High-profile career in the balance over cash questions

Martin Elliott's career in education hangs in the balance after allegations of serious financial wrongdoing. Photo / Greg Bowker

He took a hard line on drugs, banned cellphones in classrooms to stop text bullying, had parents do chores around the school to pay their children's fees and started a creche for teenage mothers.

But Martin Elliott's role as principal at Hamilton's Fraser High School is over and his career in education hangs in the balance after allegations of serious financial wrongdoing.

The high-profile former principal quit his job at Waikato's largest secondary school on Monday after details of a confidential investigation were leaked to the media.

The report claimed Mr Elliott illegally accepted extra salary, falsified invoices after using school money on two of his personal properties and allowed large payments for companies with school-employed stakeholders to do work around Fraser High.

But Mr Elliott's lawyer, Mark Hammond, said the report, commissioned by Fraser High's limited statutory manager, John Carlyon, was confidential and its findings were preliminary and unanswered.

Mr Elliott plans to take a personal grievance case next week against the Ministry of Education for constructive dismissal.

Mr Hammond said it was early days and he did not know what other action Mr Elliott planned.

The son of a railwayman, Mr Elliott was educated at schools in Hamilton.

At 33 he was appointed principal of Coromandel Area School, becoming the youngest secondary school head in New Zealand in 1987.

There he introduced measures such as study evenings for School Certificate students, treating them with a barbecue with all the trimmings if they stayed and studied in the classroom until 8pm.

Mr Elliott moved to Whakatane High School in 1992 and after six years was credited with taking a hard line on drug users, threatening random searches of school buses with sniffer dogs and urine testing of students.

The local Whakatane Beacon newspaper praised him for bringing the school "out of the shadows".

A staff member at the school, who did not want to be named, said Mr Elliott was experienced and well-respected.

"He is one of the elder statesman in the principals' group and has high credibility among principals.

"He was a high-profile guy but he always got on well with staff and he was very well supported by students. Certainly in terms of this area he was a great principal."

In the fourth term of 1997, Mr Elliott became principal at Fraser High School.

He quickly forged a no-nonsense approach and was prepared to make tough decisions, including the almost immediate suspension of about 40 students for being involved with drugs.

He brought in Saturday morning classes for students falling behind.

"He certainly was what the school needed, he really gripped the issues and challenges the school was facing," said Ryan Hamilton, head boy at Fraser High in 1997.

The 49-page report which investigated Mr Elliott's alleged financial wrongdoing is likely to go to the Auditor-General and the Ministry of Education.

A police fraud squad investigation, which began in May, is continuing.