The Norwin School District hopes to sell the naming rights to its stadium to recoup some of the cost of a $25.4 million renovation that began this month.

School leaders want the funds to defray the cost of the renovation of the 60-year-old Knights Stadium, said Superintendent Natalie McCracken.

“We have not determined exactly what that percentage is because with the naming rights to the stadium, we know that would be a significant investment,” she said. “We would want to talk with (sponsors) about what their individual goals are” and they may seek other naming rights, so the cost would be dependent on that, McCracken said.

“We would love for that to be a community partner, someone locally, that would be our goal,” the superintendent said.

If Norwin is looking for what another WPIAL school has received for the naming rights to its stadium, Canon-McMillan in Canonsburg received a total of $100,000 from Allegheny Health Network for a five-year deal, said Frank Vulcano Jr., athletic director for Canon-McMillan.

If Norwin is able to close a deal, it would join a short list of school districts in the region that have generated revenue through naming rights.

UPMC has its name on Graham Field, where Imani Christian in Wilkinsburg plays its games. The field-naming agreement is with Chatham University, which owns the field, said Susan Manko, a UPMC spokeswoman. UPMC does not disclose the terms of agreements for sponsorships such as naming rights, Manko said.

The former Kraft Heinz Corp. in 2023 announced it was donating $1.3 million to the Aliquippa School District to create a renovated field, naming it Heinz Field. The food products company followed that with an announcement it was partnering with funding for athletic and academic centers.

In Armstrong County, NexTier Bank has its name on the athletic complex at Armstrong High School’s stadium.

Based on a review of the names of the 18 high school stadiums in Westmoreland County, Norwin appears to be the first one to sell the naming rights to the stadium or the field itself. Most schools in the county have stadiums named after the school, the team nickname or an influential person in the community.

The person or entity that acquires the naming rights at Norwin would have those naming rights for the life of the stadium. Some have contacted the district about the naming rights and, in other cases, those involved in Norwin’s A+ Capital Campaign Facilities Committee have contacted prospective donors.

“We have ongoing business relationships with entities, both local and regional, that we have talked with,” said Lauren Steiner, Norwin’s development and communications director.

Commitments, community ties

Casey Harper, owner of the C. Harper Auto Group, has committed $500,000 for the lifetime naming rights of the scoreboard, which will feature not only game details but will also have programmable messages, McCracken said. The C. Harper Auto Group name was on a previous scoreboard, Steiner said.

Harper also made a $100,000 commitment for the lifetime naming rights of the multipurpose room above the stadium entrance. Harper has decided to name it in honor of the late Robert Perkins, who served more than 20 years on the school board.

In both cases, C. Harper Auto Group will be listed as having the naming rights, Steiner said.

Harper said he made the contribution to Norwin because, “it’s just something I do — it’s my community. It’s where my wife and I raised our children and now our children are raising their children.”

Norwin might be the first in Westmoreland County to follow the path of professional and college sports team in selling naming rights, but it may not be the last.

“I think it is an idea whose time is coming … but it’s not something that is brand new,” said Jack Boylan, former Norwin superintendent and president of the nonprofit Norwin School District Community Foundation, which serves as the conduit for the money to pass from donor to the district.

Selling the naming rights is a way to reduce the financial burden of the taxpayers when a district undergoes such a project, said Boylan, who spent 38 years as an educator.

Spending $24 million to replace a stadium that its architect said was in a deteriorating condition was opposed by some Norwin School Board members who favored a less expensive project. A divided school board narrowly approved the contracts for the renovations in a 5-4 vote in April.

Other naming opportunities

Naming rights to the press box, alumni room and home concession stand are for 10 years, at prices the district has not set. There may be an alumnus who is interested in committing to donating for the naming rights of the alumni room, likely at a smaller donation than other aspects of the stadium, McCracken said.

The district is considering having items in the alumni room that give alums an opportunity to reconnect with the space, which could feature Norwin-branded items from throughout the years, she said. There also is the possibility of having donors commit to contributing for a plaque that would be placed on an alumni wall, she said.

“We want to have opportunities from small to large money amounts — to be able to have entry points to partner with us,” McCracken said.

The fundraising campaign has been in the planning stages since January and they began contacting prospective donors in August, McCracken said.

When meeting with prospective donors, they try to identify which area in which they are interested — the stadium or the performing arts center or both, Steiner said. While they do not have any commitments for naming rights to the performing arts center, they have had conversations with people interested in the performing arts center, Steiner said. That project, which will cost an estimated $6.39 million, is expected to be completed in January.

Like the naming rights to the stadium, the cost of permanent name recognition on the performing arts center is undetermined, as is the stage and foyer outside the main doors.

The cost to have the naming rights for the instrument storage and uniform room ranges from $5,000 for five years to $7,500 for 10 years.

The district also is considering creating a “donor wall” where those who feel connected to the school’s performing arts can buy a plaque at multiple price points, McCracken said

Those fundraising efforts fall under Norwin’s A+ Facilities Capital Campaign, which is made possible through the partnership with the Norwin School District Community Foundation, a fundraising foundation. The initial goal for raising money from the naming rights and other fundraising efforts is $1 million, Steiner said.

“Should that goal be reached, we will determine a goal for the second phase of the campaign,” Steiner said.

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