This Yearbook is a snapshot of the highlights and memorable events of the year, and a record of the students and staff members who formed the Waimairi-iri Burnside High School community in 2021.

 I hope it will remind you of good times with friends, the new people you met, our diverse cultures, sports, cultural, performing arts events, your year of learning and striving to be better in all that you do.

What a year 2021 has been!  As COVID-19 has reminded us, life is never smooth sailing, and our mantra this year: Kia kaha, kia mau, kia haere tonu: Stay strong, hold fast, keep on course has reminded us to navigate the challenges and make the best of the situation we find ourselves in. Although we can’t control external factors, we can control how we respond to life and its challenges. Well done students, staff and whānau for adapting to our COVID-19 world, making the best of difficult circumstances, accepting the disappointments, and finding alternative ways to learn, teach, and maintain motivation. Thank you for the way you have responded and adjusted to the restrictions placed on us. One group I would like to single out is our International students, some of whom have had more than two years away from home. Imagine not being able to see some of your family for that long. They have done it tough!

In spite of everything, it has been a year of successes in academic work, in cultural activities, in the arts, in sport, in leadership, and in service. Many students achieved outstanding results; and hopefully all attained higher standards than before, tested themselves in new areas and approached things with the determination to be the best they can be. A highlight of the year was that, in spite of all the restrictions, we could still celebrate success and honour those students who have worked so hard. We held prizegivings using livestreams, and our Year 13 students were able to attend graduation and prizegiving at the Christchurch Town Hall, even though it was with a reduced audience and held over two sessions. All wonderful occasions.

To those returning next year I look forward to seeing you back in February, refreshed and ready to tackle another year of opportunities and challenges.

To our Year 13 students, and others who are leaving our school community, I wish you all the very best for the next stages of your education. Our school motto Recte sic dirige cursum – Kōwhiria te huanui tika – along this path direct your journey correctly, links strongly to ti kōuka, the centuries-old guiding point in our school’s landscape. I hope you feel you have been guided through Burnside High School - that you have attained the qualifications you were capable of and that you needed, and that you developed the personal qualities and confidence to choose the right pathways in life. I hope you will remember with pride and affection the security, support, shelter, and strength of your ‘cabbage tree’ years.

To all those who have, directly or indirectly, enriched the lives of our students this year: teaching and support staff, Board of Trustees and PTA members, coaches, tutors, community volunteers, whānau, I extend my sincere thanks and best wishes. ‘Ua fetaui lelei fola o le ‘alia’ — the deck planks (fola) of the voyaging canoe (‘alia) fit together well. That is, great things can be accomplished if everyone works together.

I am honoured to serve as Principal.

Phil Holstein

Principal