The Aquinas 2024 enrolment season opens on Monday, July 17 — the first day of Term 3.

Tēnā koutou kātoa ngā whānau o te kura,

Calling all businesses and benefactors, Aquinas needs your support! Aquinas has introduced a new sponsorship programme to bridge the school’s funding shortfall and attract much-needed financial assistance.

Mark your calendars whānau, the Aquinas College Arts Faculty is holding a three-week exhibition of senior student art next term.

Aquinas students heralded Matariki 2023 with a range of creative and culinary activities to welcome the Māori New Year.

We’re proudly singing the praise of Year 11 swimmer Hunter Sands for his remarkable fundraising achievement of swimming an incredible 40 kilometers in 40 hours.

Congratulations to Aquinas runner Vaughan Murray who finished a sensational fourth in the nation’s Year 9 boys cross country champs. Even more impressive, his Year 9 Waikato-BOP relay team was crowned the fastest in the nation!

A message from Aquinas College Board of Trustees Presiding Member Rod Way:

Calling all past and present Aquinas students, families, staff, and community members… Aquinas College turns 20 this year and we’re celebrating with a 20th Gala Dinner extravaganza.

Year 12’s Reece Cobb — NZ’s top female gymnast — is poised to achieve her lifelong goal of competing at the 2024 Paris Olympics. A dream that has seen her train four hours a day, six days a week for the last five years.

Congratulations to Aquinas choir Voci Celesti which was commended for its performance at The Big Sing 2023.

Eleven Aquinas College students received the Sacrament of First Eucharist (First Holy Communion) last month, a significant milestone that provides strength and spiritual nourishment for their faith journey.

Another first for Aquinas was our Year 7s and Year 8s attending an Intermediate Sports Camp at Totara Springs in Matamata — following in the footsteps of our Year 9 and 10s, who attended earlier in the term.

Forty-eight Year 9 students will be facing the winter elements at the Blue Mountains Adventure Park in the Tongariro National Park during week one of next term.

Save the date whānau, the annual Aquinas College Performing Arts Evening will be held on Wednesday, August 16.

Good luck to Aquinas two Year 9 hockey players selected for this weekend’s U14 North vs South Hockey Challenge.

We appreciate all those families who have contributed to the Aquinas school donation. As of July, 41 per cent of families have made a contribution — a 10 percentage point increase since our April appeal.

The Aquinas International Department has launched its first Newsletter.

Students, time to smarten up your uniform… the Aquinas Sports, Cultural and Committee photoshoot is coming!

Read on for a round-up of all the amazing Future Pathway opportunities our students have experienced this term

We’re giving an Aquinas shout-out to the student Kura Kai team regularly cooking meals for needy families in our community.

Congratulations to Year 8’s Grace Reid who won silver at the North Island Artistic Swimming Champs last month.

Help us help our students! Aquinas needs volunteers to assist with Special Assessment Conditions during upcoming exams.

Year 9 French students enjoyed a shared French breakfast as part of their study of French food and meals, with croissants and pain au chocolat amongst the goodies on offer. A fitting finale to the end of International Languages Week.

Our Aquinas Sports Academy (ASA) ended Term 2 with a gruelling fitness challenge that tested students’ endurance.

The Aquinas Library has launched a Term 3 Reading Challenge to read 25,000 pages as a school. House points and pride are on the line, so crack open a book next term!

The Year 13 Outdoor Education class enjoyed a two-day trip to the Coromandel Peninsula’s Pinnacles last month — one of NZ’s best overnight walks.

Students in 9 GATE have received a first-hand account of UBCO’s evolution from a local start-up to a global exporter of electric farm bikes.

Aquinas runners delivered strong performances at the Waikato BOP Secondary Schools Cross Country Championships last month.

Engineering, design thinking, problem-solving, and careers education all came together for students in this year's 8 GATE cohort when they visited the construction of new groynes and a wheelchair-accessible boat ramp at Sulphur Point.

Congratulations to the following Aquinas cricketers singled out for their amazing performances this season. Each team’s top bowler, batter, fielder and MVP were announced at the college’s recent cricket prizegiving. Well done all!!

Congratulations to Aquinas staff and students for raising $1,000 for breast cancer research.

Our Year 13 Economic students enjoyed a fantastic trip to Waihi Mine last month.

A reminder that the Aquinas Lunch Truck has switched to a cash-only payment system.