Gates-funded student data group to shut down

The head of a student data processing organization says it will shut down in the coming months following criticism that led to the recent loss of its last active client—New York state.

The Atlanta-based nonprofit inBloom was started with $100 million in financing from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Carnegie Corp.

The goal was to give educators a data tool to personalize instruction. But the idea of storing sensitive student data in cloud-based servers had parents and lawmakers worried about privacy and security.

Earlier this month, New York backed out of plans to use inBloom. Illinois was allowing districts to use it, but none had.

In a statement Monday, Chief Executive Iwan Streichenberger called its demise a "missed opportunity" for teachers and school districts.