Guide to Education Grants

It is commonplace to see the names of companies plastered on billboards in stadiums, and even all over college campuses. Corporate sponsorship pervades our society, so much so that many just glaze over such ads, with the company name or its products barely registering in the conscience of the viewer.
 
Yet, a new controversy has arisen in the midst of education: that of the Department of Education meetings having corporate sponsors. Is this practice acceptable? That is the query put forth in the April 30, 2007 article written by Scott Jaschik, titled “Coke and the Spellings Commission,” that appeared in Inside Higher Ed. According to the article:
 
“Corporate sponsorship is pretty common these days — walk around campus, tour an art museum, listen to NPR, and you’ll quickly encounter the name of some benefactor. But should Education Department meetings about the future of higher education have corporate sponsors?
 
“That’s the question some academics have been asking since invitations went out to the summit that will take place in June in Atlanta to discuss the Secretary of Education’s Commission on the Future of Higher Education. The invitations indicate that they are coming from Margaret Spellings, the secretary, but that the event is ‘hosted by the Coca-Cola Company at the Hilton Atlanta.’ A similar reference to Coke as the host of the meeting appears on the department’s Web site. The Atlanta meeting is one of a series of regional conclaves the department is holding to follow up on a national summit it held in March.”
 
Meeting Venues May Be at Odds With Ed Department Policies
 
An interesting note is that while Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings preaches frugality in higher education, the locations of the meetings may be a stark contrast to department policies.
 
“One reason the apparent corporate sponsorship of the Atlanta meeting is drawing snickers is that the national meeting was held at the Willard Intercontinental — a landmark Washington hotel known for its exclusivity and luxury, not the transparency and frugality of the sort the secretary advocates for higher education.
 
“Several people who have been attending Education Department forums in various places around the country through several administrations said that they could not remember seeing a department event that appeared to have a corporate sponsor like the Atlanta meeting (or one with hors d’oeuvres as nice as those served at the Willard).”
 
Ed Department Defends Legality of Corporate Sponsors
 
Many critics commented off the record that they had not seen corporate sponsors for Education Department meetings in the past and were not comfortable with the new practice, the article reported. The article also stated that the department defended its decision to have corporate sponsors by citing the U.S. Code:
 
“Asked a series of questions about Coke’s role in the Atlanta meeting (including specific questions about how much money was involved and what it was paying for), the department’s press office responded by sending a copy of a portion of the U.S. Code that says: ‘The Secretary is authorized to accept, hold, administer, and utilize gifts, bequests and devises of property, both real and personal, and to accept donations of services, for the purpose of aiding or facilitating the work of the Department. Gifts, bequests, and devises of money and proceeds from sales of other property received as gifts, bequests, or devises shall be deposited in the Treasury and shall be available for disbursement upon the order of the Secretary.’”
 
It is important to keep up to date on all the news regarding student loans and education.
 
Talk to the education financial advisors at NextStudent. They have all the information and advice you need on student loans. Check out www.nextstudent.com.
 
Be sure to tune in next Monday for my next blog on student loan issues in the news.
 
Student Loan Girl
 
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This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 2nd, 2007 at 9:59 am and is filed under Education Funding News, Money for College, School Scholarships. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.