Te Kura Tuarua Kōhine Ki Ahuriri
Pānui
Empowering ākonga to achieve success and fulfilment, for themselves, whānau and community
Message from our Tumuaki
Tēnā koutou katoa.
A highlight for our kura to date has to be our performance at Te Huinga Whetū - the national secondary school kapa haka competition. Held in Whakatū/Nelson, our rōpū had an outstanding performance which was the culmination of months of hard work, passionate commitment, and unswerving dedication to bring their best to the national stage. This was a fantastic experience that will live in the memories and the heart. The best of the best! Ka mau te wehi! Ngā mihi to whānau, Arona Maui, Whaea Grace, Matua Piripi, Matua Pōhatu, and all our fabulous supporters.
Having passed the shortest day for 2024, we celebrate the approaching Matariki - Māori New Year. Matariki is a season rich with meaning and tradition. It is a moment of focus to pause and honour the past, acknowledge our loved ones who have passed, and to cherish the memories they have left with us. Matariki is also about looking forward to a New Year with hope and optimism. It is an opportunity for us to set new goals and aspirations, embracing the future with a renewed sense of purpose and unity. The spirit of Matariki encourages us to come together as a community.
In our kura we celebrate Matariki with much reflection, gratitude, and hope. Matariki is a time of reverence and inspiration for us all. Ngā mihi o Matariki, te tau hou Māori!
Congratulations to our PTA on the success of our Affordable Art Exhibition. It was a wonderful weekend involving members of our school community. It was well attended and we look forward to reporting to you the fundraising outcome.
Wishing you all the best for the last week of Term 2. May Matariki bring joy, peace, and happiness to you and your whānau.
Me te aroha nui ki a koutou katoa,
Mrs Dawn Ackroyd
Phone: 06 835 1069 Web: www.nghs.school.nz Main Office email: nghs@nghs.school.nz Principal's PA Email: dmcpherson@nghs.school.nz
Important Dates Coming Up
JUNE
Friday 28: School and Hostel closed - Matariki
Sunday 30: Hostel reopens 3pm - Supervised study on Monday
JULY
Monday 1: School closed (Hostel open) - Distance Learning Day - Senior Parent-Teacher Meetings
Wednesday 3: Music Performance Evening; Attitude Presentations for Years 9-13
Thursday 4: Loves Me Not programme for all Year 13 ākonga; Hui-ā-whānau, 5.30pm
Friday 5: Five Minutes of Fame; End of Term 2
Saturday 6 - Sunday 21: School Holidays
Friday 19 - Sunday 21: NZSS Orienteering Champs
Monday 22: Term 3 starts
Friday 26: Year 10 Future Focus Morning
Friday 26 - Sunday 28: NZSS Swimming Champs, Wellington
Saturday 27: School Ball for Year 12 & 13
Sunday 28: Theatrefest
Wednesday 31: Year 13 Geography trip to Rotorua; Year 13 Media Studies trip
Achievements and Celebrations
Duke of Edinburgh
On Saturday 15 June, several of our Old Girls and one of our kaiako, Mrs Bassett-Foss, were acknowledged at the Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award Ceremony in Wellington. Governor General Dame Cindy Kiro said:
"Two principles underpinning my work as Governor General are kaitiakitanga, our obligation to look after things that are precious, especially in the natural world; and manaakitanga, our obligation to care for others. These principles align with the Duke of Edinburgh's concern for the environment, and also with his view that responsible adults should demonstrate 'a spirit of compassion and tolerance, a sense of humanity and concern for others'. You are amongst the few who manage to attain the gold Award, and you can be proud of such an exceptional achievement. I hope you will also continue to embrace your role as kaitiaki for your communities and our environment, as you go forward into the world".
- The Rt Hon Dame Cindy Kiro, GNZM, QSO
Whakamihi to our award recipients on the following achievements:
Brenna Lansdown
Bronze, Silver and Gold Award
"Earning the bronze, silver, and now gold Duke of Edinburgh Award has been a transformative journey, where resilience, determination, and a commitment to hard work, service, and skill have left an indelible mark on my life. The largest takeaways from this experience are profound: the importance of dedication, the power of empathy, the immeasurable value of global interconnectedness."
Samantha Maxwell
Bronze, Silver and Gold Award
"Completing the Duke of Edinburgh Award has been an amazing experience which has pushed me outside my comfort zone, as well as helping me to develop skills such as resilience, problem-solving, and leadership. I have been able to explore some beautiful parts of New Zealand back country, as well as contribute to my community in a meaningful way."
L - R: Dawn Ackroyd, Phoebe Laugesen, Louise Bassett-Foss, Samantha Maxwell, and Brenna Lansdown at the Gold Award Ceremony in Wellington.
