By Bill Zeeble, KERA 90.1 reporter.
Dallas, TX – Bill Zeeble, KERA 90.1 FM reporter: Colleges, universities and private high schools have put big-donor names on their buildings for years. Now, school officials figure it's time the Highland Park Independent School District did the same. The district's Education Foundation president Tommy Bain and endowment campaign co-chair Jim Gibbs say it's crisis time.
Tommy Bain: Two-thirds of our school tax money goes to Austin, one-third stays. Even though we collect more taxes, we keep less under the formula. It's a pretty difficult situation we're looking at.
Jim Gibbs, endowment fundraising campaign co-chair: Next year it looks like we'll have a 3.6 million shortfall in the district.
Zeeble: Records show Highland Park, one of the wealthiest school districts in Texas, will send nearly two-thirds of its $84 million in property taxes to the state for redistribution. So the foundation will soon launch its naming rights endowment campaign. No other public school district in the nation has tried anything like this on such a large scale. Highland Park hopes to raise $10 million in the first year, $40 million by 2005. A cafeteria, library, or tennis court would cost a million. The Planetarium, music, weight and locker rooms - half a million.
Judy Gibbs, co?chair, endowment campaign: People haven't come here and said, "I want a stadium named for me." We'd like to offer the opportunity to have a fund named for you, or a building named for you and your family. It's really a donor appreciation move. These buildings are already built. It's an appreciation for a gift to help us retain excellence in the district.
Zeeble: The district is rated among the best in Texas, year after year. Veteran board member Jack Sides Jr. believes it can remain so without this naming rights campaign. In fact, he's afraid it could hurt the district.
Jack Sides Jr., Highland Park Independent School District trustee: We don't need any more commercialism in our schools, nor do we need people with good intentions trying to identify their name, satisfying egos, by providing funds to our school. I place schools above the fray. We're above commercialism. Our community and people, if they really think about it, place schools - like government - on a higher plane. Our slogan is go forth to serve. This gives the message "go forth to earn."
Zeeble: Sides is especially upset that long-standing buildings are being offered for naming rights.
Sides: For someone to come and give money to put their name on a building already paid for by tax payers seems to me?as taking a position of an imposter?because it's already been paid for. They're putting their name on it. This isn't just a few naming rights, this is wholesale naming rights of our physical facilities. It's just wholesale wrong.
Zeeble: Sides respects foundation members and his fellow trustees, all of whom disagree with him. But Dan Fuller, with the National School Boards Association, says Highland Park is simply facing reality.
Dan Fuller, director of federal programs, National School Boards Association: I would imagine, especially now - because schools have more and more requirements placed on them by state and federal governments - that they need to come up with additional revenue. You can't really count on the states anymore. You can't count on the federal government anymore. Local property tax payers are already paying a great deal. I think schools are going to have to become more entrepreneurial and engage in these collaborations with business.
Zeeble: Actually, corporations are off-limits. And Jack Sides says the board's reserved final approval before anything gets named. Education Foundation members say that in this small community, where many generations have attended the schools and achieved financial success, they hope the big donor pitch won't be a hard sell. Instead, they say they'll quietly and tastefully appeal to wealthy individuals on what they call their hit list. They'll have some idea of how they're doing in about a month, after when they officially launch their naming rights campaign. For KERA 90.1, I'm Bill Zeeble.