Kia Ora Parents and Friends of Katikati College,

Last week Board Chair Peter McCormick, announced the new principal for Katikati College. I would like to offer my congratulations to Carolyn Pentecost for her appointment as Principal. I look forward to meeting with Carolyn during Term 2 to ensure a smooth transition process. The Board worked extremely hard over a period of six months preparing and going through the appointment process. This process is extremely robust and I know the Board have put every consideration into making the decision. More details will become available throughout Term Two.

Term One is always a very busy and hectic term with a large number of school activities as well as various camps and field trips. Our students have been involved in some amazing experiences. It has been really pleasing to see that students continue to settle down once back in class and focus on their schoolwork. I have seen some outstanding pieces of work from students as I have gone through various classrooms.

During the break Katikati College will once again be represented at the Dawn Service Parade. It will be great to see a number of students supporting this as well as the Civic Service which will be held during the middle of the day.

During a recent assembly I talked to the students about two things – commitment perseverance. As we are moving into the winter months, when a large number of our team sports occur, I talked in particular about making a commitment to a team. Being involved in team sports or groups is a really good learning experience for students. It helps them mix with a different group of students and also widens friendship circles. Being committed to a team also helps students learn to manage their time effectively and gain new skills. Making a commitment to a team is no small undertaking and we are extremely grateful to the parents and staff members who put in a huge amount of time in coaching or management positions as well as supporting students at various events.

The other aspect that I talked to students about was perseverance. Showing perseverance and being able to carry on when things are hard is also a very good skill to have. Those students who do well have traditionally shown a strong trait of perseverance. Things are not always easy for our students and many families have times of struggle however being able to re-focus and make the most of those challenging situations is important. Sometimes people give up all too easily when things go wrong or make mistakes but learning behaviours such as never giving up and trying again are good ways to start.

I would like to congratulate all of the students (and staff) involved in the Lip Sync held last week. It was great to see so many students from Year 7 – 13 involved. I thought the audience was fantastic and it was nice to see so many parents come along with their children and enjoy the entertainment. The ‘techie boys’ also did a great job and the lighting was very impressive. Once again, many thanks to the Arts Captains and Mrs Fleming for the organisation of this event. Results will be published early next term.

A reminder to all of our students that Terms 2 and 3 are where the majority of the work is done for the year. Enjoy the school holiday break and I hope you are able to spend some time with your families. I know lots of people will be involved with the Kiwifruit harvest.

Term 2 commences with a Teacher Only Day on Monday 1st May and we look forward to seeing all students, in the correct uniform, with the correct equipment, ready to learn on Tuesday 2nd May.

Nga mihi

Mr Neil Harray | Principal