Opinion: The Accreditation Rule Invites Religious Favouritism

Opinion. A proposed accreditation rule from the US Department of Education looks technical. It is not. It could let government-recognised accreditors weigh a college’s “religious mission” when deciding who is approved. That is a door secular societies should keep firmly shut.

The Accreditation, Innovation and Modernization rule was published in the Federal Register on 20 August. On 22 September, American Atheists filed a formal comment demanding that the department withdraw it.

What the accreditation rule would change

Accreditation matters more than most people realise. In the US it is the gateway to federal student aid. An unaccredited college struggles to survive.

The group’s objection centres on a broad, vague provision. It would allow accrediting agencies to base decisions on their reading of an institution’s “religious mission”. American Atheists argues that this grants “unbridled discretion”. In practice, it says, agencies could favour colleges whose beliefs match an administration’s political aims.

Its legal director, Geoffrey Blackwell, warned of “a dangerous precedent for governmental overreach” into activity protected by the First Amendment.

Why this is not only an American problem

The principle is universal. The state should judge a university on teaching, research and honesty. It should not judge it on theology, for or against.

Religious colleges have every right to exist. Many do excellent work. But the moment “mission alignment” becomes a factor in public approval, academic freedom bends. Professors learn which questions are safe. Students learn which answers are rewarded.

We have seen the same pattern elsewhere. Where belief becomes a test for public standing, dissent withers first. Free Thought Daily has documented how blasphemy laws silence the non-religious. A vague accreditation clause is far milder. The direction of travel is the worry.

A better approach

If the department wants reform, it should write clear, neutral standards. Those standards should apply equally to religious and secular institutions. It should drop any language that invites officials to rank beliefs.

Neutrality is not hostility to faith. It is what protects believers and unbelievers alike from whoever holds power next. Read the American Atheists statement.

This is an opinion column. Fact basis: American Atheists press release (22 September 2026) and the Federal Register notice of 20 August 2026.