School name change mooted

Mangakahia Area School principal Jacqui Tyrrell says she has no strong opinion on the proposed renaming of the school.Photo/John Stone.

Mangakahia Area School may soon get an identity makeover as the principal calls for public consultation on whether to change their school name and logo.

A member of the community came to principal Jacqui Tyrrell and said he didn't feel the name "Mangakahia" was the best fit for the school, which is at Titoki about 23km north-west of Whangarei.

Ms Tyrrell said she took it on board and has scheduled community meetings to discuss the issue.

On Wednesday whanau, families and the community are invited to a meeting where Ms Tyrrell will ask whether people believe the name is appropriate for the school. The school logo, Houto mountain, is also up for discussion.

Ms Tyrrell said she had no opinion on the issue, and was acting as the facilitator between the community and the board of trustees, which will ultimately make the decision.

"No alternative was given by the person who came to us but previously the school was called Titoki District High School," Ms Tyrrell said.

After the meeting Ms Tyrrell will decide whether to take the issue further, or whether the community is happy with the name.

If a change of name is decided upon, the board of trustees will submit an application to change the name to the Ministry of Education, which will then inform the Minister of Education.

The questions being put to people are: "Is the school name appropriate? Where is Mangakahia and is it a suitable name/geographical descriptor for the school? Is the school logo appropriate? How is the maunga significant to the school and the local community?"