Production Editor

Scholastic launches new book fair. By Shannon Maughan | Mar 20, 2026 photo credit: Scholastic Kids interact with a display at Scholastic's Discovery Fair. One place where kids and families can get their hands on STEAM series and activities is Scholastic's Discovery Fair, a new style of book fair for grades K-6 that "brings STEAM topics forward," according to Laura Lundgren, chief marketing officer of Scholastic Children's Book Group. The lineup is all nonfiction titles, focusing on such high-interest subjects as dinosaurs, outer space, and oceans, which are grounded in STEAM and presented in "curiosity-fueled ways," Lundgren says. "There's a lot you can see and touch at the fair, and there are lots of activity kits." Free e-newsletters. PW Daily Tip Sheet The Discovery Fair launched in January to roughly 14 markets after the team spent two years designing and workshopping the concept and running a pilot phase with schools. Reception has been very positive so far, and plans are to scale to more markets next year. In developing the fair experience, Lundgren says great effort went into "museum-ifying" the displays, so that walking through the fair feels like a visit to a science museum. As an example, kids can interact with some displays to learn more about individual books. "We wanted to encourage kids to explore the fair, and their interests, by inviting them in." A distinguishing feature of the Discovery Fair is custom video content and products created by popular YouTuber, educator, and former NASA engineer Mark Rober. "Our goal is to try to create cultural relevance and excitement, and Mark has high appeal for some of our older kids," Lundgren says. Scholastic's trade publishing division recently partnered with CrunchLabs, Rober's STEM-centric brand, to produce a line of STEM book titles across a variety of formats. First up are Extreme Engineering with Mark Rober and Lava vs. Lasers, both due out in September. Lundgren notes that the Discovery Fair offers the same fundraising and community building boosts as a traditional book fair and is just as easy for schools to host. "But we tried to distinguish this new experience so that it fueled knowledge building, curiosity, and discovery," she says. "We really want to make sure every student believes that they can be a scientist or an engineer or a mathematician, and we want them to see that interest for themselves." A version of this article appeared in the 03/23/2026 issue of Publishers Weekly under the headline: Scholastic Debuts New Fair

Anime NYC, Scholastic collab on kid-friendly space. By Iyana Jones | Mar 10, 2026 Anime NYC, New York City's anime convention, has partnered with Scholastic to create Anime NYC Family Zone, a new space dedicated to kid-friendly anime and manga experiences. This year's convention is scheduled to take place August 20-23, 2026 at the Javits Center, offering a slate of exhibits, exclusive screenings, panels, and guest appearances by anime creators. Though the convention has welcomed children of all ages in the past, Family Zone will be the first space focused on children's experiences. Anime NYC's Family Zone will be open all four days of the convention for young fans and families to enjoy. Guests will be welcomed for age-appropriate panels along with interactive experiences and giveaways from publishers. MK Goodwin, VP at the convention's organizer LeftField Media, said in a statement, "As our community grows, we want to make sure new fans can grow with us. We're committed to creating spaces where new generations can feel welcomed and inspired together with their families." As anime and manga continue to gain popularity among young readers, Scholastic is tossing its hat into the ring with Captain Underpants: The First Epic Manga, a manga adaptation of Dav Pilkey's bestselling Captain Underpants series, illustrated by Motojiro. David Saylor, senior VP and publisher of Graphix, said, "The Family Zone will provide opportunities for children to get drawn into kid-friendly manga that's made with kids in mind." Tickets are available on the Anime NYC website, including $15 children's tickets for Sunday, Aug. 23.

