April 2026 News from CEA

Message from Trischa Duke, 2026 Commission Chair 

Greetings on behalf of CEA. I am pleased to provide you with an update regarding recent CEA activities and plans for the upcoming year. 

The Commission recently held its first meeting of the year in person in Alexandria, VA at the CEA offices. The Commission accomplished its planned work for the April Commission meeting, including an annual orientation of the full Commission, regular reports and updates from committees and staff, an accreditation decision-making session, various committee meetings, and a strategic planning session. 

The basis for review of all reports related to accreditation decisions and compliance matters is the publicly-available CEA Standards for English Language Programs. Commissioners have important responsibilities related to careful and consistent review along with fiduciary responsibilities related to governance of the agency as a non-profit organization. As a specialized accreditation agency, commissioners come from the field and represent the broad range of types of programs and language institutions engaged in English language instruction, not only CEA-accredited sites. 

Annual goals for this year include publication of research results related to the benefits of self-study, as well as focus on ensuring CEA’s status as an accrediting agency recognized by the US Department of Education for the accreditation of postsecondary, non-degree-granting English language programs and institutions including those programs offered via distance education. 

Consistent with CEA’s value of continuous improvement, staff has amended the display of the Directory of Accredited sites to include auxiliary locations. Auxiliary locations are characterized as additional classroom space in close proximity to the main location and share the same term of accreditation as the main location. In addition, CEA now issues digital certificates for all accredited main and auxiliary locations. Please contact staff if you need additional information about accessing digital certificates. 

In addition, throughout 2026, CEA is entering its next phase of strategic planning. Input will be solicited from the wide range of stakeholders involved with CEA, including site primary contacts, reviewers, staff, current and former commissioners, and representatives from associations in the field of postsecondary English language learning and teaching. The Commission continues to keep itself informed of the higher education landscape in the United States and trends that may impact accreditation, international education and postsecondary ESL. As a group of elected commissioners from the field and public member experts, we continue to promote excellence in the field of English language teaching and administration as a central tenet of the CEA mission. CEA’s success relies on participation of individuals who come from the field, and I would encourage all eligible individuals to consider service as a volunteer peer reviewer or as a member of the Commission. CEA particularly seeks individuals with experience in institutional settings, either single-site or multi-site. Peer reviewer applications are accepted on an ongoing basis, and the 2026 Call for Nominations for Commission service has been posted (see below). Both activities provide not only an opportunity to do valuable and challenging work with highly qualified and experienced colleagues, but also represent targeted professional development opportunities in our field. 

Trischa Duke
2026 Commission Chair 

Recent accreditation decisions
The Commission met April 9-11, 2026, to make accreditation decisions and conduct other CEA business. Accreditation decisions are announced on the CEA website under “Recent Decisions” within 30 days of each meeting. Please direct any questions about CEA or its accredited programs and language institutions to staff at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

2026 Call for Nominations
The 2026 Call for Nominations has been published and disseminated. CEA is seeking three volunteers to serve on the Commission for a three-year term from January 2027 to December 2029. Self-nominations are encouraged, and applications are due July 1, 2026. If you have questions about Commission service or the application process, please feel free to contact Heidi Vellenga, CEA’s Executive Director at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

2026 Constituent Council Meeting
CEA’s 2026 Constituent Council Annual Business meeting will be held on Friday, June 5, 2026, from 12:00 noon – 1:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The meeting will be held in a virtual format using the Zoom platform. The agenda and connection information will be issued no later than 30 days before the meeting as required by the CEA Policies and Procedures. In keeping with CEA policy, the primary contact for each accredited site has received advance notice of this meeting. Because the agenda does not include new business that will require a vote, each accredited program or language institution is welcome to include multiple attendees in addition to the designated CEA primary contact. 

Please contact staff at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with any questions about this News from CEA, or to update contact information for your program or institution.