Principal's Message

Yesterday, at assembly, I spoke about respect as one of our core gospel values. These days we see a lack of respect in so many areas of modern day life – in social media comments and sharing, in basic courtesies on the street or in the ‘it’s all about me’ mantra that we are sold through marketing channels, and in the unhealthy relationships with self and others so often portrayed in music videos and internet sites. I think it is very important to peel away these different contexts for respect and go back to the essence of what Jesus taught us about this. And so, I spoke about the importance for every one of our students to live out respect at Kavanagh by recognising that people do not need to earn respect, but by our very nature as part of God’s creation everyone deserves respect regardless of background, history, strengths or weaknesses, and this means being inclusive of all, respectful language and conversations towards one another and, of course, respectful behaviour in the learning environment. I am pleased to say I have seen plenty of examples of this since I arrived, but there is always room for improvement – for all of us!

Another way to show respect for our community is the way the uniform is worn. Please take note of the uniform policy, particularly in terms of footwear and jewellery. As the end of year comes closer for many, adhering to these expectations can fall by the wayside. Please encourage your young people at home to consider how well they are showing respect in this way.

Many of you may have watched the Polyfest performance last night by our kapahaka group. It was a very moving and polished performance. Thank you to those staff who put so much work and time into preparing these young people for opportunities such as this. Tino pai! We look forward to another great performance tonight from Pasifika Vibes.

Thank you for your attendance at the year 7-10 report conferencing on Tuesday. Communication is very important between home and school. Please be in touch at any time if you have any concerns over your child’s time at school.

We wish our seniors well as they move into their practice exams next week. It is important to note as parents and whanau that, with the current concern over measles and should this become a big issue in our community, these exams may take on more importance in the final results than they usually do. Of course, we also know that it is an important time to thoroughly prepare for success in the upcoming NCEA externals. Success doesn’t happen by accident!

Heavenly Father, the beauty and dignity of human life was the crowning of your creation. Help us to realize the sacredness of human life and to respect it from the moment of conception until the last moment at death. Give us courage to speak with truth and love and with conviction in defence of life. Help us to extend the gentle hand of mercy and forgiveness to those who do not reverence your gift of life. To all, grant pardon for the times we have failed to be grateful for your precious gift of life or to respect it in others. We ask this in Jesus' Name.
Amen.

Have a lovely weekend and thank you again for the warm and welcoming support I have received over the last couple of weeks.