Here, Principal Nicola Jacobsen shares her thoughts.

Kia Ora 

This week has seen the start of the construction of the pump track which will no doubt be a popular activity for our junior students at break times. Our Sports Committee will be organising the running of this to ensure safety and that everyone gets a chance to use it. I am expecting it to be ready for use by the end of next week.

COVID-19, both people who are sick and those who are having to isolate at home, is starting to cause us some disruption, as it is for a number of local businesses. Please let us know if your child has tested positive so that we can inform potential close contacts from school. From midnight tonight the isolation times for household contacts and those who have tested positive is 7 days, with negative tests needed on days 3 and 7 before returning to school or work. For students who are at home, work is available through Google Classrooms. At present we are able to cover staff who are away, however, we will reach a point where we may need to start rostering our senior students (Years 11-13) home. We will endeavour to give parents and caregivers plenty of warning for when this happens.

We are all very familiar with what to do to keep ourselves safe - mask wearing, physical distancing when possible, and hand hygiene. Teachers are allowing students to work outside (if appropriate) to give breaks from wearing masks, and at break times students do not need to wear masks unless they are in a space where they are close to others, for example, lining up for the Canteen. It is normal at this time to feel worried about what might happen, and there is a lot of support at school with our Deans and Guidance Counsellors.

Changes to NCEA will be coming into effect from 2024. This has given us pause to consider the purpose of NCEA level one for our students. Vicki Ashton, the Deputy Principal in charge of the Curriculum, will be sending out a survey next week with some information and questions for parents and whanau about NCEA level one. We want to make sure our Year 11 programme is one that prepares students for their future learning, is engaging and exciting. 

Toitū te whenua, toitū te tangata

The land is strong, the people are fulfilled.

Ngā mihi,

Nicola Jacobsen