Tēnā koutou. It is my pleasure to be able to write the end of year report for Katikati College.

2021 has been a big year for the College and the community and we have definitely had our highs and lows. I would like to congratulate everybody on the collegiality of this community and how we all come together in a time of need to support each other.

Back in June a new board was elected to add to Wendy A’Bear, Sofia House and Shawn Gielen (Limited Statutory Manager). Shaan Kingi was co opted and myself, Dave Freeman, Sara Elliott-Warren, Valarie Uilou and a few weeks later Lisa Corbett, our Staff Trustee, joined to form the Katikati College Board of Trustees. I am thrilled to be working alongside these wonderful people and they all bring something new to the group. With some robust induction evenings, led by our LSM, Shawn Gielen, we strengthened our governance understanding. This gave us the inspiration to move our kura forward in the right direction.

I would like to thank Carolyn Pentecost for the nearly 4 years of service she has given to the College. With her resignation the first big task of the Board was to start the process of employing a new principal. This process was new to all of us but it was an exciting one. Reading through the high quality CVs that came our way we felt confident that our principal was out there.

We are very pleased with our selection of Mrs Louise Buckley. We are confident that she will bring stability, direction and strong leadership to Katikati College.

Katikati College students were lucky to be able to hold their Senior Ball this year. This is always a night to remember and a highlight of the year for those who attend, with the night being full of laughter, colour and spirit.

Covid-19 put us back into lockdown for 3 weeks during Term 3. I would like to congratulate the college staff on how well they implemented the transition of learning / working remotely. Staff were out and about delivering resources and laptops to students so they could continue on with their school work. We were lucky that our students were able to return back to school at the beginning of Term 4 to the delight of parents, teachers and students. Unfortunately we were not out of the woods. The Ministry of Education informed us that we were not able to hold large gatherings at school which meant we were unable to hold Sports Prizegiving, Year 7 & 8 camp, Year 10 camp, Fiefia Night, Lyp Sync and the graduation dinner. Following the directive from the MOE, all of the end of year prize giving events, which parents and caregivers usually attend, had to be altered so that only prizewinners are allowed to attend. The Board feels and hears the frustrations from students, teachers and parents regarding these events but we are 100% behind the MOE, keeping our school community safe. Fingers crossed we can resume back to normal in 2022.

Opening the last stage of the Technology build at the beginning of the year was a great way to start 2021. We now have a fantastic new Food Technology and Soft Materials Technology room. It’s great to see some fantastic creations come out of these two rooms. A big thank you to all those that were involved in making this happen.

With the Board signing off the Memorandum of Understanding with the Innovative Horticulture Trust, the Katikati Innovative Horticulture Project now has the go ahead with the building of the new purpose-built horticulture educational and training facility. As we work through the initial stages of plans and consents, hopefully we will see some construction work in the near future. I would like to acknowledge the tireless work Hilary Johnson has put into making this happen; she truly has been the driving force behind the project. With the support and help from the Hort Trustees, they have nearly reached their financial target.

It’s been nice to welcome new staff to the College this year and it is always sad to see staff leave. I would like to wish those staff who are leaving all the best in your next adventure and thank you for giving time to our kura.

To the Year 13 students, I wish you all the best with your future endeavours. I know that you will be fantastic with whatever you choose to do in life. Just because this year did not turn out to be what you thought it would be, it doesn’t mean that your future can’t be better than you ever imagined. Make the most of all the opportunities that are given to you.

I think most of us will be happy to see the back end of 2021 and look towards a brighter 2022. Thank you to everyone that has been supportive of our Board and school. To the parents / caregivers of our students, thank you for being supportive and patient. To the staff of Katikati College, in particular Louise and the Senior Leadership Team, you have had a tough year and have worked together so well. Have a great break and enjoy the time with your family / whānau.

Ngā mihi

Bobbette Tanner

BoT Chairperson