Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy (32 page)

Its rank in the
U.S. News
list climbed:
TCUleads, “U.S. News & World Report Rankings.”

the cost of higher education rose:
Michelle Jamrisko and Ilan Kolet, “College Costs Surge 500% in U.S. Since 1985: Chart of the Day,”
Bloomberg Business
, August 26, 2013,
www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-08-26/college-costs-surge-500-in-u-s-since-1985-chart-of-the-day
.

“any other characteristic you desire”:
Ruffalo Noel Levitz, “ForecastPlus for Student Recruitment
^™
,” accessed January 9, 2016,
www.ruffalonl.com/enrollment-management/enrollment-marketing-services-to-target-and-recruit-students/recruitment-technologies/forecast-plus-student-recruitment-predictive-modeling
.

mathematics department at Saudi Arabia’s King Abdulaziz University:
Megan Messerly, “Citations for Sale,”
Daily Californian
, December 5, 2014,
www.dailycal.org/2014/12/05/citations-sale/
.

authorities began to suspect:
Malcolm Moore, “Riot after Chinese Teachers Try to Stop Pupils Cheating,”
Telegraph
, June 20, 2013,
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/10132391/Riot-after-Chinese-teachers-try-to-stop-pupils-cheating.html
.

a company called Top Tier Admissions:
Application Boot Camp, accessed January 9, 2016,
www.toptieradmissions.com/boot-camp/application-boot-camp/
.

Ma, founder of ThinkTank Learning:
Peter Waldman, “How to Get into an Ivy League College—Guaranteed,”
Bloomberg BusinessWeek
, September 4, 2014,
www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-09-04/how-to-get-into-an-ivy-league-college-guaranteed
.

President Obama suggested:
Li Zhou, “Obama’s New College Scorecard Flips the Focus of Rankings,”
Atlantic Monthly
, September 15, 2015,
www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2015/09/obamas-new-college-scorecard-flips-the-focus-of-rankings/405379/
.

A
New York Times
report in
2011
:
David Segal, “Is Law School a Losing Game?,”
New York Times
, January 8, 2011,
www.nytimes.com/2011/01/09/business/09law.html
.

CHAPTER 4

$50
million on Google ads:
Meghan Kelly, “96 Percent of Google’s Revenue Is Advertising, Who Buys It?,”
Venture Beat
, January 29, 2012,
http://venturebeat.com/2012/01/29/google-advertising/
.

Between
2004
and
2014
, for-profit enrollment tripled:
David Deming, Claudia Goldin, and Lawrence Katz, “For-Profit Colleges,”
Postsecondary Education in the United States
23 (Spring 2013): 137–63,
http://futureofchildren.org/futureofchildren/publications/journals/article/index.xml?journalid=79&articleid=584
.

the industry now accounts for
11
percent:
Emily Jane Fox, “White House Crackdown on For-Profit Colleges Begins Today,” CNN, July 1, 2015,
http://money.cnn.com/2015/07/01/pf/college/for-profit-colleges-debt/
.

had more than eighty thousand students:
Melody Peterson, “State Sues Corinthian Colleges, Citing ‘Predatory’ Tactics,”
Orange County Register
, October 10, 2013,
www.ocregister.com/articles/company-530539-students-corinthian.html
.

The complaint pointed out:
Corinthian Colleges Inc., “California Attorney General Complaint Allegations vs. Facts,” accessed January 9, 2016,
http://files.shareholder.com/downloads/COCO/3283532602x0x709108/11BC55FD-B86F-45DB-B082-5C6AEB6D8D30/CCi_Response_to_California_Attorney_General_Lawsuit.pdf
.

the Obama administration put a hold:
Review & Outlook, “Obama’s Corinthian Kill, Review and Outlook,”
Wall Street Journal
, July 15 2014,
www.wsj.com/articles/obamas-corinthian-kill-1406327662
.

In mid-
2015
:
Shahien Nasiripour, “Corinthian Colleges Files for Bankruptcy,”
Huffington Post
, May 4, 2015,
www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/05/04/corinthian-colleges-bankruptcy_n_7205344.html
.

“unlawful, unfair, and fraudulent”:
Megan Woolhouse, “For-Profit Colleges Get Harsh Grades by Former Students,”
Boston Globe
, October 20, 2014,
www.bostonglobe.com/business/2014/10/19/high-debt-unfulfilled-dreams/KuDKIWiyRO5E5HDpRpSLRO/story.html
.

