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At its July business meeting, the CAA and ASHA Accreditation reviewed feedback from the widespread peer comment period and voted on revisions to Standard 3.4 A/B. While the CAA reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring that all accredited programs—regardless of location—can equitably meet accreditation standards and prepare practitioners to deliver individualized care to all clients, we also recognize the concerns voiced by our members.  

The most pressing questions we continue to hear, sometimes through vigorous dissent, are:  

  • How do we preserve our focus on diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) in the best interests of students, faculty, and those we serve when, in some states, these terms have been restricted from curriculum, syllabi, and course content?  
  • How do we keep advancing DEIB after the 2023 standards were replaced?  
  • What will change—and what will I have to change?  

Part One Response  
The CAPCSD DEIB Committee invites our member programs to share their strategies, recommendations, and commitments to sustaining DEIB efforts. We are seeking concrete examples of how programs are innovating, adapting, and prioritizing this work for the underrepresented students, faculty, administrators, and communities we serve.  

Please send your recommendations, plans for sustaining DEIB, and descriptions of successful initiatives to admin@capcsd.org. In future updates, we will highlight your contributions as part of a collective roadmap — we know that collaboration transforms individual efforts into stronger, more inspired outcomes.  

Acknowledging the Challenge  
This has been a difficult year for our professions. Programs have been striving to build equitable standards amid shifting policies: the Supreme Court’s ruling against race-conscious admissions, a growing wave of state-level bills curbing DEI efforts in higher education, and the seemingly ongoing dismissal of over 40+ years of established research. Yet, to uphold our foundational documents—including the ASHA Scope of Practice and Code of Ethics—we must persist in doing the work we have always done, AND discover new ways to do it.  

Looking Ahead  
Your contributions will inform not only this Part One Response but also our forthcoming Part Two, where we will integrate and amplify your strategies. Together, we can uphold the values of equity and belonging while continuing to prepare practitioners who serve with integrity, compassion, and justice.

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