A MAJOR CLASS action lawsuit filed in federal court in San Francisco this week calls out the educational technology or “EdTech” industry’s practice of mining student information to create data “dossiers” on students and parents that is then monetized by sharing with third parties for a fee.

Two Contra Costa County students — identified only by their initials — and their parents allege that PowerSchool Holdings Inc. routinely collects and uses their data for commercial purposes without having first obtained their consent. They seek to represent nationwide and California classes of students and parents seeking forward-looking reform and backwards-looking compensation.

Continue reading for free

Sign in to read this story and receive the weekly roundup in your inbox.

Or

Terms & Conditions

Success! Your account was created and you’re signed in.
Please visit My Account to manage your account.

Joe Dworetzky is a second career journalist. He practiced law in Philadelphia for more than 35 years, representing private and governmental clients in commercial litigation and insolvency proceedings. Joe served as City Solicitor for the City of Philadelphia under Mayor Ed Rendell and from 2009 to 2013 was one of five members of the Philadelphia School Reform Commission with responsibility for managing the city’s 250 public schools. He moved to San Francisco in 2011 and began writing fiction and pursuing a lifelong interest in editorial cartooning. Joe earned a Master’s in Journalism from Stanford University in 2020. He covers Legal Affairs and writes long form Investigative stories. His occasional cartooning can be seen in Bay Area Sketchbook. Joe encourages readers to email him story ideas and leads at joe.dworetzky@baycitynews.com.