Cases & Developments

Opinion Denying in Part Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss. Plaintiff, a former student at SUNY Niagara County Community College, brought claims of negligence, breach of contract, and unjust enrichment against the college following a data breach that exposed his and other potential class members’ personally identifiable information and caused them harm through increased risk of identity theft and mitigation costs. As a preliminary matter, the court held plaintiff had Article III standing because the unauthorized exposure of his private information, along with the costs of mitigating identity theft, constituted a concrete injury. The court found that plaintiff had sufficiently alleged a breach of contract claim, finding it plausible that there was an implied contract and a reasonable expectation that the college would safeguard plaintiff’s data. The court further allowed plaintiff’s unjust enrichment claim to proceed, finding he plausibly alleged that the college had enriched itself by failing to provide adequate data security. However, the court granted the college’s motion to dismiss plaintiff’s negligence per se claim, reasoning that the Federal Trade Commission Act did not create a private right to action in New York.

Letter from the American Council on Education (ACE) to the National Coordination Office offering input on the development of an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Action Plan. The letter recommends that the administration focus the Action Plan on: (1) establishing experimental sites for institutions across the postsecondary spectrum to pilot the use of AI in admissions and other areas; (2) keep FERPA in mind when considering student privacy issues; (3) encourage the Department of Education to convene groups and share best practices, especially with under resourced institutions; (4) incentivize the private sector to partner with a consortium of institutions, including under resourced institutions, and work to close the gaps in access to technology and requisite infrastructure to fully utilize AI across the postsecondary landscape; (5) provide additional funding for the Small Business Innovation Research program at the Institute of Education Sciences and expand the Fund for the improvement of Postsecondary Education Digital Learning Infrastructure and IT Modernization Pilot program; (6) support efforts to protect academic integrity and incorporate AI into curricula; and (7) support workforce development in AI through the academic pipeline. 

Brief from the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Technology titled “Navigating Artificial Intelligence in Postsecondary Education: Building Capacity for the Road Ahead.” The Brief is aimed to support institutional leaders who oversee the implementation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) across multiple areas of their institution. The Brief is divided between (1) providing recommendations, as well as guiding questions for institutional leaders related to AI; and (2) evidence-based insights on AI integration in learning environments, career readiness, admissions, enrollment, student advising and support, digital infrastructure, and faculty developments.