Wellington East Girls' College / Te Kura Kōhine o te Rāwhiti o Te Upoko o Te Ika
Welink
Issue 2, Paenga-whāwhā / April 2024
Welink is a newsletter produced as a link between Wellington East Girls' College and our community, and is emailed to parents and students. It contains essential information as well as news for caregivers. It is also on our website – www.wegc.school.nz. Please advise the school if you have changed your contact details, or would like to add an email address: wegc@wegc.school.nz
Principal's Message
Tēnā koutou kātoa
As we come to the end of a busy term I wish to thank everyone for their contribution in continuing to make our school a vibrant community.
The Learning Conferences earlier in the term were a great opportunity to see our students showcasing their academic progress and personal achievements to their whānau. Thank you to all the parents and whānau who have engaged in the Learning Conferences, it is a great opportunity to reinforce connections between home and school as you partner with your child in their learning journey.
We had many student athletes representing WEGC during Summer Tournament Week. Their dedication, teamwork and sportsmanship were on full display, earning them significant achievements across various codes. Thank you to all of the staff and whānau who have collectively supported and encouraged the students to stay dedicated and keep training.
Over the holiday break we have a group of Yr 11-13 students embarking on our first overseas trip to China since the pandemic. This trip offers the students a unique opportunity to develop their language learning skills whilst experiencing the rich cultural heritage of China. We wish the staff and students a safe and exciting experience and look forward to seeing and hearing about their adventures on their return.
I hope that everyone has some time to rest and recharge in the upcoming holidays, and we look forward to seeing you all in Term 2
Ngā mihi nui
Gael Ashworth
Principal
Board of Trustees
Kia ora kōutou,
I hope everyone had an enjoyable Easter!
As we head towards the end of Term One , I want to thank parents and whānau for their
continued support in getting their students to school, and without their cellphones!
Encouraging attendance, participation and progress is an important contributor to the
positive culture for learning (PC4L) being implemented across the school.
I hope that as part of the recent learning conferences, our parents and whānau were able to
get good insight into their student's learning goals for the year. Likewise, I hope that our
students and learners were able to confidently describe and discuss their learning goals with
you. Learning goals are continuous, so I encourage you to keep having those conversations
at home!
The board’s focus this month is on approving the annual accounts, planning and reporting,
as well as our normal oversight of progress on goals, health & safety, finance, staff
movements, and feedback from our Te Whānau Tūtahi, Pasifika parents group, students,
staff, and Parents' Association representatives. Board meetings are open to the public,
apart from time to discuss sensitive staff, student or commercial issues, and we welcome
any questions or feedback at board.trustees@wegc.school.nz.
Ngā mihi
Fleur Howard, Presiding Member
board.trustees@wegc.school.nz
Please see the Student Calendar below for student events coming up
This info is also on the front page of our website www.wegc.school.nz
Coming up :
12 April - Last Day of Term 1 (Term 2 begins 29 April)
13-14 April - Basketball 3x3 NZSS
13-16 April - Waterpolo, NZSS Championships
20-21 April - Senior A Netball Tournament in Wairarapa
15-26 April - School Holidays
23-24 April - Pre Season Hockey Tournament in Wairarapa
25 April - ANZAC DAY (Rāwhiti performing at Cenotaph Bowen St)
29 April - First Day of Term 2
6 May - Pasifika Parents Group (WEGC Cafe) 6pm
7 May - Junior Parent Teacher interviews (pm)
7 May - WEGC Board Meeting
10 May - WEGC Annual Food Fair pm
Term Dates 2024
Term 1 - 1/2 February to 12 April
Term 2 - 29 April to 5 July
Term 3 - 22 July to 27 September
Term 4 - 14 October to 13 December
See our website for more information - link is here
School Day
Starts at 8.45am (Monday 9.00am)
Interval at 10.00am (Mon and Friday)
Interval at 10.20am (Tues, Wed, Thurs)
Lunch at 1.15pm - 2.05pm (Friday 12:20pm-1.05pm)
End at 3.20pm (Friday 2.30pm)
School Office
School phone number: 04 385 8514
School email address : wegc@wegc.school.nz
School website : www.wegc.school.nz
Kia ora whānau,
We'd like to warmly invite you to attend the Wellington East Parents Association (WEPA) meeting on Wednesday 15 May at 6pm-7pm in the staffroom, all welcome. Note there is no meeting in April.
If you're thinking about getting involved or want to find out more about what WEPA does this is a great introductory meeting to attend, and you get to see a WEPA meeting in action - no strings attached.
