ACE takes on Carnegie Classification

After the debacle of proposed relocation to Albion College, Carnegie Classification oversight is moving to the American Council on Education (ACE). Aligning the two non-profit organizations, neither of which have a vested interest in advancing themselves, is a much more appropriate way of creating aspirational expectations for higher education institutions. Ted Mitchell, president of ACE, said "Together, we are eager to work with the field to create a broad suite of classifications that will paint a more three-dimensional and nuanced picture of institutional achievement."

The Carnegie universal and elective classifications are important to distinguishing the unique purposes of the variety of higher education institutions available throughout the U.S.A. and world. As the two organizations join together to "better reflect the public purpose, mission, focus, and impact of higher education," it will hopefully become much more obvious how higher education contributes to the social and economic welfare of students and communities. In fact, conversation is already underway about the possibility of injecting social mobility and racial equity into the Carnegie criteria.

The ACE and Carnegie partnership may also be effective in countering the impact of the U.S. News rankings so often used by students and their families to determine institutions in which they might have interest. The U.S. News criteria tip toward individual benefit and criteria that reinforce elitism, which don't serve the broader benefit of society. A more wholistic view, which ACE and Carnegie advocate, would include economic and social mobility that serves both individuals and all who value enhancing quality and access.