By Kristina Schnack Kotlus
Schools and Education Reporter
Prince William County, Va. — Prince William County Public Schools announced this week that they are expanding upon an already successful program of selling advertising space on school websites.
PWCS was one of the first public school divisions in the country to offer advertising on school websites, featuring both regional businesses such as BB&T Bank and local business such as SwimKids Swim School on various school pages. These sponsorships were made available in 2008.
Chains stores and larger national brands, however, have not been a part of the current sponsorship program due to their decision making procedures.
With the help of SPARK, the School Division’s Education Foundation, PWCS recently signed an agreement with Education Funding Partners (EFP) who has secured commitments with national brands and stores that are interested in partnering with schools. EFP currently works with schools in Colorado and California, but is new to the East Coast. This agreement was approved by both the School Board and the SPARK Board of Directors.
“We have been able to successfully and tastefully provide advertising to local businesses on PWCS Web sites, raising funds annually to cover the cost of our Web services, which includes important school-to-parent communication tools,” said PWCS Superintendent Dr. Steven L. Walts in a press release.
Education Funding Partners (EFP) mitigates risk by finding multi-year corporate sponsors to support public education. The school district will still be able to control where sponsors are displayed. As part of the process, EFP will be sending teams to the county to compile a package explaining the value of various markets in the county to potential sponsors.
Marketing opportunities may include facilities naming, branding, and educational support messaging, in addition to more traditional signage and website advertisements. EFP will find sponsors and provide the funds to SPARK, which will then designate projects that could include turf fields, technology, and electronic signs and mini-grants to teachers and schools.
