The U.S. Department of Education has launched a formal request for information to revise its accreditation handbook, asking stakeholders for concrete ideas to reduce bureaucratic burdens and boost transparency. Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education David Barker framed the move as part of the administration’s push to “reform and strengthen” accreditation, invoking an April executive order directing changes to how accreditors are overseen. The department will collect feedback for 45 days on standards, assessment benchmarks, and ways to incentivize innovation and intellectual diversity among institutions and accreditors. Officials say the rewrite aims to streamline guidance for accrediting agencies and eliminate what the Education Department called “unduly burdensome and bureaucratic requirements.” The request for information signals the department’s intent to draft new rules next year and could reshape how quality is measured, how accreditors validate student outcomes, and how institutions qualify for federal funds. Higher-education leaders will likely weigh in on topics ranging from program-level assessment to evidentiary standards for student competency.