Flare

Flare Inc. of Metropolitan Washington received a $3,000 contract from the U.S. Education Department in 2002. It is unclear whether the company remains in business.

Department of Education Review of PR Contracts
In the aftermath of the controversy over the U.S. Education Department (ED) hiring Armstrong Williams as a sub-contractor to promote the No Child Left Behind Act, the department's Inspector General reviewed all PR contacts in the 2002-2004 period. The Inspector-General was particularly investigating whether materials produced under the contract disclosed the Department of Education as its sponsor if they were communicated to the public.

The Inspector General wrote of Flare's small contract that it "called for an ad featured on Washington Metro-area trolleys. We reviewed a copy of the ad, which featured the NCLB logo, referred audience to www.nochildleftbehind.gov and 1-800-USA LEARN (an ED phone number).  This deliverable adequately disclosed ED’s role in its production."