[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":3,"doc-seo-583508-105":59,"doc-detail-583508-en":130},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,13,18,23,28,33,38,43,48,51,55],{"id":8,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":10,"show_sort_weight":11,"slug":12},1,"Document","Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":14,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":15,"show_sort_weight":16,"slug":17},2,"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":19,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":20,"show_sort_weight":21,"slug":22},4,"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":24,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":25,"show_sort_weight":26,"slug":27},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":29,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":30,"show_sort_weight":31,"slug":32},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":34,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":35,"show_sort_weight":36,"slug":37},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":39,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":40,"show_sort_weight":41,"slug":42},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":44,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":45,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":47},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":49,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":50},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":53,"show_sort_weight":52,"slug":54},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":56,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":57,"show_sort_weight":24,"slug":58},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":60,"data":61},"ok",{"site_id":62,"language":63,"slug":64,"title":65,"keywords":66,"description":67,"schema_data":68,"social_meta":123,"head_meta":125,"extra_data":127,"updated_unix":129},105,"en","examining-the-new-phenomenon-of-teachers-as-brand-ambassadors-brief","Examining the New Phenomenon of Teachers as Brand Ambassadors - Brief","","Within-school marketing has shifted as corporate education technology firms hire teachers to serve as brand ambassadors, creating a compensation-based endorsement model. The brief analyzes ethical, legal, and policy concerns of this practice and defines what it means for teachers to function as “micro-influencers” within their social networks. It reviews prior brand-ambassador marketing and situates teacher involvement in broader marketing and school commercialization trends, weighing potential benefits against conflicts, costs, and the need to protect students’ interests.",{"@graph":69,"@context":122},[70,84,105],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":20,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/exam/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/examining-the-new-phenomenon-of-teachers-as-brand-ambassadors-brief/583508/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/examining-the-new-phenomenon-of-teachers-as-brand-ambassadors-brief/583508.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Jacob","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-11-09","2026-10-15",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":19},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",{"@type":106,"mainEntity":107},"FAQPage",[108,114,118],{"name":109,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":111},"What is meant by “brand ambassadors” in this brief?","Question",{"text":112,"@type":113},"A brand ambassador is an individual who receives compensation or perks in exchange for endorsing a product. In this context, teachers can be viewed as “micro-influencers” that provide firms access to their social influence networks.","Answer",{"name":115,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":116},"Which issues does the brief focus on regarding hiring teachers as brand ambassadors?",{"text":117,"@type":113},"The brief examines ethical, legal, and policy issues, including what it means to serve as a brand ambassador and how these relationships may create conflicts or costs for teachers and students.",{"name":119,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":120},"What do the recommendations emphasize for school districts and schools?",{"text":121,"@type":113},"Recommendations include reviewing and updating codes of ethics and conflict-of-interest policies with input from teachers and parents, providing clear guidance to public employees, and ensuring schools are adequately funded so learning resources and teacher compensation do not rely on corporate sponsorships.