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Dear Parents and Caregivers
There was a carnival atmosphere on the front fields of St Andrew’s College today as the Secondary School Athletic Sports Day attracted enthusiastic participation from students and competition between Houses. Resplendent in House colours, the novelty races were a way for all to get involved. Our more competitive athletes did not disappoint with some wonderful displays of speed, perseverance, strength, skill and technique. Congratulations and thank you to the House Leaders who have been building up the House spirit in recent weeks.
Athletic Sports is one of our traditional days and today did not disappoint either in the weather, school spirit or participation. Well done to all involved. The pipe band display was a fitting end to a fantastic day. Old Collegian Keith Wardell (OC 1949) and his wife Patsy called into the College this afternoon to enjoy a look at the Athletic Sports Day. Patsy enjoyed a Mr Whippy ice cream to celebrate her 85th birthday!
Thursday morning was an early start for our Year 10 ākonga, Te Waka teachers and Year 10 tutors who travelled to Sumner to enjoy the sunrise over the beach as part of ‘The Calling’ ceremony. Congratulations to students who were respectful of and seemed to enjoy the occasion and the early start, and well done to the Teacher in Charge of Te Waka, Kate Taylor, who organised this special event.
This week it was exciting to hear of the Year 10 cricket team’s success in winning the Canterbury final of the NZCT Cup. This places St Andrew’s as one of the top six Year 10 cricket teams in New Zealand and the team will play in the National finals in Palmerston North during tournament week. Congratulations to coach Reece Lloyd and Head of Cricket Mike Johnston on this impressive performance.
Gough Family Theatre / Performing Arts Centre
We have recently been informed that the finished date for this new facility has been delayed to Friday 20 October. This has meant the Term 4 performances (Middle School production and Ballet production) will be held in Gym 1. The first official use of the new facility will be in 2024. While we are disappointed by this, we realise that some delays are inevitable, and we continue to look forward with real excitement to the completion of this new space.
Year 8 Parent Evening
Thank you to parents who attended our St Andrew’s College Year 8 parent evening in Strowan House on Wednesday evening. With Open Day next week, and the enrolment round in full swing, it was a good chance for our Year 8 parents to meet some of the Secondary School staff and hear more about some of the programmes on offer.
It is another busy weekend for many with multiple sports competitions and Senior Production camp.
Best wishes to all.
Ngā mihi nui.
Christine Leighton
Rector
After a postponement of the House Athletics Sports from last Friday to today, the decision made was a good one with the day being a perfect day for the athletics. The day started with House chants, some of the best chants staff had seen, which got the day off to a great start. Competition was fierce and the House spirit was superb – plenty of cheering and supporting of the athletes. By the end of the day everyone had showed what House culture is all about. Congratulations to Rutherford House for winning the House Cup.
RESULTS >This year’s House Swimming Sports was held on Monday, and it was wonderful to see the House Spirit alive and well at this traditional St Andrew’s College event. There were some close races and the Houses all got in behind their teammates, not to mention the Heads of College race. The Champion House for 2023 was Rutherford.
RESULTS >Year 10 students participated in 'The Calling' ceremony at Rapanui, Shag Rock, in Sumner. The early morning ceremony is part of the Te Waka programme and signifies the transition of the students in their journey towards adulthood. The ceremony involved the acknowledgement of the end of childhood, letting go of behaviours, and accepting new challenges and responsibilities. The venue was chosen as a reminder of Christchurch's resilience, that even though things might feel a bit broken, or look a bit different, they can still just be as beautiful and come out of things even stronger. This parallels the challenges students face in their journey to adulthood, which will teach them perseverance and resilience, making them stronger than they thought possible. ‘The Calling’ also involves a show of gratitude to those people who influenced the students through their childhood. An important part of the ceremony involves the students writing a childhood behaviour that they wish to let go on a shell or rock. The ceremony was respectful and reflective, and the students appreciated its significance.
