Scholastic Corporation

During its seventy-eight years of serving schools, Scholastic has developed strong name recognition associated with quality and dedication to learning, has achieved a leading market position in the school-based distribution of children's books and magazines, and has developed the leading internet-based subscription service for schools. The Company has also used its proven system to develop successful children's books and then build these brands into multimedia assets. Scholastic was founded in 1920 by Maurice R. Robinson, whose experience in journalism was enhanced during his tenure as a staff member on the Dartmouth College student newspaper. Upon graduation from Dartmouth, Robinson returned to his hometown of Wilkinsburg, a suburb of Pittsburgh, and took a job at the Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce. There he came across statistics indicating that the high school student population was expected to increase steadily throughout the decade, and he decided that a newspaper dedicated to students' interests would be a good prospect. The first edition of The Western Pennsylvania Scholastic provided articles on topics of general interest to students and was published on October 22, 1920. Robinson designed the four-page paper from a desk in his mother's sewing room, and he sold it for five cents a copy. The following year, Robinson arranged for office space in Pittsburgh and hired a clerk to serve as office manager and assistant editor. To finance the publication of The Western Pennsylvania Scholastic, Robinson continued to work at various jobs in public relations. Although the paper did not turn a profit during the 1921--22 school year, its circulation reached 4,000. In 1922 Robinson decided to widen the scope of his student newspaper. Over the summer he distributed a brochure describing his proposed publication, the Scholastic, to those present at the National Education Association convention in Boston. The publication's new format was to resemble that of a magazine and would include articles relevant to classroom work in English, social studies, science, and foreign languages. Preparing for increased business, Robinson hired a circulation manager and incorporated his venture as the Scholastic Publishing Company. The first issue of the Scholastic, which billed itself as "The National High School Bi-Weekly," was published on September 16, 1922 and sold for 15 cents per copy. To stimulate circulation, sell advertising space, and generate copy of interest to students across the nation, Robinson assembled an advisory board of high school teachers and administrators and a staff to sell ads and push subscriptions to teachers and their students. Moreover, he began selling shares of Scholastic stock to raise funds. In 1924 Scholastic began to sponsor the Scholastic Creative Writing Awards as well as a contest to provide cover designs by high school art students, programs that proved extremely popular. As a result of these activities, circulation of the Scholastic reached 33,000 by the spring of 1925, a figure that would nearly double by the end of the decade. Despite the publication's popularity, Scholastic continued to struggle financially, never realizing a profit in the 1920s. Moreover, its seasonal distribution generated no income during the summer months. In the early months of 1929, Robinson acquired a weekly social studies periodical, The World Review, for which he paid with Scholastic stock. When the stock market crashed in October, he was able to sell this property to a competitor, giving his company a much-needed infusion of cash. Shortly thereafter, Scholastic acquired the children's magazine St. Nicholas, and the company's name was changed to Scholastic-St. Nicholas Corporation. Continued financial strains brought on by the Great Depression, however, prompted Robinson to seek the economic resources of another publishing firm. During the 1931--32 school year, Scholastic entered into a joint venture with competitor American E