Big Brother is going to college: The federal plan to track students for life
In the name of making higher education more transparent, Congress is attempting to codify an unprecedented data-collection scheme. Instead of fixing our education system, it would be a disastrous, unnecessary breach of privacy.
TL;DR
- The College Transparency Act (CTA) proposes creating a federal data-collection system for college students.
- Critics argue the bill is a "disastrous, unnecessary breach of privacy" and a "surveillance system" that collects personal information without student consent.
- The data collected includes attendance, program of study, race, gender, economic status, and potentially other "necessary" elements, rather than information helpful for choosing colleges (e.g., political biases, foreign funding, free speech protections).
- The collected data could be shared with other government agencies like the Social Security Administration, IRS, Pentagon, and Census Bureau.
- Concerns are raised about data leaks, government overreach, and potential use by foreign adversaries, despite cybersecurity directives.
- The CTA would repeal a 2008 prohibition against federal databases tracking individual students over time.
- The bill's stated goal of assessing college success is questioned, as it may penalize students with non-traditional career paths or life choices.
- The author, Maggie McKneely, argues the CTA is not the answer to making colleges more transparent.