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Premier Health Partners has signed $25 million worth of deals with Miami Valley school districts in the past two years for advertising rights and sports medicine contracts in the hope of developing lifelong patients.

The names of Premier's affiliate hospitals will be appearing on Miami Valley high school football stadiums as part of deals the billion-dollar health group forged with suburban schools to revive aging sports arenas.

Premier executives and national experts say it's an unique shift in marketing strategy for the health care provider.

"The door to the school really opens a gateway for us to provide health care prevention, nutrition, and other services," said Tom Arquilla, Premier vice president for business development. "Part of this is developing long-term relationships with the school district and therefore the students they serve and their families."

Partnerships with Mason and Springboro also include a combined $14 million for two new medical and school facilities built by the district and paid for with lease agreements with Premier.

School officials support the pacts as a "win-win" for districts struggling to fund extracurricular activities. "I think they're breaking new ground," said Scott Ebright, of the Ohio School Board Association. "If the schools benefit you have to look at it. You can't turn down money in today's environment."

The partnerships are not without critics, who feel bringing millions of dollars onto the high school sports field ruins the purity of the game.

"I hate to see what was done in college and pro sports migrate down to the high school level," said Paul Dunmeyer, a grandparent of student athletes in the Sugarcreek district, which is now a Premier partner. "They're not benevolent societies. (Premier) is planning to make money from what they have donated."

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2342 or cmagan@DaytonDailyNews.com

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