The price is right

Bentonville schools develop shopping list for naming rights

If you happen to go gift shopping in the Bentonville area, have some cash burning a hole in your pocket and just can’t find the gift that seems right, here’s a list of potential purchases:

But wait. That’s not all. If you can’t afford a whole school, district officials will be glad to consider naming a library, a gym, a playground or a performance space for the always low price of between $300,000 and $500,000.

The Bentonville School Board the other day adopted these pricing “guidelines” at the request of the administration. On the one hand, the listing feels a little odd. The practice certainly isn’t unheard of in education circles, but it’s hard to name other school districts in Arkansas with a similar policy. It’s still true that you can’t put a price on the value of education, but nothing’s impossible when it comes to the public school facilities that help deliver that education.

On the other hand, as crass as it may seem, the Bentonville School Board is just giving form to an attitude that undoubtedly exists: If someone wealthy is willing to help pay for a facility, give them something in return. And public schools don’t have many things to sell.

In marketing the possibility of naming rights, the board is following the lead of plenty of other education institutions. Down the road at the University of Arkansas and at colleges across the country, it’s common practice to have a list of needs and wants that potential donors can peruse as they determine the right fit for their generosity.

Among public school districts, schools have traditionally been named after geographic features or after longtime educators or dead presidents. What sparked the new policy was another kind of donation: The district bought a 30-acre property in Centerton early this year that belonged to the family of the late Rex Grimsley. The district agreed to a $1.4 million purchase price, with a $1 million discount the family gave in exchange for naming rights to either an elementary or middle school when one is built there.

Since then the district has received another inquiry about naming rights, said Janet Schwanhausser, the district’s finance director.

Nothing is written in stone. If it was, it would probably cost you at least a half-million. Rather, Schwanhausser says the guidelines represent general parameters for discussions between staff and those wealthy enough to consider six- and seven-figure donations.

Maybe because it’s Bentonville, it’s not so shocking to imagine district officials going around with those little pricing guns, slapping sales prices on this and that. It’s still a little unnerving. Just because someone has money doesn’t mean they would pick an appropriate name for a public school facility.

That’s where the elected school board comes in, according to the policy.

“I want to make it very clear we’re not asking to bind the board to these amounts,” Schwanhausser said back on June 5 when she introduced the proposal. “We would bring any contract for any naming rights to you.”

In other words, the board gets the final say, but when someone calls to ask about what it would take to pick out name for a school or some other facility, the staff will have a starting point for discussions. Consider it the manufacturer’s suggested retail price, which is always negotiable.

The district already has a policy about facility naming that mildly sets out some limits. No one who has held elective office within a decade can have his or her name on a facility, according to the policy. Exceptions come into play when at least half of construction funding is private or the name refers to a living person of historical significance; a person who is or was a prisoner of war; or a living individual who is at least 75 years old and retired.

The policy also says the board may consider geographic location or section of the community served; a person of exemplary moral character who has made outstanding contributions to the community or is historically significant locally, nationally or internationally.

And finally, the all-bets-are-off option: A “facility may also be named after major financial contribution.”

Here’s an idea, at least if public school systems really want to get into the free market of naming rights: don’t turn over naming rights in perpetuity. Why not sell naming rights for, say, a decade, on major structures? Why sell something of value forever? For example, Arvest Ballpark is named after the sponsoring bank, which is in its second 10-year contract for the naming rights.

Hey, why lock the district into a longterm marriage when another suitor may come along?

Ah, there we go, treating this like it’s just any other transaction. Too crass?

It’s a little odd that a school board that balked at advertisements on the sides of buses is more comfortable with pricing out school facilities, but the reality is Bentonville school officials have just formalized what every school district — at least those in areas with some wealth and corporate influence — would likely consider, given the opportunity.

Money does talk, kids. Let that be a lesson to you.