Advocacy groups ask Florida to scratch database to prevent school shootings

A coalition of 33 civil rights, disabilities, privacy, and education advocacy groups are pushing the state of Florida to stop developing the Florida Schools Safety Portal, a database of detailed information about students for the claimed purpose of preventing school shootings, calling it a "massive surveillance effort". Governor Ron DeSantis has backed the database, which has been delayed since early 2019, when it was intended to become operational. The groups complain that the planned database will contain much sensitive information, potentially including experiences of bullying, foster ccare records, homelessness status, social media posts, crminal records, substance abuse, and disciplinary records. The groups also say there is no evidence that creating it will help prevent school violence though there are studies that suggest tracking students may make them feel less safe at school.

Advocacy groups ask Florida to scratch database to prevent school shootings 
Publication: Washington Post
Writer: Valerie Strauss