Ten lucky Year 10 students and their teacher stepped aboard the Spirit of New Zealand this month for a five-day adventure that included bagpipes, southerlies and memories for life. Year 10 Dean and Social Science Teacher Myles Reid recaps the trip…

Term 3 has been a great term! For the first time since the beginning of the pandemic, we’ve seen a return to normality with events such as Winter Tournament Week, AIMS, Chanel Shield and the ITM Music Festival. I believe that participating in these types of events is critical for our students’ holistic development. As a College, we’ve enjoyed some wonderful successes this term, be sure to read all about them in this newsletter.

Aquinas’ youngest athletes took on the nation’s best at the revived 2022 AIMS Games, battling everything from arctic weather to sunburn during the one-week marathon of sport.

Aquinas is proudly cheering on another one of its New Zealand sporting representatives… Good luck to Y13 artistic rollerskater Amy Cheetham who is competing for NZ at the Oceania Championships against Australia.

Congratulations to the generous Aquinas students who shaved off their hair this month to raise money for Kiwis living with blood cancer. Year 9 students Jasper Norton and George Holmberg were among the few who lost their locks for a good cause, with Jasper raising an outstanding $2,400!

Best of luck to Year 9 student Konrad Wisnewski who is competing in the 2022 NZ National Wrestling Championships in Gore this weekend. The 13-year-old has had a stellar season, achieving podium finishes several times this year.

Tauranga charity Under the Stars is praising the service of Aquinas students and teachers who arrive at school early each Thursday to make lunch for the area’s homeless.

A group of Aquinas students have proven their engineering prowess, blitzing the field at the recent Faith-Based Schools Kahui Ako STEM Challenge.

Congratulations to Aquinas’ Year 7 & 8 water polo teams for both winning gold at the North Island Championships in Auckland last weekend.

Aquinas Year 7 and 8 students enjoyed an off-site history lesson this month to bring to life their study of Tauranga’s first settlers and Catholic missionaries. Each class spent a day visiting The Elms, one of New Zealand’s oldest heritage sites and a place of early contact between Māori and Pākehā.

We’re thrilled to introduce our new Board of Trustees’ Student Representative, Finley Jones (Y12). Finley has been elected by the senior student body to serve as its Board representative for the next year. Well done Finley!

Aquinas is proud to boast four BOP rugby representatives, three of them girls! India O’Connell (Y10) and Emily Wade (Y11) have won selection to the BOP U16 Girls Squad, Grace Kahle to the BOP U18 Girls Squad, and Jai McGarva (Y12) to the BOP U16 Boys Squad.

Aquinas staff swapped their lunchboxes for a gourmet luncheon this month thanks to our talented Year 13 chefs. Level 3 Food Technology students Emma Tran, Tahlia Heeney and Kate McCarroll hosted the fine dining experience to raise money for breast cancer research.

Let’s hear it for our amazing student-athletes who made Aquinas proud at Winter Tournament Week! After a two-year, COVID-induced hiatus, Winter Tournament Week finally returned and saw our students achieve outstanding results. Even better, they acted as great ambassadors for our school.

Congratulations to our Year 7 & 8 netball players who ended their season with some great results in summery conditions at Blake Park last weekend. The girls were unused to playing in the sunshine as most weeks they’ve endured every type of rain!

Another proud Aquinas moment! Huge congratulations to Y8’s Thomas Magill and Y13 students Daniel Evans and Kalarn Mark who won their categories at this month's yia! Young Innovators Awards. Aquinas dominated the awards, scooping the top three Intermediate-level places and top two Senior category awards.

Do you have any unwanted lego to donate? If you’re planning a spring clean this holiday, our Learning Support teachers would welcome your lego for their students to use.

A huge congratulations to our AC Big Band and AC Orchestra which gained Silver and Bronze awards at the ITM Festival in Cambridge on September 9. The one-day event is an annual highlight for both students and teachers, and featured incredible performances by participating BOP and Waikato high school students, their orchestras and other instrumental ensembles.

We are looking for Year 11 students who are interested in a trade-focused career and would like to start with the Futures Academy programme while still at school next year. The academy encourages young people to remain in school, complete their Level 2 NCEA qualification, and gain trades skills and knowledge that will lead them successfully into the job market.

Senior students got a close-up look at a potential career path this month as well as a free haircut.

Whānau, please note that students switch to the summer uniform at the start of Term 4. Our Uniform Shop has plenty of summer uniform items to purchase at reasonable prices. It is open each Tuesday during term time from 12.30 p.m. until 3.30 p.m.

We love celebrating the accomplishments of our Aquinas rangatahi. Today, we’re taking our hat off to Y13 climbing speedster Antony Death.

A round of applause for our literary quizmasters!

Green-fingered Aquinas staff have been lending a hand to help brighten the days of Waipuna Hospice patients.

A reminder that Aquinas students have the services of an on-site physio. Marike Sonneveld is available for appointments at Aquinas each Tuesday and Friday. See the school office for appointment requests, or phone the Bay Physiotherapy Centre on 07-577-9798 or email enquiries@bayphysiotherapy.co.nz

You are warmly invited to attend an evening exploring Catholic questions. Perhaps you have a burning question that has never been answered? Now is the opportunity to explore this.