Scholastic appoints Jeffrey Mathews as President of Scholastic Education, adding to current role as Chief Growth Officer. Rhea-AI summary. Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) appointed Jeffrey Mathews as President, Scholastic Education, effective January 5, 2026, while he continues as Executive Vice President and Chief Growth Officer. Mr. Mathews has led the division as interim head since June 2025, focusing on high-impact offerings, go-to-market execution, and operational simplification to improve efficiency and profitability. The company said Scholastic Education is positioned to drive long-term value through literacy leadership, trusted content, and partnerships, while acknowledging ongoing funding volatility and longer decision cycles in the supplemental instructional market. * Named President of Scholastic Education effective Jan 5, 2026 * Served interim head since June 2025 with operational progress * Retains Chief Growth Officer role overseeing growth strategy and IR * Brings 30+ years of strategy, M&A, and investor relations experience * Ongoing funding volatility and lengthened decision cycles in the market Key figures. Prior tenure period 2008 - 2012 Held Vice President, Corporate Strategy, Business Development & Investor Relations Technical Price $29.96 is trading above 200-day MA of $23.75, indicating a pre-news uptrend. Peers on argus. SCHL was up 1.11% pre-news while key peers were mixed: GCI -1.09%, WLY -3.66%, WLYB +0.13%, DALN +0.06%, PSO -0.51%, suggesting stock-specific factors rather than a sector-wide move. Over the last month, Scholastic announced multiple real-estate sale-leasebacks, including a New York headquarters transaction of $386M and broader deals generating $481M gross and about $401M net proceeds, alongside fiscal 2026 Q2 results showing revenue of $551.1M and diluted EPS of $2.17. A $0.20 quarterly dividend and routine earnings-date notices rounded out updates. Today's leadership appointment in Scholastic Education fits into this broader operational and capital-allocation transition. Market pulse summary. This announcement formalizes Jeffrey Mathews as President of Scholastic Education while he continues as Chief Growth Officer, emphasizing focus on literacy solutions and growth strategy execution. It follows a series of recent milestones, including major real-estate sale-leasebacks generating about $401M in net proceeds and solid fiscal 2026 Q2 results with revenues of $551.1M. Investors may watch how Scholastic Education's performance, profitability, and partnership growth evolve under this consolidated leadership structure. NEW YORK, Jan. 5, 2026 /PRNewswire/ - Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ:SCHL), the global children's publishing, education and media company, today announced that Jeffrey Mathews has been appointed President, Scholastic Education, effective immediately, in addition to his current role as Executive Vice President and Chief Growth Officer. Based in New York, Mr. Mathews continues to report to Peter Warwick, Scholastic President and Chief Executive Officer. Scholastic Education advances Scholastic's mission by helping schools and educators address one of their most critical needs - ensuring all children reach their full potential through literacy - by delivering effective, evidence-based learning experiences that students love and educators trust. As the supplemental instructional market normalizes, the Company remains confident that the division is well positioned to drive long-term value through its literacy leadership, trusted content, and deep, enduring partnerships with educators, districts, and state and community organizations. Mr. Mathews has served as interim head of the division since June 2025, leading meaningful progress in strengthening the business by prioritizing high-impact offerings, refining go-to-market execution and simplifying operations to improve efficiency and profitability. The team has also sustained momentum in key channels, including state and local literacy partnerships, while supporting customers amid ongoing funding volatility and lengthened decision cycles across the industry. "Scholastic Education is a core part of Scholastic's mission and a meaningful long-term opportunity for earnings growth," said Mr. Warwick. "Over the past seven months, Jeff has brought clarity, urgency, and strong market perspective to this business during an important period of transition. We've made significant progress under his leadership and appointing him to this role builds on that momentum - strengthening near-term execution while defining a clear strategy to fully realize the division's long-term potential." "In my expanded role, I'll be focused on deepening our impact in schools, communities and homes by sharpening our strategy and delivering high-impact learning experiences that unlock students' potential and support educators," said Mr. Mathews. "We have a strong foundation, a talented team, and clear opportunities ahead. I'm excited to build on the progress we've made, strengthen our partnerships with educators and literacy leaders, and drive sustainable growth aligned with Scholastic's mission." Mr. Mathews will continue to serve as Scholastic's Chief Growth Officer, with responsibilities that include refining and implementing Scholastic's long-term growth strategy in partnership with leaders across the business as well as leading the Company's corporate development and investor relations functions. Mr. Mathews brings more than 30 years of experience in strategy, M&A and investor relations, in addition to his experience as a co-founder of two technology start-ups. He returned to the Company in 2022 as Executive Vice President, Corporate Development and Investor Relations. From 2008 to 2012 at Scholastic, he held the role of Vice President, Corporate Strategy, Business Development & Investor Relations. About Scholastic For more than 100 years, Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ: SCHL) has been meeting children where they are - at school, at home and in their communities - by creating quality content and experiences, all beginning with literacy. Scholastic delivers stories, characters, and learning moments that empower all kids to become lifelong readers and learners through bestselling children's books, literacy- and knowledge-building resources for schools including classroom magazines, and award-winning, entertaining children's media. As the world's largest publisher and distributor of children's books through school-based book clubs and book fairs, classroom libraries, school and public libraries, retail, and online, and with a global reach into more than 135 countries, Scholastic encourages the personal and intellectual growth of all children, while nurturing a lifelong relationship with reading, themselves, and the world around them. Learn more at www.scholastic.com. SOURCE Scholastic Corporation Who is Jeffrey Mathews and what roles does he hold at Scholastic (SCHL)? Jeffrey Mathews is President, Scholastic Education (effective Jan 5, 2026) and continues as Executive Vice President and Chief Growth Officer. When did Jeffrey Mathews begin serving as interim head of Scholastic Education? What are Mr. Mathews's priorities for Scholastic Education under his new role? Priorities include sharpening strategy, high-impact offerings, go-to-market execution, and simplifying operations to improve efficiency. How does Scholastic describe the market outlook for Scholastic Education? The company expects the supplemental instructional market to normalize while noting funding volatility and longer decision cycles. Will Jeffrey Mathews continue leading Scholastic's investor relations and corporate development? Yes; he will continue to lead corporate development and investor relations as Chief Growth Officer. What experience does Jeffrey Mathews bring to his expanded role at Scholastic (SCHL)? He brings more than 30 years of experience in strategy, M&A, investor relations, and co-founding two startups.