Rau Whetū - Shine together. Success on display at our Year 11-13 Prizegiving.

Tēnā koutou | greetings,

On Tuesday evening we celebrated our 2023 Year 11-13 Prizegiving with special guests Matt Doocey Member of Parliament, Councillor Tim Fulton, and Bradley Foster past student leader who spoke of his experience leaving school.

Prizegiving celebrations are often a result of students reaching their goals and the following whakataukī was shared during the evening:

Whāia te iti kahurangi, ki te tūohu koe, me maunga teitei.

Seek the treasure that you value most dearly if you bow your head, let it be to a lofty mountain. This whakataukī is about perseverance and endurance. Refusing to let obstacles get in your way while striving to reach your goals.

To our year 13s, the class of 2023, and leaving students - we wish you all the best for your future endeavours. We would like to acknowledge a very special select group of students -Hillary Cooper, Xanthe Erceg, Micah Stagg, Sofia Tizzard and Sophia Toulson. You have all been at Oxford Area School for 13 years and have now joined the elite to have achieved this awesome milestone. Well done.

During the evening we announced our 2024 student leadership team. Selecting these positions continues to be highly competitive. Firstly I would like to thank and congratulate this year's student leadership team consisting of Earl Cacho, Hillary Cooper, Micah Stagg and Wilani Joubert. Thank you for your leadership this year, you have all developed into strong young leaders, you work incredibly well as a team and are fine ambassadors for Oxford Area School embracing our school values. On behalf of Oxford Area School, we wish you the best for the bright futures that await you.

The 2024 Student Leadership team consists of:

• Head Students for 2023 - Bella Eginton-Abbott and Nikayla Beer
• Deputy head students for 2023 - Oliver Sillars and Isabella Duncan

Other special award recipients include:

• Dux - Kyla Hirini-King (recipient of $8,000 worth of Scholarships)
• Proxime Accessit - Sophia Toulson
  
• Prime Minister's Vocational Excellence Award: Elise Whitwell ($2,000 Scholarship)
• Oxford Lions Emerging Achievers Award: Abi Denley & Ashlee Linton ($1,000 Scholarship each)
  
• Sportsperson of the year - Earl Cacho
  
• Runner up to the sportsperson of the year - Jon Smoothy and Abby Taylor

Finally thanks to all of our school's supporters and congratulations to all of our senior students for reaching their goals as they now turn their attention to the end-of-year examinations.

Kia pai tō rā whakatā | Have a great weekend,

Mike Hart
Tumuaki | Principal
Oxford Area School
Te Kura o Te Poho Rakahua