An article in this weekend's WSJ about how desperate schools are trying to raise money:

Short on money for everything from math workbooks to microscope slides, public schools across the nation are seeking corporate and charitable sponsors, promising them marketing opportunities and access to students in exchange for desperately needed donations.

The dash for private funding has raised concerns. The Oklahoma Senate last month voted down a bill that would have allowed advertising on school buses, a move supporters said would prevent teacher layoffs. "Do we want our school buses to look like Dale Jr. (NASCAR racer Dale Earnhardt Jr.) is driving them?" says state Sen. Steve Russell, an Oklahoma City Republican who opposed the bill. "What's next? How about Starbucks on the side of our M1 tanks?"

In Florida, meanwhile, alliances between churches and schools are igniting debate about church-state boundaries. "I have great concerns about churches who see public schools as, well, what shall I say, church membership," says Harry Parrott, a retired Baptist minister who runs a local chapter of Americans United for Separation of Church and State.

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