From the Principal 12 August 2022

He rā ki tua.

Look positively toward the future,

Better times are coming.

Renewing an Old Tradition

Tradition is the transmission of customs or beliefs from generation to generation and it was a privilege to again reengage in the tradition of the Otaki Scholar during the recent school holidays and during Week 2 of this term. The tradition of the Otaki Scholar coming to New Zealand from Robert Gordon's College dates back to 1937 and has only been interrupted during WWII (1939-45) and, more recently, through the COVID Pandemic (2020-2021). You can find out more about the history behind the tradition on our website.

We hosted the 77th and 78th Otaki Scholars, but unfortunately we could not host the current Scholar due to issues around passports. Ōtaki College is the first College to formally welcome the Scholars into New Zealand before they journey around secondary schools in the North and South Islands and this link to Robert Gordon's College through the Scholar tradition has allowed us to build our own Scholar tradition. This commenced in 2013 with the Sander Scholarship, which was implemented with the support of Shelley Macrae and Sander Ties. More recently, the award has been renamed as the Everiss Scholar. In 2023 Krisha Modi, our first ever Everiss Scholar, will travel alongside this year's Everiss Scholar to spend time in London before moving onto Scotland where they will visit Robert Gordon's College in Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Bannockburn High School in Stirling and then do a full tour of the Scottish Highlands. Having this tradition and link through the Otaki Scholar allows us to reward students for their efforts in all aspects of College life.

During their time here the Otaki Scholars have been hosted by the Georgetti whānau and Penny Gaylor and have participated in a number of activities. These included a trip to Kāpiti Island hosted by Kāpiti Island Nature Tours. Our sincere thanks goes out to the Barrett family for their continued support and sponsorship of the event.

The Scholars have also spent time at Government House with the Governor General, had a trip to Parliament where they were hosted by the Department of Internal Affairs, taken part in a commemorative service at the Pukeahu National War Memorial Park, had morning tea with the British High Commissioner and have also taken part in many local activities, including a visit to the American Marines War Memorial, a rongoā Māori walk (traditional Māori medicine) at Haruatai and have spent time at Ōtaki College with our students.

Sincere thanks to all the people involved in the hosting and organisation of events and to the Ōtaki College Heads of School Team who took part in a number of these events.

Congratulations

Like many of you, we have spent a lot of time following New Zealand athletics at the recent Commonwealth Games. In particular it was fantastic to have a strong connection with a former student, Keeley O'Hagan, representing New Zealand in the High Jump. This was the first major Senior event that Keeley has participated in. She had a brilliant finish, coming 6th in the Women's High Jump with a Personal Best of 1.89 meters. Keeley has certainly risen to the occasion and Ōtaki and Ōtaki College are incredibly proud of her achievements. She is living proof of the fact that if you continually strive to raise the bar and set higher goals for yourself they can be achieved.

Congratulations also, to Seuga Frost, who teaches at Ōtaki College. Seuga has played a major role in supporting her son, Kokoro Frost, who represented Samoa in swimming at the Commonwealth Games. At age 19 Kokoro has represented his country well and looks forward to a big future.

Sad Passing of Avatar Loorparg

I wish to acknowledge the sad passing of Avatar Loorparg, who has worked at Ōtaki College for over 13 years. Avatar is a teacher who has had a long and illustrious career. She has been recognised for her expertise in English, working for a number of years in schools across the Wellington region. In more recent times she will be remembered by our students as a teacher who always cared about her students and endeavoured to get the very best out of them in regard to their results. Avatar was also very well liked by her colleagues and was at the centre of organising social events. She will be missed immensely by family, colleagues and students. Moe mai, moe mai, moe ma ra, Avatar.