School offers classroom naming rights for cash

By STUART DYE education reporter

A Whitianga school is inviting local businesses to pay cash and have a classroom in their name.

Children at Mercury Bay Area School could soon be in Room Mitre 10 instead of Room 10 as principal John Wright asks sponsors for donations of $500 to $1000 to "enhance the learning environment".

In exchange, the sponsor will help design the classroom and have it named after them.

The scheme has been criticised by some in the education sector who say children are being treated as consumer-fodder for advertisers.

Mr Wright said other projects had reduced available money and the sponsorship would free up money for other critical areas, but the scheme was all about building bridges with the community.

"Paint, carpets and lighting have not been maintained for the past 10 years in many classrooms," said Mr Wright.

"We see it as a really neat chance for the community to work with us and build better resources."

Mr Wright said offers had poured in immediately. Under the scheme, the sponsor would visit the classroom and talk to students about what they would like.

The school caters for 630 students from the age of 5 through to the completion of their secondary studies.

Phil Smith, president of the Post-Primary Teachers Association, said sponsorship was a growing trend that exploited a captive market.

"Parents send their children to school to learn, not to be treated as the next generation of consumers."

Schools were places for education, not vehicles for advertisers, he said, but sponsorship was a reflection of the underfunding rife across the education sector.

Several New Zealand schools have developed sponsorship deals with businesses.