The Fairfax County School Board directed staff to explore selling corporate naming rights at all 26 district high school campuses, including McLean High School and Langley High School, at a Sept. 8 work session.

No formal process was approved, and no majority indicated it would support a final plan. Most members were cautiously open to learning more, FFXnow reported.

The proposal traces to a March 2026 motion by at-large member Kyle McDaniel and Mount Vernon District representative Mateo Dunne. That motion, which passed unanimously, directed Superintendent Michelle Reid to develop a plan to address what McDaniel called a "$400 million maintenance backlog." Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) currently spends about $13.5 million a year from its operating budget on maintenance such as HVAC repairs, according to Fox 5 DC.

Tom Horn, executive director of activities and athletic programs for FCPS, presented a framework at the work session. He told board members that sporting events across the district's 26 high schools draw more than 1 million spectators a year. Ticket revenue ranges from $50,000 to $200,000 per school, depending on the campus.

Horn proposed pooling all naming-rights revenue divisionwide rather than letting individual schools keep the money. He also recommended strict morals clauses in contracts, a cap on the number of nameable assets and a prohibition on naming spaces students use daily, such as libraries. Fields, stadiums, concession stands and scoreboards would be eligible.

Twenty of the 26 campuses already have a name attached to a stadium, field or complex, WTOP reported. Under the existing Policy 8170, updated in October 2025, all naming-rights revenue would go to a facilities fund. Contracts would carry a minimum first term of five years.

Several board members pushed back.

At-large member Ilryong Moon said the naming-rights idea has surfaced repeatedly over the years but members have never agreed on how to distribute money or what role each school community should play.

Mason District representative Ricardy Anderson said any framework must address the gap between higher-revenue and lower-revenue schools. "I think there's some value in investigating this further, but it cannot be structured in a way that schools that can [generate revenue] receive the lion's share and schools that cannot continue to be in the position that they are," Anderson said at the work session.

Sully District representative Seema Dixit said she was hesitant about the idea and did not want additional revenue to come at the cost of the district's values. Anderson separately warned against letting campuses look "like the back of a soccer jersey."

Horn said he was not aware of any large school division with a coordinated naming-rights policy, though some schools in Falls Church and Loudoun County have used corporate sponsorships for individual projects.

Staff proposed adopting a formal naming-rights policy in February 2027 and seeking sponsorships in fall 2027. McDaniel said a follow-up meeting on next steps had not yet been scheduled as of the Sept. 8 session.