Springtime heralds a time of change and growth, and we were happy to welcome four new teaching staff this term: Sahil Swamy and Anu Punj (Science), Frances Paywal (Year 7&8), and Navdeep Kaur are welcome additions to our college whānau.
It has been a very busy term in areas of co-curricular achievement, with our superb Senior Debating Team placing in the top four of all Auckland schools (over 100 teams), Shaylee Fonua and Ruiqi Jiang representing Sancta Maria College in the Year 9&10 Eastern Schools Zone Speech Competition in which Ruiqi came away as the winner, and Kish Bassi receiving Highly Commended for the Most Entertaining Presentation in the Year 7&8 Eastern Schools Zone Speech Competition.
Congratulations, too, to Mr Gibbs and the wider Music Department who ensured our students achieved outstanding results in the Auckland Jazz and Blues High School competition, the annual KBB Festival, and also Stand Up, Stand Out. Click the following link for more detail Music Matters | Sancta Maria College News
Our winter sports programme is drawing to a close this term – a sincere thank you to all parents who have coached, managed and supported our young people in order to provide sporting opportunities which are so useful for their personal development.
Alongside all of the busyness of co-curricular activities, Sancta Maria College also ensures that there is a consistent focus on academic achievement which is so important in broadening the life opportunities of our young people. To this end, we have been engaging with external providers to talk to our akonga about study skills. These tips and strategies will be useful as we approach a critical period of assessment.
We have also spoken to all of our senior students about maintaining a healthy balance of study and downtime. This period of assessment can prove to be a time of stress and anxiety. Please remember to keep an eye on your children and support them to sustain their wellbeing.
Thank you to all whānau who attended our Talanoa Evening, where the guest speaker, author David Riley, spoke about the importance of building a culture of reading in the home. There was rich talanoa from both parents and students to inform our forward planning in this important area of school life.
Finally, we are immensely proud of our senior students Kathrina Bacay, Hannah Ernstzen, Jermaine Daclan, Abigail Martis, Ethan Karl and Hyebeen Park who each received a Caring Award at the annual Caring Foundation Mass held at Christ the King, Owairaka. The Caring Awards are an opportunity for our students to open their hearts and minds to the most vulnerable in society, and are indicative of the strong health of the Special Catholic Character in our wonderful school.
Ray Green,
Acting Tumuaki/Principal.
