Kia orana! Ni sa bula! Mālō e lelei! Talofa lava! Faka’alofa lahi atu! Fakatalofa atu! Gude! Kia ora koutou! Warm Pacific greetings!

The Pasifika o Te Puna Wai o Waipapa group that we started up in August last year for Hagley Pasifika students has continued to grow. 2021 has brought some exciting developments for Pasifika o Te Puna Wai o Waipapa. We were fortunate enough to receive funding from the Ministry of Education from the Pacific Education Innovation Fund. As well as supporting us in other Pasifika initiatives, this allowed Fa’atu Tamate to take up the role of Pasifika Liaison in February. Alongside working as a Teacher Aide in the Junior College, Fa’atu has already made a huge impact for students and families in supporting and providing extra connections into the school.

On March 30th we were very happy to invite families and community members to join us for a fiafia community evening hosted by Fa’atu and student, Slade Clarke. Students sang a Samoan pese lotu that they have been learning in lunchtimes, we had beautiful dance performances from the Fili sisters, as well as inspirational guest speakers. Fara Aulaumea spoke about her journey from Samoa to becoming an Early Childhood Teacher, with a special message for parents to encourage their children in school. Sailasa Saukuru talked about his journey to becoming a teacher himself, and some of the changes he has seen since his time as a Fijian student at Hagley. Daisy Lavea-Timo, from Cross-Polynate, led discussions to find out how we can support Pasifika students better at Hagley, and there were some great ideas from students and families. We appreciated Associate Principal, Rowan Milburn’s words of welcome and commitment to our Pasifika community, as well as the attendance of Deputy Principal, Jenni Holden. We also welcomed wise words from Siatua Evalu at the Ministry of Education, encouraging us to work together as community and school. It was a lovely chance to get together and meet other community members, especially those new to Hagley College this year.

Our lunchtime meetings have expanded to having Siva (Dance) on Mondays and a relaxed meet-up on Fridays. This week we enjoyed a visit from Jocelyn Wright and her team from the Preschool on Monday, where the children impressed with their rhythm and how quickly they picked up the words and movements!

Last Friday brought a visit to the sPACIFICally PACIFIC Careers Expo at Ara. This was the first big Pasifika event that Hagley has attended as a college and a good step to being part of what’s happening in the region.

As staff who are working towards this kaupapa, it has so far been a treasure of an experience to get to know and work alongside some extraordinary young people and their aiga. Thank you! We appreciate your enthusiasm and bravery! And we would also like to acknowledge and thank the students and staff of the Māori department who have been so generous in nurturing and supporting the Pasifika group as we get established.

Fa’afetai lava