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Kia ora e te whanau
As Week 3 draws to a close, we have again been disrupted by industrial action. Please note that we do have some non-union member teachers who are at school on strike days working and available to supervise small numbers of students if required. Please just contact the office or our deputy principal of teaching and learning, Bridget Ryan to make arrangements. Next week Year 9 students stay home on Tuesday the 16th of May and Year 10 students stay home Wednesday the 17th of May. Whilst industrial action has impacted the time our students have physically been at school, it has been pleasing to see that over the last three weeks attendance rates have remained relatively high with students engaging positively in their learning and making the most of their opportunities. It was equally pleasing to see our Year 13 students attend the Otago tertiary day in Dunedin on Monday and it is exciting to see our senior leaders start to plan for their futures. Over the coming weeks there are many events and activities planned across the college with Bully Free Week next week (there is a free pink mufti day on Friday the 19th of May to raise awareness), production and Eisteddfod practices followed by healthy attitude day and Duke of Edinburgh tramps coming up. On top of this, for our parent community there are the student led conferences for years 7 and 8 students, with whanau conferences for year 9 to 13 students the following week. These conferences are beginning earlier in the day to accommodate the industrial action of teachers not being able to meet after 4.30pm this term. Next Friday night there is also our big annual rugby fundraiser with a quiz night at the Town and Country club. Winter sporting codes are well underway and it’s great to see so many students participating and representing the college with pride, whether it be for top level competitive grades or just for fun and participation. I am looking forward to getting to as many games as possible this season and joining in with the positive side line support for our students as they strive for their personal excellence. As always, the challenge for our young people is to find the balance between their academic endeavours, family responsibilities, co-curricular activities, and their social lives. This is always easier said than done, so for those young people who are finding it challenging to manage expectations and commitments, we encourage them to seek support from their Whanau teacher, dean, guidance counsellor or members of our senior leadership team. We want our young people to make the most of every opportunity but learn how to prioritise whilst managing expectations and their personal wellbeing, and this is a skill that they need support in developing. This week we welcomed our Limited Statutory Manager for the school board to our school, Ms Nicola Hornsey, who is an environmental and employment lawyer from Timaru. Nicola has met with our staff and the school board this week. She will be back next week to meet more of our school community including our student leaders and will then seek input from the wider school community, including the Diocese. The Board requested the assistance of a limited statutory manager to support us in their role as governors of a Catholic College and regard it as an important investment in the school. Please be assured that this does not affect the day-to-day management of the school and we continue to ensure that our students receive the best possible education. Our dedicated staff work tirelessly to create a safe and inclusive learning environment where students can thrive. We continue to focus on providing a well-rounded education that prepares students for success in all areas of life. Last, but certainly not least, I would like to take this opportunity to wish all our mothers, grandmothers and other significant female figures in the lives of our young women, a Happy Mother’s Day for Sunday. It is important to acknowledge and celebrate that it is the parents who are the first teachers of their children and that parents will continue to teach and guide their children long after they have left our school grounds. So, to our parent community, thank you. Thank you for being the base and an integral part of our community. Thank you for supporting the staff at St Peter’s College who work with and alongside your children to ensure that they develop the skills and attributes to be equipped and empowered to pursue their personal excellence, so that they will be prepared to challenge and shape the future, whilst being a young people of Christ who act justly, love tenderly and walks humbly with our God. A Prayer for Mothers All loving God, we give you thanks and praise for mothers young and old. We pray for young mothers, who give life and count toes and tend to our every need; May they be blessed with patience and tenderness to care for their families and themselves with great joy. We pray for our own mothers who have nurtured and cared for us; May they continue to guide us in strong and gentle ways. We remember mothers who are separated from their children because of war, poverty, or conflict; May they feel the loving embrace of our God who wipes every tear away. We pray for women who are not mothers but still love and shape us with motherly care and compassion. We remember mothers, grandmothers, and great-grandmothers who are no longer with us but who live forever in our memory and nourish us with their love. Amen. Charity Fulfils the Law Tara Quinney, Principal
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