This week, a very special assembly was held, where 30 fine young men were announced and recognised as our school’s Junior Leaders for 2021.

On Monday the 2nd of August a very special assembly was held.  The theme of this assembly was Leadership, and in particular the opportunities, events and Leadership Positions available to the juniors of our school.  The highlight of this assembly was the naming of the 30 Junior Leaders for this year.  There were many wonderful, high-quality applicants for these positions; unfortunately, only a finite number of students could be selected.  For those that were selected, it is a wonderful achievement and it is a reflection of their hard work in our school community.

Our Junior Leaders for 2021 are:

Labeeb Ahmad, Janadhee Balasooriya, Fynley Berkers, Kinnon Broekhuizen, Zachary Brownlee, Preston Brydon, Ziggy Coleman, Lachlan Douglas, Nikau Dromgool, Te Mana Ellery, Rohit Gulla, Kaelan Haggie, Zak Hooper, Jesse Humberstone Kara, Caydin Kirkham, Rupert Leary, Ethan Macdonald, Finn McClure, Mekaal Mehdi, Marco Miln, Stefan Newman, Ollie Parkinson, Ricci Putohe, Joshua Reihana, Henry Seavill, Ishaan Singh, Astyn Te Whare, Aveer Virk, Liam Weston, and Jay Wilson.

These Junior Leaders will each be paired up with a Prefect mentor and their Committee, who they will follow and work alongside with in order to improve some of their Leadership skills.  We wish these young men all the best in their new Leadership roles.

Dux of 2021:  Drishya Patel

In a year that we are all going to be very relieved to get through, it seems entirely appropriate that relief was the emotion our Dux of 2021, Drishya Patel, felt when his name was read out.  He felt a calm joy, along with the relief that all of his hard work had paid off.  Drishya describes himself as a normal student in that he doesn't think he has any extraordinary gifts, and he certainly enjoys himself in class, joking with his teachers and peers. He is quite self-directed in his studies because he knows what works and what does not for him. In general, he maximises efficiency to maximise results while minimising the time spent at a desk. At this point It does have to be said that the word normal does not feature in his report comments.  You're more likely to find "excellent", "motivated", "top student", and "exceptional", which is as it should be for our Premier Academic Scholar.  Drishya is hugely grateful for the support his parents have given him over the years, and made a point of thanking his class-mates as well, as his year group is filled with talented, competitive students who push each other to do their very best.  Next year Drishya heads to the deep south, and begins a Health Science First Year at the University of Otago, with a view to eventually becoming an orthopedic surgeon.  His words of advice for his fellow academics are eminently sensible, as he emphasises the benefits of maintaining a balanced life despite the pressures to perform well in academics.  We wish Drishya every success in his future endeavours, and congratulate him on such outstanding achievements in a testing year.