Naming rights

The Joplin (Mo.) Globe

Here's an idea -- maybe not a great one, but an idea nonetheless -- that might help public schools find the money for pressing infrastructure needs, new programs, salary increases and new teachers: awarding naming rights to the highest corporate or individual bidder.

If it sounds like crass commercialism, well, it is. But if a big company or a wealthy patron wants to open a deep wallet to link their names forever to a basketball field house or a cafeteria, the bidding could reach the stratosphere.

We're talking many millions of dollars. School boards might even consider a sunset provision, perhaps of 10 to 15 years, that would allow them to sell the name rights on smaller projects again and again. This isn't anything new.

Universities and pro sports enjoy such commercial arrangements. ... Universities attach the John Henry of wealthy contributors to stadiums and buildings.

The track record in these venues suggests that auctioning off naming rights could be profitable for public schools, too. ...

We've seen no serious complaints, other than public education would be commercialized. But there is one problem that could loom on the horizon: educational equality. State legislators are having to re-examine their funding formulas to ensure that all schools and students are getting their fair share, and no more.

The name game is more likely to draw more well-heeled backers to the larger metro-area schools than to those in rural communities. That could upset the equal-funding apple cart. ...

... We're not suggesting the immediate commercialization of Missouri public schools.

But it is being tried elsewhere. If Missouri taxpayers eventually say enough is enough to higher taxes, especially those on their property, they may demand that schools look elsewhere for new revenue streams. Naming rights just might fill that bill.