From the Principal’s Desk
Nga mihi nui kia koutou katoa. Welcome to the Westland High School newsletter for September 2022.
Tēnā koutou katoa, warm greetings to you all
In week seven of this term senior students participated in their derived grade examinations, these were very important opportunities for students to demonstrate what they have learnt to date, the opportunity to practice examinations in a formal setting and importantly the marks gained from these examinations can be used to support the end of year NCEA derived grades should a student be unable to sit or attend due to events outside their control.
A small number of students were unfortunately unable to attend the examinations and arrangements have been made for some catchup examinations.
NCEA examinations commence Monday 7th November for external examinations, students' last day will be the Thursday prior to examinations, however, some students who have not yet completed their last internal standards will be required to stay at school until these have been completed. Examination release is for the specific purposes of studying at home, students are welcome to come into school and seek support from their teachers and are encouraged to do so. A letter to parents will be sent home in the next few weeks with further details.
Basically there are five weeks left of school until examinations commence, use this time wisely.
Fiona Lauder our School guidance counsellor is available to talk with students during normal school hours. To make an appointment to talk with Fiona email her at fionalauder@westlandhigh.school.nz, Fiona will get back to you with a time to talk. All conversations with Fiona are held in the strictest confidence.
Our triennial Board elections concluded on Monday and a new Board have officially taken office. We congratulate everyone elected and look forward to working with you over the next 3 years shaping the direction that Westland High School will take. The below are our newly elected Parent Trustees
- Kate Fleming 93
- Abbie Provis 83
- Dave Ritchie 61
- Monica Hulme 52
- Liam Anderson 51
Staff Trustee
- Kylie O’Dowd 22
The Parent Trustees and Staff Trustee are joined by our current Student Trustee, Cassidy Bradley and our Runanga Trustees, Miriama Johnsen - Ngati Waewae and Rachael Forsyth - Kati Mahaki Makaawhio.
We thank the other candidates, Siobhan O’Malley, Emma Thomas and Katrina Simpson for being willing to put their names forward and help within the school. We hope to see you in other capacities around the school, when the opportunity arises.
We say thank you and farewell to past Board members Latham Martin, Jane Wellard, Bryan Matthews and Tim Shawcross. They have put in countless hours and energy into the school during a time of great change and at times the role has been challenging. We are thankful for your immense contribution and wish you all the very best in your next endeavours.
It is with sadness that we say farewell to Dr Tim Shawcross at the end of this year. Tim has accepted a position with Wakatipu High School and while we will miss his many and varied talents here, we wish him all the best on his new venture.
The School Ball is taking place on the last Friday of this term, next week the Senior leadership team and I will be talking with a small group of senior students who have not met the attendance expectations for ball attendance if not already, whilst this is unfortunate for the students concerned we take attendance seriously, and students who have chosen not to attend school at 95% minimum will not be able to attend.
On a positive note the vast majority of students who have regular attendance reap the benefits of not only being eligible to attend the ball, but the positive effects of improved progress and achievement with their learning.
The Ball committee have been working hard behind the scenes to organise, produce, plan, and prepare for the Ball. The venue is the new Westland High School Hall and ticket sales availability will be advised soon.
A reminder to students who intend to bring a partner who does not attend Westland High School, you will need to collect a partners form, complete it and then have it returned to the school for vetting. We also appreciate the support of the NZ Police and Hokitika Security.
Ngā mihi nui
Iain Murray
Principal