On June 16, 2020, the U.S. Department of Education updated its previous guidance for interruptions of study related to COVID-19 and extended flexibility to allow institutions to continue offering distance education through December 31, 2020. Significantly, as long as the federal emergency is in place, the Department is reiterating its priority in preserving public health while attending to the best interests of students.

In planning for the spring, institutions that are not approved at the highest level of distance education with HLC (Approved to offer courses and programs) are expected to apply for the appropriate level of substantive change approval IF they determine that at some point during Spring 2021, either of the following scenarios will occur:

• One or more students will reach a 50% threshold of completion within a single educational program through distance education (Requiring approval for courses and one program) OR
• Students will reach a 50% threshold of completion in more than one educational program through distance education (Requiring approval for courses and programs).

PLEASE NOTE: Distance-delivered programs are certificate or degree programs in which 50% or more of the required courses may be taken as distance-delivered courses.

States and other accreditors may have different requirements regarding a change in delivery method or providing education through distance education. Institutions should contact applicable state licensing bodies and other accreditors to confirm their requirements.

Institutions may find that they need to adjust normal operations to protect the health and safety of their campus communities, while providing alternative methods of instructional activity. HLC will be as flexible as possible within the U.S. Department of Education’s expectations. An institution should continue to notify HLC of the adjustments it makes, including the steps it takes to ensure quality and continuity in its instructional activity.

Please contact the institution's HLC staff liaison with any questions.

Notify HLC

To help institutions and peer reviewers address the COVID-19 pandemic in their comprehensive evaluations and Assurance Reviews, HLC has published new guidance on evaluating the Criteria for Accreditation during the pandemic.

An institution should prepare for an evaluation as it would under normal circumstances. The purpose of an evaluation is to assess an institution’s typical practices, and that remains true during this crisis. In order to inform peer review teams of how an institution has responded to and been affected by the pandemic, institutions will be asked to complete a COVID-19 Response Form. This form allows the institution to describe the planning it has undertaken during the pandemic, the changes or adjustments it has made to academic and cocurricular programs during this time, any enrollment and financial irregularities, and any other changes in processes, procedures, or structures at the institution relevant to HLC’s Criteria for Accreditation. The institution will also be asked to describe its plan for the immediate and longer-term future. Providing this information in a form separate from the assurance argument will help peer reviewers differentiate between the institution’s typical practice and the temporary adjustments necessary during the pandemic.

The peer review team will evaluate if an institution has demonstrated compliance with the Criteria and other HLC requirements and, if not, consider if it is a direct result of the institution’s need to respond to the pandemic. If so, the team will note this in its report but refrain from recommending increased monitoring. HLC’s guidance document provides further information for peer review teams having conversations with institutions regarding their COVID-19 responses and addressing the pandemic in its report.

Please contact the institution's staff liaison with any questions.

HLC will visit campuses this fall, if possible. Peer reviewers will be surveyed and individuals that indicate a willingness to visit campuses will conduct the on-site portion of evaluations. HLC has developed a resource for peer reviewers conducting campus visits regarding health and safety.

Comprehensive evaluations:

All fall comprehensive evaluations will be conducted as scheduled. The majority of the team will be virtual, with one member traveling to campus during the scheduled visit date. If it is impossible to have a peer reviewer on campus, then a verification visit will be scheduled for Spring 2021.

For more information, see HLC's FAQs regarding comprehensive evaluations during the pandemic.

Verification visits for spring evaluations:

Verification visits scheduled for the fall will be conducted as scheduled if it is possible to have a peer reviewer on campus. If not, the visit will be rescheduled to Spring 2021.

Additional location confirmation visits, campus evaluation visits, and multi-location visits:

Students have to be present for HLC to be able to conduct the visits. HLC will reach out to institutions who need these visits to see if students will be on campus in the fall.

Focused visits, initial accreditation visits and sanction visits:

HLC will determine on a case-by-case basis whether or not to move forward with the scheduled evaluation. Peer reviewers and institutions should connect directly with their HLC staff liaison about the status of these events.

