March has been a month of meaningful progress, thoughtful engagement, and continued forward momentum across our work.

I remain deeply encouraged by the way our community continues to lean into both the responsibility and opportunity we share to ensure that accreditation serves students, supports institutions, and strengthens public trust.

Executive Council Highlights

A highlight of the past month was our Executive Council meeting on March 11, during which we engaged in substantive, forward-looking discussions. The Council reviewed key elements of the proposed FY27 budget to ensure alignment with our strategic priorities and long-term sustainability.

We also advanced important policy revisions related to Special Committee Procedures and the Teams Report, reinforcing our commitment to clarity, consistency, and fairness in our processes.

In addition, the Council approved the new Reduced Credit Hour Bachelor’s Degree policy, an important step that reflects our responsiveness to innovation, workforce needs, and the evolving landscape of higher education, while maintaining our unwavering commitment to rigor and quality.

Monitoring Federal Developments

At the national level, we are closely monitoring developments related to Negotiated Rulemaking from the U.S. Department of Education, particularly as they pertain to accreditation.

These discussions have the potential to significantly shape our work. As always, we will remain engaged, informed, and proactive, advocating for an accreditation system grounded in student success, institutional innovation, and mission-centered practice.

Reminder of our National Identity and Scope

I also want to clarify an important point in how members describe our work. SACSCOC is a national accreditor.

While we have deep roots and a strong identity within the Southern region, our scope and recognition are national.

Our institutions should reflect this accurately in their materials and avoid references to “regional accreditation.” This is more than a semantic distinction; it speaks to who we are, how we are recognized, and how we position ourselves in the higher education landscape.

Making Progress on Our Standards Review

I am pleased to share a progress update on our ongoing review of the SACSCOC accreditation standards.

This work reflects our collective commitment to maintaining rigorous, relevant, and responsive standards for the institutions we serve.

Throughout this process, our team has been guided by seven core principles, our “guiding stars,” that anchor every decision we make. These principles ensure that our review is not simply an exercise in revision but a purposeful effort to strengthen the value and integrity of accreditation.

The committee is meeting monthly to review standards across all major areas.

Our guiding questions:

• Does this decision promote student achievement?
• Does it advance institutional quality, continuous improvement, and transparency?
• Are we focused on outputs rather than processes, trusting institutions to determine how best to achieve results?
• Does this decision preserve and reinforce SACSCOC as the gold standard in accreditation?
• Have we reduced unnecessary burden on institutions while maintaining rigor?
• Have we allowed for appropriate differentiation based on each institution’s mission, recognizing the diversity of our member institutions?
• Have we created greater opportunities for institutional innovation?

These questions have proven to be powerful filters. In several instances, they have prompted us to reconsider initial drafts, sharpen our language, or take a more outcomes-focused approach.

Several themes are emerging consistently across workgroups.

• First, there is a strong consensus around shifting emphasis from compliance-driven processes to demonstrated outcomes, particularly as they relate to student learning and success.
• Second, reviewers have identified opportunities to remove any duplication, consolidate, and clarify standards that have grown in complexity over time. We hope this process will reduce ambiguity for institutions navigating the requirements.
• Third, there is meaningful dialogue about how standards can better accommodate institutional mission diversity without compromising the consistency and credibility that define our accreditation.

The Committee will meet again in April, after which we hope to be at a point where we can share a draft of standards framed by the committee so far in late April or early May and seek feedback from our member institutions and the public.

The committee will work through the summer and provide a full account of the polished standards well in advance of the December Board meeting.

We are grateful for the thoughtful participation of all involved, including our member institutions, who responded to the survey last fall. The survey results have been extremely helpful in guiding the work of the Principles Review Committee. We remain confident that this review will yield standards that are not only stronger but also more clearly aligned with what matters most: the success of students and the continued excellence of our institutions.

Across all of this work, I continue to be inspired by the professionalism, dedication, and shared sense of purpose that define this community. The progress we are making is a direct result of your engagement, your expertise, and your commitment to doing this work well.

Thank you for all that you do and for the support you provide to your students, one another, and to SACSCOC.

Be Bold; Stay Gold.