The Wall Street Journal has a front page column today (subscription required) on the National Research Center for College and University Admissions, which collects annual in-class surveys of high school students. The stated goal is for "colleges, universities, and other organizations" to help the kids transition to college. What is apparently a surprise to many, including students and officials at participating high schools, is that, according to the article, among the "other organizations" is American Student List, which resells the list to businesses which use the data for direct marketing: magazines, newspapers, credit card companies, etc.
Update: Politech has excerpts from the article.