By joining WEPA you get to meet other parents, help manage funds from parent donations and fundraising, and make decisions about distributing those funds to support students' extra curricular activities and keep up to date on upcoming school activities .
If you have any questions you can email us on parents@wegc.school.nz
Ngā mihi,
WEGC Parents Association Wellington East Girls' College
Te Kura Kōhine o te Rāwhiti o Te Upoko o Te Ika
Hello, Kia Ora, Nǐ hǎo, Talofa, Bonjour, Hēlō,
We are excited to announce the annual Wellington East Girls’ College Food Fair. The Food Fair will take place on Friday 10th May from 5-8pm in our school hall and bottom floor of Matairangi.
The annual Food Fair is one of the largest fundraising events for the school and we would greatly appreciate your attendance in support of this event. All proceeds from the Food Fair will go towards grants to students, promoting cultural activities, and supporting any future endeavours for the college.
This is also a wonderful opportunity to promote your business, or the business of a friend, to share your cultures' cuisine, or simply to make delicious food. If you, your student, or your business are interested in holding a stall this year, please fill out this form: Run a Food Fair stall
If running a stall is not for you there are many ways you can support WEGC’s Food fair
Donating items to your young person’s Year Level Stall. These donations will be collected the week of the food fair.
Year 9 - Tombola
Year 10 - Tombola
Year 11 - Baking
Year 12 - Sausage sizzle - white bread, mustard, tomato sauce and bags of sausages
Year 13 - Baking
Donate items for raffle on the night - these can be business sponsored items.
So come along to Wellington East College Food Fair for a good night enjoying some yummy food and talented performances put on by our East community.
Lucia Hay and Danni Tamaiva
(School Council Prefects)
International Womens Day 2024
This year our prefects, Lelani and Semhar, along with the principal, Gael Ashworth, attended the Inspire Inclusion IWD Breakfast held at the Grand Hall at Parliament on 8 March. The speakers (who were also livestreamed) were all inspiring women : The Hon Louise Upson, Dame Miranda Harcourt, Dame Farah Palmer and Chloe and Florence Van Dyke. They all discussed inspiration and inclusion, how that affected and related to them, and to all women. This was a great opportunity for our students to meet other student leaders from local schools.
WEGC Environmental Committee work
Over the last year, the WEGC Environmental Committee has been working with the Wellington City Council and the Matairangi Trail Builders to increase the number of students cycling and walking to school. To achieve this, we have improved accessibility to WEGC by beginning to restore a link track that connects the school to the main Mt Vic commuter trails, enabling students to sustainably commute from the eastern suburbs. As part of our track restoration project, we are currently organising a tree planting event, where 500 native plants will be planted in the Matairangi area.
We have also received funds to implement a new relocatable bike parking shelter, which means students and staff now have a secure and sheltered place to store their bicycles. These initiatives will make commuting to school via active transport much easier for students and staff, and will hopefully encourage more students/staff to bike and walk to school!
Ākonga Tuawhenua/International Students
Term one has been super busy with a group of 13 Japanese students studying with us for the past 10 weeks. We thank the staff, the students and their fantastic homestay hosts in providing an amazing experience for these young people.
Are you a Host Family ?
We are ALWAYS looking for new host families - to host either short (two weeks/one term) to longer term (school year). Please email Athena London, our Homestay Coordinator and she can provide information and any answer questions you may have. The hosting fee this year is $340 per week, for own comfy room, three meals a day and some kind hospitality.
We have a specific need for a host family who lives near to the Kilbirnie Aquatic Centre. There is an accomplished swimmer joining our school in June and we are needing a home near to the pool. Her family are happy to pay the host additional funds for occasional transport either to or from the pool when needed, however, if located in walking distance this would be ideal. There is another local family who are also happy to transport the student if you are unable to do this but are able to host her.
Imari and Miina (International students) said goodbye to their class before heading back to Japan.
Year 11 student (R) Noei Ketpichai and International student Amy Kuniyasu Green (L) presenting their work in Hospitality class exam. Their item was Triple Chocolate Cupcakes. Students were required to utilise their recently acquired theoretical food safety and handling knowledge in a range of practical contexts.
Library News
The library ran a Read-to-Eat competition this term, to encourage Year 9s to get to know the library and read more books. Students filled in bookmarks with brief comments about the book they had read. It was great for us to see students reading more, and nice to have feedback and conversations about the books they were enjoying. 9AMS (Mrs Misa's class) read the most books (90 books) and will be treated to a shared lunch at the end of term, and two lucky students received canteen vouchers. Congratulations!
