We are delighted to welcome you to our 2022 school year. I would like to offer a warm welcome to the many new students and parents who have joined our school community this year including the families that have moved here from overseas and other regions.

Tēnā koutou te whanau, 

Ngā mihi, mahana ki a koutou o te tau hou. 

Nau mai haere mai ki tēnei kura, Te Kura Tuarua o Waimeha! 

Greetings to everyone in the Waimea community 

Welcome to the New Year 

Welcome to Waimea College!

Welcome

The first few weeks of the new year are dedicated to providing the best start for our new students. The first connection with Waimea College for our new Year 9 students was with teachers and our Year 13 Leaders at the beginning of Term. I am so very proud of our seniors and the way in which they continue to support and mentor our new students.

This is our first full newsletter of the year, please take the time to read it as it has lots of essential need to know information.

Life in the Red Setting

It’s been a smooth start to the school year at Waimea College despite the COVID restrictions that form part of being in the red setting.

I am very proud of the way that our staff and students have responded to the challenges of disrupted events, adapting to wearing masks in indoor settings and managing the physical distancing and other measures that keep us all safe.

COVID in our Community

Yesterday I shared the news that COVID had made its way through the school gates and into our school community. For a copy of the recent COVID updates, please see the link HERE.  In addition to receiving news of our first COVID positive case yesterday, two further student positive cases have been reported overnight. 

From today, 25 February, New Zealand moved into Phase 3 of the red setting. Please see our newsletter article HERE about what the move to Phase 3 means for Waimea College. 

Welcome to New Staff

We are pleased to share with you some welcomes to new and returning staff for 2022.

A number of new staff joined our growing school at the beginning of this year and we take this opportunity to welcome Brian Hore (Associate Deputy Principal), Erin Chapman (Teacher of Outdoor Education & Physical Education), Michelle Lawrence (Teacher of Visual Art), Will Bosnich (Teacher of Materials Technology), Scott Morrison (Teacher of Mathematics), Anton Bentley (Assistant HoD Performing Arts & Teacher of Drama), Esther Hancock (Teacher in Charge Agriculture/Horticulture), Katie van der Velden (Teacher of Science), Morgan Stuart (Teacher of Te Reo and Science) and Jenna Collett   (Receptionist/Office Team).

We also welcome back Angela Stark (Teacher of Health & Physical Education) and Damian Campbell (Teacher of Mathematics), who were on leave during 2021.

School Roll

Our school roll for 2022 sits around 1500 students. This is slightly lower than pre-COVID averages given the loss of international students, however our domestic student enrolments remain high and we are responding to a significant number of unanticipated new enrolments in the last few weeks leading up to the start of Term. It is fantastic to see our local parent and student community supporting their local College and I am grateful to our mums, dads and caregivers for entrusting us with the care and education of your teen. We will work hard each day to support them to achieve their goals and reach their potential.

School Donations - We really rely on your support

As a Decile 8 school, Waimea College is not eligible for the Government donations scheme funding that other schools can access, so we really rely on support from our community.

Your school donation funds lots of resources and services that Government funding does not extend to, such as technology and equipment, sports programmes and the many costs associated with providing the rich and diverse curriculum experiences that our students enjoy. Thank you so much for supporting our school. We encourage automatic payments as an easier way of affording school expenses and don’t forget both your School Donation and Curriculum Donations qualify for a tax rebate.

NCEA Success

Congratulations to our senior students for their successes in NCEA Qualifications during 2021. It is pleasing to see NCEA Waimea College students achieving very well despite the disruptions and challenges presented again this year by COVID.

Thank you to our students for your efforts and to our parents and hard-working teachers for supporting students to achieve their NCEA goals.

School Values

Throughout 2022 we will be focussing on bringing our school values to life. Caring – Manaakitanga, Belonging - Whanaungatanga and Learning – Akoranga.

It’s unfortunate that COVID restrictions don’t allow us at present to hold school assemblies, house sports and other large events.  However, our staff and student leaders are working hard to maintain school culture through a variety of other ways including online assemblies which we look forward to sharing with you.

Communication

Communicating effectively with our school community is really important to us and all the more so during these times of constant change and uncertainty.

Please continue to check your emails for important information regarding your teen’s schooling and also the regular Newsletters.

You can also check out our school website www.waimea.school.nz or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/waimeacollege and ‘like’ the page to stay up-to-date with news and events.

Please take the time to read through this information on our website (link below) regarding our Emergency Management Plans: https://www.waimea.school.nz/about-us/emergency-information/

An app that we highly recommend having on your phone is the Waimea College App which can be downloaded by scanning the QR Code below or searching “SchoolAppsNZ” in the iOS App Store or Google Play Store. The app contains loads of useful information for parents and students but can also be used to mass broadcast important information during an emergency event.

Wishing you all the best for an awesome 2022.

Semper Contendite - Always Strive

Scott Haines

Principal