Kia ora,
Last Monday night I attended the final PTA meeting for the year. I would like to thank the parents who are involved for their continued support of the school. Whether it be helping out at the various events we hold, running uniform sales, raising funds to support students, or being a sounding board for ideas and initiatives, your input is greatly appreciated. In particular I would like to acknowledge those parents who are leaving the PTA this year, after many years of service to the school. I thank them for their ongoing support and wish them well. It is important that we are able to get regular feedback from our local community, and this group provides a forum for this to happen.
Unfortunately, inclement weather in the mountains meant our Year 10 Outdoor Education Camps scheduled for this week became one day adventure excursions which included a Spencer park activity day, a day tramp on the Port Hills, and a Craigieburn activity day which included Caving, Bouldering and Kura Tawhiti/ Castle Hill walk.
Staff have continued their work on the NCEA change programme this Friday and will continue on Monday. The changes are scheduled to be phased in, with new achievement standards at Level 1 being introduced in 2024, followed by Level 2 in 2025, and Level 3 in place by January 2026.
Throughout the week interviews were held for our incoming 2023 Year 9 cohort. These were an opportunity to gather family and student voice, and to share and discuss the transition process. These interviews were incredibly well supported by the community, and as a school we are appreciative of the opportunity to build these connections, and will be looking forward to seeing the students next year. Alongside this, 80 Year 12 students will be returning to school in Week 9 to participate in the Peer Support training programme. They will return as Peer Support Leaders next year, and will play a significant role in supporting the transition and integration of our new Year 9 students to Papanui High School.
Congratulations to Kirsten Hill who has been appointed as Year 9 Dean for 2023.
Three weeks of the external examination programme have now been completed, and with one week to go, students will be coming to the end of this process. I hope these have been going well, and for those yet to finish, good luck for the remaining week.
Ngā mihi
Jeff Smith
Principal