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LOS ANGELES - A spirited campaign by children in the US to name a school in honour of the late Crocodile Hunter, Steve Irwin, has failed.
Residents of New Braunfels, near San Antonio in central Texas, were asked to come up with names for the new elementary school planned for the area.
The support for Steve Irwin Elementary School, particularly from children, was so strong it made a short list of three potential names.
"We had to take it seriously," Charles Burt, a member of the Comal Independent School District Board, which made the final decision, said.
After much debate, the board opted against honouring the Australian wildlife showman and chose the more traditional name, Morningside Elementary School.
A local newspaper, The San Antonio-Express News, described the board's decision as "common sense".
"Anybody could turn in names they thought were appropriate," Burt said.
"Some of the kids turned in Steve Irwin."
At a board meeting open to the public, one of Irwin's many young American fans had his say.
"A young man, I guess he was aged five or six, came up to the microphone and talked to the board," Burt said.
"He was very much in favour of the school being named after Steve Irwin."
Opponents to naming the school after Irwin argued he had no ties to the area.
"There was a concern he wasn't a local person," Burt said.
"He didn't really have a connection to the local area.
"The other argument against was, would kids 20 years from now know who Steve Irwin was?
"I know he is very popular now.
"I've got young kids who are fans of his and who were traumatised when he died.
"I hope it isn't taken as a sleight against Mr Irwin, but we just weren't sure about naming the school after him."
Irwin, 44, died when a stingray barb pierced his heart when he was diving on the Great Barrier Reef on September 4.
- AAP
