In recent weeks there has been a battle in Washington over that most soporific of topics, college accreditation. The Department of Education has decided that the accreditation associations (which are private organizations, but need to be officially “recognized” by the Department if their accreditation is to have the consequence of making schools eligible to receive federal financial aid) should be compelled to do more to ensure that the schools they oversee are doing a good enough job of educating students.

In a perhaps surprising twist, the one accreditor that has attempted to promote the traditional liberal arts vision of higher education has been targeted for “derecognition” because it doesn’t pretend to enforce quantifiable learning standards.

In today’s Clarion Call an official of the threatened group — the American Academy of Liberal Education — argues that the Department’s new tack is unjustified and will accomplish nothing educationally.