Message from Trischa Duke, Commission Chair
Greetings on behalf of CEA. I am pleased to provide you with this update on the Commission’s activities, including our recent August meeting in Alexandria, VA. The Commission accomplished its planned work, including an accreditation decision-making session, subcommittee meetings, and a professional development session focused on strategic planning for CEA’s future. The Commission not only performs CEA’s important work in making accreditation decisions and monitoring compliance for accredited programs, but also has certain fiduciary responsibilities related to governance of CEA as a non-profit agency. Part of our annual responsibilities include reviewing a summary of CEA Annual Reports and approving the CEA Fee Schedule.

As a specialized accreditor, CEA’s commissioners come from the diverse field of postsecondary English language education and actively monitor the higher education landscape in the United States and worldwide. At this meeting, the Commission discussed upcoming implementation of regulations which impact US-based programs and institutions certified by the Student Exchange and Visitor Program (SEVP). The Commission also discussed responsible use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and reviewed an AI Policy Statement for employees and volunteers. CEA’s mission to uphold excellence in English language teaching and administration, ensuring that students are well served by the programs and institutions accredited by CEA, is central to these discussions and framing CEA’s.

Trischa Duke
2026 Commission Chair

Recent accreditation decisions
The Commission met August 7-9, 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 Annual Report Summary
The Standards Compliance Committee and the Commission reviewed and approved the Annual Report Summary for release following the August Commission meeting. Each year, CEA provides the Constituent Council with a summary of the annual reports submitted by accredited sites. This report is disseminated to Constituent Council members and is not intended for public release.

2027 Fee Schedule
Each year in August, the Finance Committee reviews the CEA Fee Schedule to approve all fees for the following year. Certain increases to annual sustaining fees and site visit fees were approved. The new fee schedule is effective January 1, 2027.

SEVP Final Rule on Elimination of Duration of Status
On July 17, 2026, the Student Exchange and Visitor Program (SEVP) published a final rule to eliminate duration of status. These new rules take effect on September 15, 2026. Some accredited programs and institutions use accreditation by CEA to be eligible for certification with SEVP. All CEA-accredited sites certified by SEVP are required to comply with the new rules.

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.