Virtual evaluation training:

Training for peer reviewers begins in August.

Decision Making:

Any postponement of evaluations or on-campus visits may cause a delay for when an institution goes to the Institutional Action Council.

Meetings of Decision-Making Bodies

Institutional Actions Council (IAC) Hearings, which are typically conducted in person, were held in an interactive, virtual format in April and also will be in July and August. HLC’s Board of Trustees met virtually in June. IAC meetings, which are already conducted in a virtual format, will proceed as scheduled.

Workshops and Webinars:

HLC’s Cocurricular Assessment Workshop (originally scheduled for June 23 – 24, 2020) has been redesigned for virtual attendance and will be held in October 2020. (This event is sold out.) More information about HLC's workshops is available.

HLC continues to provide webinars on the new Criteria for Accreditation and other pertinent information. These are available for registration by peer reviewers and institutional representatives.

2021 Annual Conference

The 2021 HLC Annual Conference will be held virtually April 5–9. HLC is planning an engaging, highly informative conference that responds to the challenges of the past year under the theme Crisis and Community. Registration is now open, and early bird rates are in effect until February 15, 2021.

Please contact HLC at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with any questions.

HLC Academy Events

Timelines for Academy cohorts have been adjusted to recover time lost due to spring event cancellations and the fall Academy events will be held virtually. Please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with questions related to Academy events.

Quality Awareness Initiative

Events related to HLC’s Quality Awareness Initiative have been postponed until later this year. Contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with questions related to Quality Awareness Initiative events.

HLC is aware of the challenges brought on by the coronavirus outbreak and offers the following guidance for members, addressing a few common questions, particularly following the U.S. Department of Education's issuance of its March 5, 2020 memorandum Guidance for Interruptions of Study related to Coronavirus (COVID-19), and its March 17, 2020 memorandum Information for Accrediting Agencies Regarding Temporary Flexibilities Provided to Coronavirus Impacted Institutions or Accrediting Agencies.

On May 15, 2020, the U.S. Department of Education issued UPDATED Guidance for interruptions of study related to Coronavirus (COVID-19), extending the temporary flexibilities until December 31, 2020.

The most common questions at this time are in regard to reducing the length of the academic year, assignment of incomplete or pass/fail grades, waiving graduation requirements, offering distance education and accelerated classes. HLC recognizes all these considerations as potential solutions an institution might contemplate as it navigates the unique circumstances of maintaining academic integrity during a public health emergency. Temporary alterations to policies and procedures permits institutions to document decisions that allows them to retrace their steps when the crisis has passed, while allowing their students to move forward.

Length of Academic Year

The March 5 memorandum indicates that the U.S. Department of Education is authorized under 34 CFR § 668.3 to approve a reduced academic year. If at any point an institution determines it will close as the result of a campus health emergency, it should contact its assigned School Participation team at the U.S. Department of Education to request a temporary reduction in the length of its academic year. This is because of the Title IV implications associated with such decisions, including possible return of Title IV considerations and calculating satisfactory academic progress.

Institutions should provide advance notice to HLC if they intend to seek such approval from the Department and upon receiving any approval from the Department for a reduced academic year.

Assignment of Grades

HLC does not opine on institutional decisions related to the assignment of grades beyond its more general requirements related to academic integrity and academic rigor.

The assignment of grades is within the discretion of an institution's faculty. Institutions wishing to make decisions that would contravene their own policies should be prepared to document their decision-making process and articulate that rationale in a manner that demonstrates a commitment to academic integrity and student achievement. Within its Criteria for Accreditation, HLC has articulated requirements related to integrity in academic functions (Core Component 2.A) and academic rigor (Core Component 3.A) as well as in Assumed Practice C.1, all of which presume an institution's commitment to the achievement of carefully designed student learning outcomes for its programs at every level.

