Released in September 2002, this 40-page report from Professor Alex Molnar of Arizona State University addresses the question of private and corporate sponsorship of public education and education-related activities across the United States. In the report, Professor Malnor tracks recent trends in this phenomenon by looking at the practice of selling naming rights to various school athletic facilities, exclusive product agreements, corporate-sponsored incentive programs, and the corporate appropriation of public school space for their brand names or logos. On a more optimistic note, Malnor also notes that in recent years, several school boards (including those in Seattle and Madison) have limited opportunities for commercial activity and marketing in their schools. Overall, the report is an important contribution that addresses a subject that often goes unexplored in general media coverage of issues surrounding education.
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