"Secretly Bilking College Students 101"
This just in from The Huffington Post:
Plus, details on the deals:
"Some of the nation's largest and most elite universities stand to gain millions of dollars from selling the names and addresses of students and alumni to credit card companies while granting the companies special access to school events, the Huffington Post Investigative Fund has found.
The schools and their alumni associations are entitled to receive payments that multiply as students use their cards. Some colleges can receive bonuses when students incur debt.
The little-known agreements have enriched schools and some banks at a time when young women and men already are borrowing at record levels, raising questions about whether such collegiate and corporate alliances are in the best interests of students..."
" . . . Our examination of affinity agreements involving some of the nation's largest and most prestigious colleges revealed that schools and alumni associations:
Sell students' personal information. Many are contractually obligated to share students' names, phone numbers and addresses with banks.