This essay examines the delicate balance of accreditation, the federal government, and the self-regulation of higher education. It explores the challenge of distance learning and what is needed to keep this balance in check. It briefly addresses two related areas in which the responsibilities of institutions and accreditors are growing because of distance learning: protecting students and the public against poor-quality higher education and attending to quality in the emerging internationalization of higher education. This delicate balance of accreditation, the availability of federal money, and the self-regulation of colleges and universities will require careful attention in the future. Distance learning, by altering the academic work of colleges, is changing the responsibilities of accreditors and the expectations of government about what accreditation should do to assure quality. Six appendixes contain supplemental information about accreditation nationally and internationally. (SLD)