Data Centers Have a New PR Plan: Your Kid’s Field Trip
Data center trade groups and companies are increasingly using school visits, educational materials and student field trips to improve the industry's image amid growing backlash over data center construction and environmental impacts. The outreach has included programs in Loudoun County, Washington state, Minnesota and the Washington, D.C., area.
Data center organizations and companies are expanding efforts to engage students through classroom materials, career programs and facility tours. The nonprofit 7x24 Exchange International promotes data center-themed books and activities, while the Potomac chapter of AFCOM distributed informational kits to first graders in Loudoun County, Virginia. The group also organized or supported school events, including a visit by Fridley High School students to a Cummins power-generation facility in Minnesota.
Sabey has hosted field trips for students in Washington state, and Quincy School District communications coordinator Jessica Blancas described the company as a long-standing partner that provides speakers, mock interviews and internships. Amazon hosted a high school visit at its Arlington, Virginia, Skills Center, while students in Quincy have also visited facilities operated by Microsoft, Vantage and Yahoo. Education researcher Alex Molnar criticized the outreach as potential corporate propaganda, while industry groups present it as a way to explain data center careers and infrastructure as public opposition grows over energy use, environmental effects and quality-of-life concerns.