Top college defends farewell spend
School says $10,000 to honour departing principal was appropriate
A top Tauranga school is defending spending more than $10,000 on farewell events and a gift for a retiring principal.
Tauranga Boys’ College says the farewell costs were appropriate to recognise the “outstanding leader” and principal of 14 years.
The spending has come under fire, however, from a former student embroiled in a dispute with the college over its responses to historical sexual harassment of students by a former teacher, Pinky Green, who is now dead.
Former student Glenn Marshall has made dozens of requests to the school under the Official Information Act, which revealed it spent $10,030 on farewells, which included a $1000 travel voucher, for its retiring principal Robert Mangan in 2022.
Marshall, who also queried college spending relating to the harassment case, told the Bay of Plenty Times he was concerned about what he believed to be “flippant” expenditure given the school increased its donation request to parents this year for the first time in more than 20 years.
A letter to parents and wha¯nau on February 5 showed the “voluntary” school donation would rise in 2024 due to increased costs.
In a statement to the Bay of Plenty Times responding to Marshall’s comments, college principal Andrew Turner said Mangan served in education for more than 40 years and was the college principal for 14 years.
“During this time, he made a significant contribution to our community, positively impacting many students, staff, and parents.”
Turner said the school felt it was appropriate to have three farewell functions for Mangan with current staff and students, former students, and the school community, including parents, other school leaders, other education providers, business sponsors, and friends of the college.
The college hosted the events with more than 1000 guests attending. The events were catered for as part of its manaakitanga (hospitality, showing respect, generosity and care for others) and whanaungatanga (relationship, kinship).
It came to about $10 per person. “These farewells, along with a $1000 travel voucher, was an appropriate way for the college to say thank you to an outstanding leader in education who made a significant contribution to our community.”
On the school donation increase, Turner said: “I’m disappointed to see a connection being made between our donation and this matter. They are not connected in any way.
“Our school community is not immune to cost increases across a range of resources and services we provide our young men. This is what has prompted the increase in our voluntary
donation from $120 to $150.”
The Times asked if the school had policies for gifts or farewells, and if the spending was in line with these.
Mangan said the board made the decisions for the farewell events and he had “no real input”.
“I felt honoured and humbled by the level of recognition, and I viewed them as community celebrations.”
Mangan said he felt he and the “wider community” were recognised at the events for contributions to the college “over a significant length of time”.