The Education Department unveiled plans to overhaul accreditation regulations, proposing changes to make it easier for new accreditors to gain recognition and to constrain diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) standards, according to a Federal Register notice. Officials said the rewrite aims to strengthen accountability, expand choice among accreditors and curb what the department views as mission‑drifting practices. Accreditation is the primary federal mechanism for vetting the quality of colleges and universities and for channeling federal student aid. Higher education associations warned the move could disrupt long‑standing quality assurance systems and spark legal challenges. Observers noted that altering recognition criteria could change which accrediting bodies oversee programs and may affect institutional eligibility for federal funds. The proposed changes add another front to the ongoing regulatory and legal battles between the administration and higher education institutions over academic freedom, foreign funding disclosures and campus governance.