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American Teacher March 2002--Speak Out
Is it wrong to sell school naming rights?
The Brooklawn (N.J.) board of education recently sold the naming rights to its new gymnasium to the owner of a supermarket chain. The gym will be known as the "ShopRite of Brooklawn Gymnasium." As superintendent, I was asked to do more than 40 interviews in the days following the announcement. The story attracted national media attention because this is apparently the first time a public school district has sold naming rights to a corporate sponsor. I did interviews with many television and radio stations, as well as newspapers such as the New York Times, the Inquirer, and the Washington Post. The story even received a mention in Sports Illustrated under the heading: "Sign of the Apocalypse." Is it really the end of the world? Why so much interest in the sale of naming rights by one of New Jersey's smallest school districts--a one-school, preK-8 district with 250 children--to a supermarket chain? After I sorted through all the jokes (and no, we're not going to name the new library/media center the "Bud Light Library/Media Center," as one superintendent quipped), it became clear that Brooklawn has crossed a line. And that line involves the privatization of civic responsibility. It takes money to recruit and retain quality teachers, and Brooklawn has a dedicated, high-achieving faculty. It takes money to purchase current technologies, and Brooklawn offers an outstanding technology program. It takes money to maintain a 75-year-old school building, and Brooklawn is in the process of renovating and adding to its physical plant. New Jersey relies primarily on property taxes to fund public schools. Brooklawn has a large population of senior citizens on fixed incomes. We do not want to continue to raise taxes and to force seniors out of their homes. In an era of scarce resources, we have to take a look at non-traditional ways to generate revenue for our schools. American corporations spend billions of dollars on the Olympics. All we're saying is: Why don't you spend some of that on our public schools? The board is committed to pursuing an innovative, business-oriented model of education that stresses high achievement and accountability, without imposing an unreasonable burden on local taxpayers. The ShopRite deal is only the first of several corporate initiatives that have been planned, including the sale of naming rights to additional school district buildings and the aggressive pursuit of grant and foundation funding. The district is not interested in privatizing any services, instructional or otherwise. Faced with the same economic pressures that we are experiencing in Brooklawn, school districts across the country may want to consider the Brooklawn model. John Kellmayer is superintendent of the Brooklawn, N.J., public schools.
YES Brooklawn's recent decision to sell the naming rights of its elementary school gymnasium to the grocery store chain ShopRite has once again brought the debate around commercialism in public schools to the forefront. Corporations have been looking to profit off our cash-strapped public school system for years. Advertising for Coke, Pepsi, Nike, Exxon, McDonald's and Shell Oil has infiltrated our public school stadiums, hallways, classrooms and textbooks. Such companies look at public school students and see potential brand-loyal customers. They care primarily about profit, plain and simple. The arguments against commercialism in schools are numerous, but Brooklawn's own "director of corporate development," Bruce Darrow, illustrates the slippery slope argument best when he says, "We have a lot of other things for sale--center courts, baselines, foul lines, a library/media center." Where does it stop? ShopRite's pledge covers 6 percent of the district's projected debt in 2002. What will it do for the other 94 percent? Can McDonald's buy an hour of instructional time? Can Exxon sponsor the school's environmental education program? Can Old Navy provide school uniforms emblazoned with its logo? Employing alternative methods, like corporate sponsorship, to fund public education will not force politicians and taxpayers to adequately fund our public schools. Instead, it sends the dangerous message that public schools can and will find the money--no matter the cost to their students. And the costs to students are steep. If students learn that soda is bad and water is good during their first-period health class, why is there a Coke machine that they pass 15-plus times a day in their school? If we believe that young men and women should develop a strong self-image, then why are there Clearasil, Clairol and WB Network ads with smiling, happy, thin, beautiful, acne-free models lining the halls? Brooklawn school superintendent John Kellmayer, when speaking of the implications of brand-name advertising in his district, says, "You hope children can become sophisticated enough to deal with it." Where will children learn how to deal with ads if they inundate every part of their lives? Shouldn't our public schools be marketplaces for ideas, not brand-name products? Our public education system obviously is underfunded. Teachers are underpaid, classes are too large, buildings are in need of repair, and educational materials are outdated. Corporations do have a responsibility to the public. They can and should donate money, time and needed materials to our public schools. However, these donations should not come in exchange for access to a captive audience of students. Public schools already provide corporations with future employees and future consumers. Corporations should play their part to help our schools without disrupting the educational process and exploiting students. Emily Heath is senior program director for the Center for Commercial-Free Public Education, www.commercialfree.org, in Oakland, Calif.
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American Federation of Teachers, AFL•CIO - 555 New Jersey Avenue, NW - Washington, DC 20001 Copyright by the American Federation of Teachers, AFL•CIO. All
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