Pamela McKirdy,
Librarian
Duke of Edinburgh 's Hillary Award - News
“Equipping rangatahi for promising futures by challenging them”
That’s the aim stated on the front page of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award website and there have been plenty of positive challenges for the start of 2024, both for participants and those involved in delivering DOE opportunities at WEGC.
In the past 8 weeks we have achieved two Bronze training days, five overnight tramps and two multi-night tramps. 104 students and 25+ adults have participated, trained, guided and provided transport to and from track starts. Wow - that’s something to be proud of and a huge thanks goes out to all those that have helped out and supported the Award so far this year!
Lots of skills have been learned and practiced, such as making camp, map reading, river safety and of course the all important marshmallow toasting! Here are a few photos from (only) some of the training days and tramps…
Borrowed Gear:
It is super cool to have plenty of gear to lend out to those keen to try the outdoors and having good kit available makes our programme inclusive. However, not looking after it and especially not returning it, makes it really hard for both myself as the keeper of the gear, and others needing to borrow things. PLEASE - if you have school DOE gear, bring it back to school asap!! You can leave it in the PE office or at reception - no questions asked!
Spirit of Adventure :
Five day Discovery voyage 10-15 September - are you keen? WEGC has won a ballot for a team of 10 students and one teacher to participate on this voyage. It involves 5 nights on board and activities include ship-handling, teamwork, problem-solving, debating, and water sports (in and on the water). Students go ashore and complete tasks and enjoy competitive games that involve ingenuity, leadership and fun. As a team the students will enjoy a learning experience like no other that guarantees challenge, adventure, creativity and reward. Students need to be aged between 14-16 and the cost of the voyage is $1250 per student. Once we have confirmed our team for this voyage we can embark on some fundraising.
If your student is keen please get in touch with Deb Remacha as soon as possible (Deb.Remacha@wegc.school.nz)
DOE Awards achieved so far this year :
Congratulations to :
Bronze: Priya Hunt; Amelia Turner; Lulu Soulis
Silver: Mizuha Ito; Rebecca Wash; Sylvie Hardy-Boys
Gold: Maya Gallagher (WEGC alumni)
Nga mihi nui
Deb Remacha
Senior Award Leader
Duke of Edinburgh’s Award
WEGC students Community Art Work
Some of our students have been working on an art project with the Wellington City Council creating a mural for Berhampore. Here are some photos during the work in progress. They teamed up with artists Ruth Robertson Taylor and Tracy Underwood to bring the mural to life as part of the area WCC upgrades.
The students, Nardos Tafery, Sacha Turvey, Samantha McCallum, Maryam Adam, Katherine Peters and Soph Riches were onsite helping the artists create the artwork recently.
“It’s nice doing something outside of school and painting to help the community, to make change in some way – it’s a cool experience,” says Maryam.
Aivale Cole visit & workshop
We were fortunate to have international Opera singer, Aivale Cole, visit on Thursday 11 April to lead a workshop for our students. Aivale is a past student of East and now lives in London. She is currently doing a concert tour around NZ called "To Aotearoa With Love", after returning to opera singing after having her children. She won the Lexus Song Quest competition in 2009, sang on the soundtrack of ‘The Lord of the Rings – The Fellowship of the Rings’, The Bridge of Khazad Dum, she has sung in full operas in New Zealand and Australia, was nominated for a Helpmann Award for Best Performance in a Classical Concert with her performance of Madama Butterfly at Opera in the Park in 2008. She also attended the funeral of HRH Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey representing New Zealand Art and Culture.
She talked with the students about opera singing, music, how she balances singing and family time, her travels and her return to New Zealand, and touring. She also sang a short concert just for the students.
Her Wellington concert is tonight, Friday 12 April, at St Andrews on the Terrace at 7.30pm.
You can check out her website for more details: http://aivalecole.com/
Invitation to Rāwhiti Choir performances
Over the holiday break, our Rāwhiti choir have two performances and you are welcome to come and watch :
The Armed Man with the Orpheus Choir and Wellington Brass Band at Michael Fowler Centre on Saturday 20 April. Tickets from Ticketmaster
The ANZAC wreath laying service at 9.00am on Thursday 25 April at the cenotaph at the corner of Bowen Street and Lambton Quay.
