State contractors with access to student information in New Jersey may soon have to undergo a criminal-background check.
Democratic legislators introduced a measure last week that would require the state education commissioner to have contractors with access to student data undergo the same criminal-history records check as public school employees.
The lawmakers say the bill is needed in light of reports that Pearson—the company administering the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers tests—hired Caveon Testing Security to monitor students’ public social-media posts. Pearson has said the practice was needed to protect against cheating.