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":124,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":126,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":128,"site_id":62},583508,1792047473,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":131},{"doc_id":128,"user_id":132,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":19,"category_name":20,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":19,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":139,"language":140,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":141,"faqs":142,"seo_title":143,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":129,"read_time":144,"preview_page_count":4},962084931830,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_a8503ba1806abce46bf441b54a3ca4cd","Examining thE nEw PhEnomEnon of   tEachErs as Brand amBassadors  \nChristopher M. Saldaña, Kevin G. Welner, Susan Malcolm, & Eleanore Tisch  \nUniversity of Colorado Boulder  \nJanuary 2019  \nNational Education Policy Center  \nSchool of Education, University of Colorado Boulder  \nBoulder, CO 80309-0249  \n(802) 383-0058  \n[nepc.colorado.edu](nepc.colorado.edu)  \nAcknowledgements  \nNEPC Staff  \nKevin Welner Project Director  \nWilliam Mathis Managing Director  \nPeter Greene Academic Editor  \nAlex Molnar  \nPublications Director  \nSuggested Citation: Saldaña, C.M., Welner, K.G., Macolm, S. & Tisch, E. (2018). Examining the New Phenomenon of Teachers as Brand Ambassadors. Boulder, CO: National Education Policy Center. Retrieved [date] from [http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/brand-ambassador](http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/brand-ambassador).  \nPeer Review: Examining the New Phenomenon of Teachers as Brand Ambassadors was double-blind peer-reviewed.  \nThis brief is produced by the Commercialism in Education Research Unit.  \nThis publication is provided free of cost to NEPC’s readers, who may make non-commercial use of it as long as NEPC and its author(s) are credited as the source. For inquiries about commercial use, please [contact NEPC at](contact NEPC at nepc@colorado.edu)[ nepc@colorado.edu](contact NEPC at nepc@colorado.edu).  \n[http://nepc.colorado.edu/](http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/brand-ambassador)[publication/brand-ambassador](http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/brand-ambassador) 2 of 23  \nExamining thE nEw PhEnomEnon of  \ntEachErs as Brand amBassadors  \nChristopher M. Saldaña, Kevin G. Welner, Susan Malcolm, & Eleanore Tisch  \nUniversity of Colorado Boulder  \nJanuary 2019  \nExecutive Summary  \nWithin-school marketing has a new twist, and teachers are at the center. Corporate firms, particularly those with education technology products, have contracted with teachers to become so-called brand ambassadors. A brand ambassador is an individual who receives some form of compensation or perk in exchange for the endorsement of a product. Unlike celebrity endorsers, teachers can be thought of as “micro-influencers” who give firms access to their network of social influence.  \nIn this brief, we explore the ethical, legal and policy issues associated with the hiring of teachers as brand ambassadors. We delve into what it means to be a brand ambassador. We examine past examples of brand ambassador marketing outside of schools and reflect on the larger economic contexts—for teachers and for schools—within which the micro-influencer brand ambassador strategy has arisen. We situate teacher brand ambassadorships within broader marketing trends and within earlier instantiations of marketing in schools. And we consider the potential benefits that these relationships provide to teachers and their students and weigh these against the potential concerns, conflicts, and costs to teachers and students. Finally, we consider the need for potential protections of students’ interests, as teacher brand ambassadorships grow as a presence in public schools.  \nRecommendations  \n• We recommend that school districts review current codes of ethics and conflict-of-interest policies. Where necessary, states and districts should update these policies to reflect the challenges posed by new technology – such as social media – and brand ambassador programs.  \n• We recommend that districts include teachers and parents in this process of review  \n[http://nepc.colorado.edu/](http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/brand-ambassador)[publication/brand-ambassador](http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/brand-ambassador) 3 of 23  \ning ethics and conflict-of-interest policies and, more broadly, in the process of purchasing and researching curriculum. Policies should not be updated via a top-down approach.  \n• We recommend that these policies provide teachers and other public employees in the school community with ample and clear guidance on the ethics of their r","cbCaiqfmNyCY1fpT","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaiqfmNyCY1fpT","pdf",837254,23,"English","# Executive Summary\n# Recommendations\n# Introduction","[{\"question\":\"What is meant by “brand ambassadors” in this brief?\",\"answer\":\"A brand ambassador is an individual who receives compensation or perks in exchange for endorsing a product. In this context, teachers can be viewed as “micro-influencers” that provide firms access to their social influence networks.\"},{\"question\":\"Which issues does the brief focus on regarding hiring teachers as brand ambassadors?\",\"answer\":\"The brief examines ethical, legal, and policy issues, including what it means to serve as a brand ambassador and how these relationships may create conflicts or costs for teachers and students.\"},{\"question\":\"What do the recommendations emphasize for school districts and schools?\",\"answer\":\"Recommendations include reviewing and updating codes of ethics and conflict-of-interest policies with input from teachers and parents, providing clear guidance to public employees, and ensuring schools are adequately funded so learning resources and teacher compensation do not rely on corporate sponsorships.\"}]","Examining the New Phenomenon of Teachers as Brand Ambassadors - Brief | PDF",58]