SOURCE: Scholastic Inc.

 

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire - November 9, 2009) - Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ: SCHL), the global children's publishing, education and media company, today announced that Thomas P. Burke has joined the company as Senior Vice President, E-Commerce. A seasoned e-commerce leader, Burke joins Scholastic from bn.com, the e-commerce division of Barnes & Noble, Inc. where for five years he managed a team of more than 70 professionals and was responsible for merchandising, online marketing, customer experience, design and editorial content for its $475 million online business. He has also been an innovator and a pioneer in online services and consumer marketing at Discovery Channel and Prodigy Services Company. In his new role, Burke will be responsible for the strategic direction and growth of Scholastic's robust e-commerce operation on Scholastic.com, the fifth largest revenue site in the "books, films and music category" and the second largest revenue site for books, according to Internet Retailer. Burke will report to Scholastic Executive Vice President and President of Scholastic Book Clubs and E-Commerce, Judy Newman.

Announcing the appointment, Newman said, "We are delighted to welcome Tom to Scholastic at this dynamic time when our school book club ordering for teachers and parents continues to move from paper to online. With his extensive expertise in connection with the online customer experience, he is ideally suited to help us provide an outstanding online experience for Scholastic's school-based distribution businesses. He will also be a key leader for Scholastic's transition to digital distribution as we look toward a future where parents and children begin to embrace ebooks in addition to print."

During his four years as Executive Vice President, E-Commerce at bn.com, Burke orchestrated the complete redesign of bn.com and added new merchandise categories, including MP3 Audiobooks and ebooks, print and digital magazines, educational toys and games and videogames.

Prior to Barnes & Noble, Burke held several positions of responsibility at the Discovery Channel, including as Senior Vice President, Marketing & E-Commerce, where he managed Discovery.com, the direct to consumer business and consumer products.

He began his career at Dell Publishing Company as a financial analyst in 1984, joining Prodigy Services Company in 1985 and quickly advancing to positions of leadership. Burke earned his BS and MBA degrees from New York University.

For more information about Scholastic, visit our media room at http://mediaroom.scholastic.com/.

About Scholastic

Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ: SCHL) is the world's largest publisher and distributor of children's books and a leader in educational technology and children's media. Scholastic creates quality educational and entertaining materials and products for use in school and at home, including children's books, magazines, technology-based products, teacher materials, television programming, film, videos and toys. The Company distributes its products and services through a variety of channels, including proprietary school-based book clubs and school-based book fairs, retail stores, schools, libraries, television networks and the Company's Internet Site, www.scholastic.com.