Kia ora e te whānau

There was a real buzz in the gym yesterday morning as we celebrated our Easter Liturgy together. Great singing, great participation, and a true sense of joy and coming back together as one community, celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is less common to have the Easter break within the school term, and I know many will have appreciated the chance to have a quieter few days together as family and in gratitude for all that we have been given.

There is still plenty to complete within the coming week. Many of our senior students are in the midst of NCEA assessments. Although it may feel early in the year, and students assume there is plenty of time to make up for poor study habits or engagement with this first batch of assessments, it is timely to remember that, for seniors, we are actually nearly one third of the way through the year. Catching up later on may not be a reality. Please continue to support your young ones at home with quiet study spaces, time, and an expectation that the mahi is important.

Attendance is becoming a hot topic again in the media with new government announcements about plans and policies to raise attendance levels. A few years ago, I read a report from various NZ research, that a significant predictor of NCEA Level 2 success (and of course we know that Level 2 is the gateway to further tertiary and career plans) is Year 8 attendance rates. Yes, it does seem early in school life to have that correlation, but it is not a surprise. The study habits and expectations set by home at this particularly influential stage of a child’s life, will pay dividends later in their schooling. Attendance and achievement are inextricably linked. We continue to see patterns of this in our NCEA success when we link it to our attendance data. Last year was particularly telling. Please support your children by keeping learning and attendance expectations high. As always, if there are more complex issues going on for your child, speak with the dean and we can work on this together.

All the best to our Shakespeare groups who perform in the Sheilah Winn Shakespeare Festival today. We have approximately 30 students taking part in a number of groups. After a strong presence at nationals in previous years, we look forward to seeing how they do today.

Thank you in advance to those staff and friends of the college who are coaching and managing teams for the annual Catholic Quad Sports Tournament on Sunday and Monday to be held in Gore, hosted this year by St Peter’s College. This is a wonderful chance to connect with the other Catholic Colleges in the Dunedin Diocese as well as setting the scene for the upcoming winter sports season. I look forward to watching some great performances and experiencing the warmth of our shared kaupapa.

Creator God, Loving Father, May the love you revealed to us shape our giving. May the truth in your word guide our journeys, and may the joy of your kingdom fill our homes. We ask this through Christ our Lord, Amen