Phoebe Laugesen
Bronze, Silver and Gold Award
"The Award allowed me to have amazing experiences including travelling to Cambodia in 2019. It allowed me to challenge myself and grow as a person. From DoE I have made lifelong friends that I continue to adventure with!"
Louise Bassett-Foss
10 Years Service
"Being an Award Leader for the Duke of Edinburgh's Award has been a profound honour and privilege for me. It's more than just an award - it's about instilling values of respect for the environment, fostering life skills, and creating friendships that extend beyond their usual circles. Being a part of this programme is not just a role - it is a commitment to nurturing tomorrow's leaders."
Great Plate Debate
It was an entertaining evening for the audience at the Rotary Club of Greenmeadows' Great Plate Debate last week. The moot was "This house believes that participation in the Arts contributes to society's well-being to a greater extent than participation in sports."
Our Year 13 debating team was negating and came out fighting. They slam-dunked their way to victory, winning $500 for our kura! Not only that, but Penelope hit it out of the park to be awarded the prize for Best Speaker, winning herself $500 for future tertiary studies. Debating was the winner on the day though - congratulations to both teams for your excellent participation.
Affirmative team - Napier Boys' Negative team - Napier Girls'
1st speaker - Eliot Webber 1st speaker - Taylor-Jade Fill
2nd Speaker - Ben Kingsford 2nd Speaker - Alice Baker
3rd Speaker - Oliver Stubbs 3rd Speaker - Penelope Fowler
Ngā mihi nui to the Rotary Club of Greenmeadows for your organisation and sponsorship of this enjoyable annual event. Thanks also to coach Ms West.
Brain Bee
On Wednesday 26 June, Year 11 students Tayla Baxter, Chloe Evans, and Dakota Edwards participated in the second round of the New Zealand Brain Bee Challenge in Auckland. This competition, held at the University of Auckland’s Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, offered the students a deep dive into brain functions and current neuroscience research.
Selected from an online exam, the trio joined 173 other students for a day of competition and learning. They toured the university's medical library, engaged with scientists, and discussed cutting-edge work at the Centre for Brain Research. This experience not only enhanced their understanding of neuroscience but also provided a glimpse into the exciting world of medical research. They were so close to coming 2nd in the teams challenge, but were pipped at the post in the last two questions - ka mau te wehi!!
Hākinakina - Sports
International Play Day
To celebrate International Play Day this week, our students competed in our first ever inter-year group competition. Each year group compiled a team to build the best hut based on the judging criteria of;
each member of the team needed to fit inside of the hut
creativity
having a story behind their build
This challenge saw fierce competition between the year groups with some original builds, however, in the end the Year 9 team came out on top! Congratulations!
Special thanks to Pia from Sport Hawke's Bay who provided us with our "hut-building materials" and performed the tough job of judging the winning build.
With this inter-year group event being such a success we have hope for these challenges to continue each term giving the other year groups a chance to win or defend the best year group shield.
Cycling
All the best to Anatea Caviale-Delzescaux, who is competing in the NZ cycling champs in Cambridge over the holidays.
Fitness and Conditioning
This is the last week of the four week trial for fitness circuits (Wednesday lunchtime) and CrossFit (Thursday mornings - 7am) in the upstairs gym next week.
Ākonga can email ethornton@nghs.school.nz if they are interested in attending.
Football
Football is well under way on Wednesday nights. Ngā mihi nui to our community of coaches/referees, teachers, and student coaches who have volunteered their time and effort to develop our Napier Girls' football programme:
Shelley Cameron
Olivia Harding (Year 13)
Richard Hutchinson
Shani Thomson
Philipp Otto
Dave Allan
Alisa Schlierike
Ms Rimmer
Malcolm Klose
Sports Exchange vs Palmerston North Girls' High
NGHS teams participated in an exciting day of competition in netball, hockey, football, and basketball. We were successful in all encounters to retain the title and bring the trophy home!
Senior A Netball and our rugby team games are being played at a later date.
Congratulations to the below players who received the Most Valuable Player and Fair Play awards for their representative teams:
Thank you to our staff, coaches, and parents and to Palmerston North Girls’ for travelling to Napier for the day. Ngā mihi nui to photographers Ruby Sidoruk and Belle Anderson.
Mrs MJ Durkin - Head of Sport
Toi Whakaari - Performing Arts
Ad Lucem Big Sing Cadenza success
After their success at the Regional East Coast Big Sing, Ad Lucem has been chosen as one of three Hawke's Bay choirs to move onto the Lower North Island Cadenza, where they will be competing against choirs from Wellington, Wairarapa and Manawatū/Whanganui. This year’s Cadenza is on home turf, and will be held at Toitoi Hawke's Bay Arts and Events Centre on Monday 12th and Tuesday 13th August, which will make it much easier for whānau to come and see the choir in action!
