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MFIA Clinic Defends Transparency in Connecticut’s School Placement Algorithm Case

Ryan Sandler wearing a dark suit and blue tie in front of Connecticut Superior Court
Ryan Sandler ’25 at Connecticut Superior Court in New Britain

The Media Freedom and Information Access Clinic (MFIA) at Yale Law School continues its fight for transparency in the algorithmic system used by the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE) to assign students to Hartford-area magnet and vocational schools.

In November, MFIA student Ryan Sandler ’25 presented oral argument urging the Connecticut Superior Court in New Britain to affirm a decision of the state Freedom of Information Commission that CSDE cannot refuse to disclose the inputs and weights used in making student school assignments by claiming that the algorithm it created to make the assignments is a trade secret. 

The appeal stems from a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed by Alicia Solow-Neiderman while she was a fellow at Yale Law School’s Information Society Project. Her request sought details about the algorithm developed by CSDE to implement the settlement of a historic discrimination lawsuit, Sheff v. O’Neill. Among other things, Solow-Niederman requested information about the inputs and weighting mechanisms used in the CSDE’s algorithm and validation procedures.

The case raises a significant issue of public access to algorithmic systems used by government agencies and was taken up by the MFIA clinic as part of its algorithmic accountability project.

Commission Ruling and Current Appeal

The Freedom of Information Commission (FOIC) ruled in favor of Solow-Neiderman last year, rejecting CSDE’s arguments for secrecy. CSDE had claimed that the details about the operation of its algorithm were exempt from public disclosure under FOIA’s “trade secret” provision and argued that disclosing the inputs and weights would allow parents to “game” the system and create security risks. The FOIC rejected the trade secret claim, emphasizing that government transparency should not be compromised by speculative arguments and that “trade secret” protections do not apply to an algorithm developed by a government agency to carryout government business. 

CSDE appealed that decision to the Superior Court, where the MFIA clinic is defending the ruling. According to the clinic, a harmful precedent that would result from classifying a publicly developed algorithm as a trade secret, particularly when the algorithm is simply making a governmental decision on the allocation of public resources.

“Governments are using algorithms to make decisions and carry out government functions more and more,” said Sandler.  “Allowing agencies to shield their decisions from public scrutiny by delegating those decisions to an algorithm would detach our government from democratic accountability.” 

A decision in the appeal is expected early next year. 

The Media Freedom and Information Access (MFIA) Clinic at Yale Law School is dedicated to defending freedom of information, advancing government accountability, and addressing emerging challenges in the intersection of law and technology. Cases like this one demonstrate the Clinic’s commitment to ensuring public access to critical information in an era of increasing reliance on algorithmic systems.