Stonington - When the Stonington High School football team takes the field this morning against the Westerly Bulldogs, it will celebrate the 100th anniversary of the rivalry with a new scoreboard.

As a small group of school officials and supporters looked on Wednesday morning, school maintenance workers pulled a large blue tarp off the scoreboard at the south end of Donald E. Palmer Field.

On it was a photo of a player running with the ball, the words "STONINGTON BEARS" and various advertising signs.

"That looks awesome," school board member Kevin Bornstein said.

Inside the school gym just a few feet away, students packed the bleachers for the annual pep rally for the football team.

The scoreboard, which cost approximately $20,000 and was eliminated from the high school expansion and renovation project several years ago because of cost concerns, did not cost the school system or taxpayers any money.

It was funded by businesses and organizations that have paid to have their signs on the scoreboard. The sponsorships not only paid for the scoreboard but will also generate an estimated $15,000 annually for the school system.

The scoreboard is one of the first initiatives of the Board of Education's Revenue Generation Committee, which is looking for creative ways to bring additional money into the school system in times of escalating costs and small budget increases.

The committee is looking at other initiatives, such as McDonald's advertising on the press box, other advertising on the high school baseball field and selling small name plaques on auditorium seats. The plaques are $100 for families and $200 for businesses.

"As available funds grow more and more scarce each year, it puts the district in a position of having to look for creative ways of funding things," said Superintendent of Schools Leanne Masterjoseph during a breakfast for the sponsors and school officials held prior to the unveiling. "It's becoming more and more necessary."

Board Chairwoman Gail MacDonald thanked the Board of Finance for agreeing to let the school system keep advertising revenue in a special account for school needs rather than put it into the town's general fund.

She said the advertising helps take some of the pressure off parents who are asked to help raise funds for sports.

While some critics of selling advertising on school property felt the board was opening the door to plastering ads on school grounds, MacDonald said that was not the board's intent. The school board will retain control over what groups can advertise and what the ads will look like, she said.

The school is the first Connecticut client of Side Effects Inc., an Ohio company that matches up advertisers with schools and colleges.

When the scoreboard was unveiled Wednesday morning, it revealed lighted red numbers with the score Stonington 14, Visitor 7.

"Let's hope it stays that way," Masterjoseph said.

j.wojtas@theday.com