AFPI Applauds Termination of National Student Clearinghouse–Tufts Student Voter Data Partnership

Washington, D.C.—The America First Policy Institute (AFPI) issued the following statement from Anna Pingel, Campaign Director for Secure Elections, after the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) announced it will terminate its partnership with Tufts University’s National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement (NSLVE) program amid an ongoing U.S. Department of Education investigation into potential violations of student data privacy protections.

“AFPI is encouraged that students are finally being protected,” said Pingel. “The dissolution of the NSC and NSLVE partnership is in the best interest of universities, parents, and students. It represents an important step toward ensuring that sensitive student data is not exploited for political purposes. The purpose of higher education is to prepare students for the workforce, not to make them unwitting targets of political operations.”

The NSC–NSLVE partnership was originally created following pressure from the Obama administration targeting universities to increase student voter turnout. Earlier this year, AFPI sent a letter to the Department of Education outlining concerns that the partnership may have allowed sensitive student data to be shared with third parties for political purposes, potentially violating the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).