Principal Nicola Jacobsen shares her thoughts.

Kia ora

Many thanks to Year 13 student, Erica Hudson, for organising for the America’s Cup to come to school. Erica’s application meant that MAC was one of ten schools in New Zealand that the Cup visited. Erica and Madison Smith did a great job at the junior school assembly of talking about the history of the Cup, and their own experiences in sailing. 

Next week is Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori. There are events organised, thanks to the Cultural Committee, every day at lunch times. We also have the College’s House Haka Competition. This student-led event sees each house present the haka. The haka is unique to our College, and has been written to explain how the College is connected to Tititea and Mata-Au, and the mana that this carries. 

We have had two students nominated for the Student Representative on the School Board position. Congratulations to Toby Mills and Tyler Gawn - I look forward to seeing how the campaigning goes next week. Students will receive an email with instructions on how to vote for either Tyler or Toby, and voting takes place in the last week of term. 

This week parents and whānau have been emailed a ‘Parent-Whānau Survey’. Many thanks to those who have already completed the survey, and provided some feedback. The survey takes 5-10 minutes to complete and will be open until Friday 20 September. 

As we head towards the final two weeks of term, a reminder about expectations of students. Being organised and having the correct gear: a very small number of students, particularly for Physical Education, forget their gear, and try to use this as a reason not to participate. While we do have some spare gear for these occasions, it is easier if students bring their correct gear. When I walk around classes, one of the things I comment on is how well organised student work is in their books - it’s a great sign to me of students taking pride in their work and trying their very best. 

Toitū te whenua, toitū te tangata.

The land is strong, the people are fulfilled.

Ngā mihi

Nicola Jacobsen