Waiving Graduation Requirements

In some instances, institutions may be considering whether to waive graduation requirements for certain students. The elimination of a graduation requirement for students currently enrolled constitutes a waiver and an institution considering issuing waivers should be prepared to document its decision-making process as well as their issuance. Institutions offering academic programs that prepare students for a licensure, certification or other qualifying examination are responsible for exploring other relevant authorities' requirements prior to making any decision to waive graduation requirements. This is because waivers may compromise a student’s ability to achieve licensure or certification.

Distance Education and Accelerated Formats

Likewise, if considering offering courses via distance education or accelerated formats, institutions preparing students for a licensure, certification or other qualifying examination must take into account other relevant authorities' requirements or accommodations for similar reasons.

Reminder: Institutions that need to adjust normal operations to protect the health and safety of their campus communities, while providing alternative methods of instructional activity should notify HLC of the adjustment, including the steps it takes to ensure quality and continuity in its instructional activity.

Transfer Opportunities

During this global crisis, HLC is asking its member institutions to make additional efforts to assist students affected by the closing of the Illinois Institute of Art and the Art Institute of Colorado to the furthest extent possible consistent with your institution's capacity. The Institutes closed abruptly in December 2018.

Every institution determines its own policies and procedures for accepting transfer credits, including credits from accredited and non-accredited institutions, from foreign institutions, and from institutions that grant credit for experiential learning and for non-traditional adult learner programs in conformity with any expectations in HLC’s Assumed Practices. HLC policies for institutions on transfer of credits are Assumed Practice A.5 (CRRT.B.10.020) and Publication of Transfer Policies (FDCR.A.10.040).

Institutions also have the flexibility, consistent with their policies and procedures for maintaining the integrity of their academic functions, to provide modifications that have been determined by their faculty to be appropriate under exigent circumstances. Any such modifications, while permissible, must be appropriately documented along with the institution's rationale for purposes of future HLC evaluations.

Additional Resources: HLC Endorses Statements on Transfer of Credit

HLC has endorsed the following statements that offer guidance for institutions on the transfer and award of credit:

• Statement of Principles on Acceptance of Credit: This statement describes eight principles for managing and evaluating academic credit and assessing student transcripts impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. It was issued by the American Association of Community Colleges, Association of American Universities, American Association of State Colleges and Universities, Association of Public and Land-grant Universities, American Council on Education, and National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.
• Joint Statement on the Transfer and Award of Credit: This statement offers guidelines and considerations for the development of credit transfer policies. It was issued by the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers, American Council on Education, and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.

The U.S. Department of Education has released two significant documents containing guidance to accreditors in response to the public health emergency. Guidance for Interruptions of Study related to Coronavirus (COVID-19) permits accreditors to waive certain requirements for institutions to accommodate students whose enrollment was interrupted as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. Information for Accrediting Agencies Regarding Temporary Flexibilities Provided to Coronavirus Impacted Institutions or Accrediting Agencies. provides flexibility, within set requirements, for accreditors to conduct virtual visits or extend an institution’s reaffirmation or sanction/show-cause order beyond the maximum timeframe provided for in the accreditor’s policies.

At a teleconference meeting on March 20, HLC’s Board of Trustees adopted a temporary emergency policy to exercise the flexibilities afforded by these documents. All other HLC policies will apply. However, to the extent the temporary policy conflicts with pre-existing policy, it will supersede requirements in pre-existing policies until it is repealed.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Considerations for Institutes of Higher Education

American College Health Association: Considerations for Reopening Institutions of Higher Education in the COVID-19 Era

Statement of Principles on Acceptance of Credit (American Association of Community Colleges, Association of American Universities, American Association of State Colleges and Universities, Association of Public and Land-grant Universities, American Council on Education, and National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities)

Joint Statement on the Transfer and Award of Credit (American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers, American Council on Education, and Council for Higher Education Accreditation)

U.S. Department of Education CARES Act: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund

U.S. Department of Education COVID-19 Information and Resources for Schools and School Personnel

Council of Regional Accrediting Commissions: Guidance to Institutions

American Council on Education (ACE): COVID-19 Informational Webinars and Resources

Association of Governing Boards of Colleges and Universities (AGB): Coronavirus Resources for Higher Education Boards