Geography Trip to Island Bay
On Tuesday 9 April both Year 11 Geography classes went on a field trip to Island Bay beach. The students were collecting data on coastal erosion to help them with their first NCEA assessment. We had beautiful weather, collected a varied range of data, and finished the day with Dr Victor at the Taputeranga Marine Reserve, where students got to hold starfish and snake stars. A great day of learing was had by all!
A message from Metlink : Fares are changing for under 25yrs, from 1 May
Kia Ora
We would like to inform you that the government has made the decision to withdraw the government funding for the age-based concessions that have been in place since 1 September 2023. As a result, fares for children aged 5-12 and young adults under 25 years old will automatically return to the standard price fares from 1 May 2024. The current age-based concessions are funded by the government.
What’s Changing for Students From 1 May?
Under 13 Free Pass (5-12 years) - Free travel ends, and 50% off adult fare applies on all Metlink services.
Child Fare (13-18 years or still in secondary school) - 75% discount off adult fare ends, and 50% off adult fare applies on all Metlink services for children aged between 13 to 16 years old (or older if still at secondary school). Children over 16 who are no longer in secondary school will no longer qualify for this concession and will need to buy a Red Snapper card, and the full adult fare will apply unless they are eligible for another concession.
Te Hunga Whaikaha Total Mobility - Free travel ends for 5–12-year-olds and 75% discount ends for 13- 18-year-olds. 50% off adult fare now applies for these groups through the Accessible concession. Children must tag on and off using their Te Hunga Whaikaha Total Mobility card ONLY to travel on the Accessible Concession. The Green Snapper Card will no longer be required for travel, removing the hassle of carrying two cards.
To be eligible for concessions, a student must use a valid Red or Green Snapper card with the appropriate concession loaded.
On ferry, the concessions are available on a child ticket and can be paid for with cash or EFTPOS.
Children are still required to tag on and tag off the bus or trains using their Snapper card, to avoid being charged default fares.
*Some exclusions apply (including Metlink on demand services and Te Hunga Whaikaha Total Mobility taxis) and concession discounts are based on the full adult fare with applicable discount during off-peak hours.
We strongly encourage all students (including Te Hunga Whaikaha Total Mobility card holders) to top up their Snapper cards to ensure they have enough credit.
For more information, visit metlink.org.nz/fares or contact them on 0800 801 700.
Order your lunch online at the school cafe
The school café has recently started an online ordering account with Lunch Online https://www.lunchonline.co.nz/ They are a company who collate and organise distribution of food orders, using providers Subway and Pita Pit. The school has a menu that you can read here.
Students and caregivers can open an account and order lunches to be collected at the Café during school lunch hour. Lunch online are offering a voucher for $5 credit for new accounts - you can do this by contacting info@lunchonline.co.nz and use the voucher code of NEWENTRANT2024
Sports at East
You can find information on all sports offered at East, as well as our latest achievements on our school website. www.wegc.school.nz or on the WEGC Sports site here
You can also check out Instagram and Facebook pages for WEGC Sport at @wegcsport www.facebook.com/wegcsport
2024 Payment of School Fees/Donations
You can view and pay your school account from the Kamar portal: https://wegc.school.kiwi/
Direct credit payments can be made using the following details:
WEGC Bank Account Details:
ASB Bank
12-3140-0365902-00
Reference: Please use student ID (on invoice)
Particulars: payment details (example: ID Card, GE200 Trip)
Payment in person @ School:
Payments are accepted at reception from 8:15 am until 3.30 pm Monday to Friday. The school is closed during public holidays and school term breaks. Payments by cash or EFTPOS are available.
Entertainment Book Fundraiser
We are fundraising with Entertainment and right now you can bag a free membership upgrade when you purchase a membership in support of our cause. The Entertainment App is jam-packed with offers on cafes, restaurants, attractions and things to do with the average family saving upwards of $1000 a year. But the best part is that 20% of your Membership fee will be donated to us to directly support our fundraising for our school. Win, Win!
Experience unbeatable value across New Zealand and Australia with this epic offer. A Multi City Membership gives you access to thousands of exclusive offers in 20 cities and right now you can unlock access for as little as $69.99! Purchase a 12 or 24 month Single City Membership by Wednesday 1 May and your new Membership purchase will be automatically upgraded to a Multi City Membership for free.
Get ready to play, dine and save with a Membership to the Entertainment App and support our fundraiser today!
Thank you for your continued support
Ways to help WEGC - Fundraising :
Welink Newsletter : Wellington East Girls' College, Austin Street, Mt Victoria 6011, Ph 385 8514, www.wegc.school.nz