A
2012
Senate committee report:
Sheryl Harris, “For-Profit Colleges Provide Lesson in Strong-Arm Sales: Plain Dealing,”
cleveland.com
, August 4, 2012,
www.cleveland.com/consumeraffairs/index.ssf/2012/08/for-profit_colleges_provide_le.html
.

“We deal with people that live in the moment”:
David Halperin, “What College Was Michael Brown About to Attend?,”
Huffington Post
, August 26, 2014,
www.huffingtonpost.com/davidhalperin/what-college-was-michael_b_5719731.html
.

recruiting team at the ITT Technical Institute:
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, “For-Profit Higher Education: The Failure to Safeguard the Federal Investment and Ensure Student Success,”
Senate Committee Print
, S. Prt. 112-37, vol. 1, July 30, 2012, p. 60,
www.gpo.gov/fdsys/granule/CPRT-112SPRT74931/CPRT-112SPRT74931/content-detail.html
.

spent $
120
million annually:
Screenshot by author from a LinkedIn advertisement for a position in online marketing.

“Obama Asks Moms”:
Sharona Coutts, “Bogus ‘Obama Mom’ Grants Lure Students,”
ProPublica
, July 23, 2010,
www.propublica.org/article/bogus-+obama-+mom-+grants-+lure-+students
.

colleges will pay as much as $
150
each:
Jenna Leventoff, “For-Profit Colleges Under Scrutiny for Targeting Vulnerable Students,”
Equal Future
, May 6, 2015,
www.equalfuture.+us/+2015/+05/+06/+for-+profit-+colleges-+targeting-+vulnerable-+students/
.

Salt Lake City–based Neutron Interactive:
David Halperin, “More Scam Websites to Lure the Poor to For-Profit Colleges,”
Huffington Post
, November 13, 2014,
www.huffingtonpost.+com/+davidhalperin/+more-+scam-+websites-+to-+lur_+b_+6151650.+html
.

Each one was worth as much as $
85
:
Coutts, “Bogus ‘Obama Mom.’ ”

US Government Accountability Office report:
US Government Accountability Office, “For-Profit Colleges: Undercover Testing Finds Colleges Encouraged Fraud and Engaged in Deceptive and Questionable Marketing Practices,” GAO-10-948T, August 4, 2010,
www.gao.+gov/+products/+GAO-+10-+948T
.

According to Mara Tucker:
Mara Tucker, in-person interview by author, June 15, 2015.

Cassie Magesis, another readiness counselor:
Cassie Magesis, phone interview by author, June 16, 2015.

spent more than a billion dollars:
Howard Hotson, “Short Cuts,”
London Review of Books
, June 2, 2011,
www.lrb.+co.+uk/+v33/+n11/+howard-+hotson/+short-+cuts
.

Portland Community College:
Mike Dang, “For-Profit Colleges Still Terrible,”
Billfold
, August 1, 2012,
https://+thebillfold.+com/+for-+profit-+colleges-+still-+terrible-+7e3b5bd3442b#.+4ti2e2y80
.

the so-called
90
-
10
rule:
Rebecca Schuman, “ ‘This Is Your Money’ Why For-Profit Colleges Are the Real Welfare Queens,”
Slate
, June 4, 2015,
www.slate.+com/+articles/+life/+education/+2015/+06/+for_+profit_+colleges_+and_+federal_+aid_+they_+get_+more_+than_+90_+percent_+of_+their.+html
.

Corinthian Colleges amounted to
$3
.
5
billion:
Tamar Lewin, “Government to Forgive Student Loans at Corinthian Colleges,”
New York Times
, June 8, 2015,
www.nytimes.+com/+2015/+06/+09/+education/+us-+to-+forgive-+federal-+loans-+of-+corinthian-+college-+students.+html
.

investigators at CALDER/American Institutes:
Rajeev Darolia, Cory Koedel, Paco Martorell, Katie Wilson, and Francisco Perez-Arce, “Do Employers Prefer Workers Who Attend For-Profit Colleges? Evidence from a Field Experiment,” RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, CA, 2014, accessed January 9, 2016,
www.rand.+org/+pubs/+working_+papers/+WR1054.+html
.

The top
20
percent of the population:
William Domhoff, “Wealth, Income, and Power,”
Who Rules America?
, first posted September 2005, updated February 2013, accessed January 9, 2016,
http://whorulesamerica.+net/+power/+wealth.+html
.

Gregory W. Cappelli:
Josh Harkinson, “The Nation’s 10 Most Overpaid CEOs,”
Mother Jones
, July 12, 2012,
www.motherjones.+com/+politics/+2012/+07/+executive-+pay-+america-+top-+10-+overpaid-+ceo
.