changes: Added language stating that in the receipt of unsolicited information, NWCCU will initiate the described process “to review the accreditation of the institution and determine if it should alter the status of the institution by imposing an adverse action or place the institution on probation or show cause.”
Impact: This language aligns with requirements in federal regulations but does not change the process described in the Policy from previous revisions.