Rockquest Online
Congratulations to TomTom (Tiaki McArdle, Kitty Matthews, Holly Nicholls and Lucy Cooper) who are one of the three bands in the Online Region moving onto national finalist selection!
Music Evening Wednesday 3 July 7pm
Each year after all the regional music events have been held we have our annual music evening. This is a wonderful showcase of some of the performances our students have given over the year. This year our Music Evening will be held on Wednesday 3 July at 7pm. This is a fantastic opportunity to see a variety of different styles of music as the students give a glimpse into their best works from this year so far. Everyone is welcome to attend this concert.
Music at the Affordable Art Exhibition
On Friday night, many of our talented students performed at this fundraiser evening. Beautiful background melodies filled the hall as impending buyers viewed the art. I would like to take the opportunity to thank the PTA for this opportunity to highlight our musicians and to thank the students for their mahi in adding to the ambience of the evening.
Ms Tess Tobin - Head of Performing Arts
Umanga - Careers
Tertiary Open Days
Tertiary Open Days give students and parents the opportunity to explore the campus and experience first-hand what the tertiary environment is like. You are invited to visit special displays and presentations and explore the various facilities students use. We recommend that the students go to the tertiary open days as it is an important part of the decision-making process.
Below are the Tertiary Open Days for 2024:
19 July: Lincoln University
7 August: Massey University - Manawatu Campus
16 August: Massey University - Auckland Campus
23 August: Victoria University
23 August: Massey University - Wellington Campus
24 August: Auckland University
24 August: AUT
30 August: Canterbury University
University Scholarships for Year 13 Students
MoneyHub, a consumer finance website, has published a guide to hundreds of scholarships for any student planning to start university in 2025. The comprehensive list includes scholarships offered by every university as well as those specifically available to local students. A list of privately-funded, Māori, Pacific and International university scholarships completes the list.
Applications close throughout the year, with tens of millions of dollars available. MoneyHub has also published a list of tips for scholarship success.
For more details and to find suitable scholarships, visit the MoneyHub Scholarship page
Mrs Caroline Johnson & Mrs Debra Verhoeven - Careers Advisors
Parent Teacher Association (PTA)
AAE thanks.pdfParent/Teacher Interviews
A reminder that Senior Parent/Teacher Interviews are this coming Monday 1 July. It is also a distance learning day for all students.
10am - 2pm Online interviews
3pm - 6.30pm Face to face interviews at school
Booking via the SchoolBridge platform will go live shortly.
Student Absences
As we head into the winter months and there is a resurgence of COVID-19, here are a few reminders about reporting absences and the implications for students completing NCEA assessments:
When a student is absent, the parent/caregiver is requested to contact the Student Liaison Officer with the reason for absence on that day:
phone (06) 835 4199, text 021 477 550 or email absentee@nghs.school.nz
An easy way to do this is via the Schoolbridge App, pushing Report Absence and then selecting from the options.
If the absence is due to medical reasons and/or COVID-19 please state that clearly.
For students who are missing NCEA assessments or are requesting an extension we do usually ask for a medical certificate to support the application. We appreciate that this is sometimes not possible in which case students need to communicate in the first instance with our Principal’s Nominee Rachel Roberts
For students who are absent due to COVID-19 we would expect this positive result to be logged on your My Health Record and for the absence notification to us to clearly state COVID.
Student health and wellbeing is a priority and if your daughter is symptomatic and unwell please keep her at home.
Planned Absence from School (Leave Request) and NZQA Assessments
If parents know in advance that their daughter is to be absent from school, for example for sporting or cultural participation not organised by the school, or a family event or holiday, an email should be sent to the Student Liaison Officer (absentee@nghs.school.nz) or a Planned Leave Request filled out via the Schoolbridge App. This needs to be applied for at least one week in advance of the absence. This enables the Principal to ensure that the absence will not unduly affect the student’s education.
Each case is dealt with on its individual merits. The request will be deemed as either “approved leave” or "explained" as per Ministry of Education regulations. It is the student's responsibility to liaise with their teachers regarding any missed school work. Please note that a holiday taken during term time is an “explained" absence.
If the student will be missing an assessment due to "explained" leave it is likely to result in a 'not achieved' grade. Please note that "explained" leave is not an acceptable reason to have an extension or a new assessment date for any NZQA assessments.
Uniform Shop Update
Uniform Price Increases
Due to uniform suppliers price increases, as from 5 June 2024 there will be some changes to existing selling prices.
Please click here for the new prices.
Opening Hours
The uniform shop will have updated hours of 12.30pm-4pm for the following dates: Wed 26 June, Wed 3 July, Wed 24 July
Celebrating 140 Years
Phone: 06 835 1069 Web: www.nghs.school.nz Main Office email: nghs@nghs.school.nz Principal's PA Email: dmcpherson@nghs.school.nz
