Wow, what a week we had last week. Now, our seniors are on study time and our juniors rule.

Last week was jam packed and, again, served to reinforce how proud I am of our dominant student culture. Our year 13s ended their school year with what's become a traditional water fight and BBQ. What's not traditional is that this year they soaked me ;) It was all in good fun and with great respect. 

That evening we held our Leavers' Dinner with many parents/whānau, to celebrate five years of partnership which has resulted in such amazing young adults being ready to unleash themselves on the world. I want to thank Calib Gurden, who was in Year 13 when the current Year 13s were in Year 9, for stepping in at short notice and delivering an inspiring speech about taking the opportunities presented to you while keeping your love of the Coast. 

The West Coast Trades Academy prizegiving on Friday night was a powerful celebration of learning across all West Coast senior schools, with an emphasis on learning for work. GHS scooped many awards (see list included in this newsletter) and I want to mention the following for achieving Student of the Year in their course:

• Jordan Baker (Mechanical Eng and CAD Design yr 1)
• Clark Fountain (Mechanical Eng and CAD Design yr 2)
• Greanne Williams (Cookery yr 1)
• Alyssa Blacktopp (Adventure Tourism level 2)
• Prakriti Dhakal (Manaaki Tāpoi level 2)
• Nataliah Te Tau (Manaaki Tāpoi level 3)
• Fern Richards (Hair and Beauty yr 1)
• Tristan Howard (Conservation and Earthcare level 3)
• Raven Whatu-Joseph (Environmental Sci level 3)
• Blake Evans (Uniformed Services level 2) 

School feels quite different now, with seniors having the choice to attend classes or not. Our teachers choose to make themselves available at all of their usual class times for two extra weeks to help our seniors complete internal assessments or to study for exams. That is a mark of their commitment and you should ensure your Year 11-13 child is making the most of the help available. Years 9 and 10 are working on a range of projects in the normal way, with some extra trips planned for Year 10. Please remember that the emphasis is still very much on learning and your support in that respect is always needed. 

A huge thanks from me to all the staff who've put in extra hours to enable the events above to happen, and who are running extra tutorials for students.

Please note that this Friday is a Staff Only Day with a focus on the significant changes coming in 2022 to NCEA.

Noho ora mai

Andy England