Kia ora e te whānau
The countdown to the end of the school year has well and truly begun with Term Four, one of the busiest terms in a school year. Seniors completed their derived grade exams in week one with the overall feedback being positive about the experience. Seniors will need to maintain their focus to complete any outstanding assessments before they go on study leave.
At the start of the term, we welcomed Mr Joseph Assen from Rotorua Boys' High School as the new Deputy Principal of Pastoral. He has started to settle into the role, and we look forward to seeing him contribute to our school community. We have also appointed Mr Duncan McAllister as the HOD of Construction starting in 2026. He will lead the Building Programme where students will build a two-bedroom portable house that will later be sold.
The report from our ERO review this year is now available and can be viewed on the school website under the Governance tab. Both the School Board and the Senior Leadership Team are pleased with the report and believe that it is a good reflection of where we are currently at. Every ERO visit comes with some future steps which we welcome and help the College to ensure that we are strengthening our current practices and adding to them where needed. I would encourage you to take the time to read the report.
I would also like to point to the item in the newsletter from our School Board Presiding Member. On Wednesday, 14th of October, we received notice that the Limited Statutory Manager intervention that has been in place since April 2023 has now been revoked. I wish to thank Nicola Hornsey, who has been our LSM, for the work she has done. We look forward to the next chapter of St Peter’s College as we have now returned to business as usual.
Given the ongoing negotiations in relation to the Teachers' Collective Agreement, we will keep you informed as we are notified of any additional industrial action. Our hope is that this can be remedied soon to minimise the disruption to student learning and ensure that parents do not have to sort childcare etc.
2026 will mark 50 years of teaching at St Peter’s College for Miss Prue Scorgie. It is rare for a teacher to work fulltime for 50 years, yet Miss Scorgie will have done that in one school, not to mention her previous schools. To mark such a milestone and celebrate her years of service we will be having a dinner and formal event on March 27th with further details to be confirmed. We are calling for a meeting of those interested in being part of the organising committee. The meeting will be held in the Principal's office on Monday, 10th of November at 6:00pm.
In the Church calendar, the month of October is traditionally referred to as the Month of the Rosary. Given that our country is also dedicated to Mary Assumed into Heaven, it is worth spending some time to consider, even briefly, the role that Mary has played in salvation. When we look at the mysteries of the Rosary, as well as the words of the prayers that we recite when praying the Rosary, they all point to Jesus and Salvation. Let us be thankful for the gift of Jesus and His mother, Mary.
Finally, I wish to acknowledge the passing of Rt Hon James (Jim) Bolger. Whether we agree with his politics or not, the man served as our Prime Minister from 1990 to 1997 during a period where Catholic Education began to gain additional state support. Jim himself, being a Catholic and a firm supporter of Catholic Education, ensured that we started to get a fair slice of the cake. We ask the Good Lord to grant him eternal rest and merciful judgement.
Charity fulfills the Law