Last weekend, 80 Music students from Year 9–13 went away for a fun-filled camp. There were rehearsals with Music teachers Bryan Botting and Mark Hodgkinson, and Director of Staccoro Choir Naomi Hnat, as well as workshops with various Christchurch music tutors, swimming, group challenges, and an epic quiz night. The camp concluded with the sharing of a work concert, which showed the value of intensive time away together.
The St Andrew’s College Rowing Programme received a very generous donation from current parent, Mike Greer, of an ex-fleet Ford Ranger Ute. Director of Rowing, Guy Williams, received the car on Tuesday night from the committee and it will be put to immediate use, towing trailers to and from the South Island Secondary School Championships in Twizel next weekend, as well as heading to Cambridge next month for Maadi Cup. The rowing coaches and committee are extremely appreciative of this generous gift and would like to thank Mike and his team at Mike Greer Homes.
The Middle School chapel service held last Sunday was a fantastic opportunity for Middle School students, staff, and parents to come together in a meaningful way, and the exceptionally high turnout of parents was pleasing to see. Rev. Paul Morrow delivered a message that resonated with the those in attendance, and Stacchorus, led by Music Teacher, Bryan Botting, provided a wonderful musical performance.
Yesterday saw the Inaugural Year 13 versus Year 12 table tennis competition for the Common Room Cup. Four Mixed teams from each year group battled it out for the coveted title. The games were hotly contested and students in both year groups were there to support the 16 players as they fought for the win. The teams each came away with two wins and the tie breaker will be held next Wednesday to decide who claims the Common Room Cup.
Last weekend the College's top five boys and five girls tennis players represented the College at the South Island Tennis Championships. Both teams had two good wins on Saturday. The girls beat Ashburton College 4–2 and Rangi Ruru Girls’ School with a score of 6–0, while the boys defeated Marlborough Boys’ High School 6–0 and Ashburton College 4–2, with two exciting doubles matches. On Sunday the girls played St Margaret’s College in a tight battle. After singles the score was 2–2, so the doubles became the decider. Sadly, the girls finished runners up in the South Island. The boys faced a very strong Christ’s College side with the final score 6–0 to Christ’s, meaning the boys also finished as runners up in the South Island.
The A and B Bands enjoyed a fantastic trip to Blenheim last weekend. It was the first Pipe Band trip away in two years and the students were very excited for the trip.
RNZPBA Canterbury Provincial and Centre Contest – The B Band won the overall Grade 4 event on both days, winning the Bruce Forbes Memorial Trophy, The Canterbury Caledonian Ladies Trophy, and The Gordon Turner Memorial Trophy. This is a great achievement considering our students are competing against established adult bands.
The A Band had a great opportunity to test themselves prior to the Nationals and won the Juvenile event on both days. They also were runner up in Grade 2 on Saturday and Sunday.
The 1st XI game against Christ’s College got underway with a minimum of 75 overs in the day. College went into bat again and made 140/6 declared leaving St Andrew’s 231 to get off 54 overs. A slow start and the loss of three wickets saw William Carrodus and Jackson Hodgkinson (both Year 12) form a good 71 run partnership, but they both fell in quick succession and the pressure went on the lower order. After losing another four wickets William Russell and Will Ullrich (both Year 13) batted out nine overs and held College out for a draw, with the final score being 173/9.
On Wednesday the NZCT Cup team played Christchurch Boys’ High School in a thriller at Straven Road. Batting first, St Andrew’s made a moderate total of 120 thanks to Tom Simpson 32 and Spencer Hair (both Year 10) 28. But a great bowling and fielding display restricted Boys’ High to 76. Year 10 students Jacob Farrelly 4/13 and Ryan Bond 3/6 were outstanding with their lines and lengths. The team now go onto the National Tournament which is the top six schools in New Zealand at Palmerston North during Summer Tournament Week.
Another Basketball New Zealand 3x3 Pro Quest Tour was held over the weekend. St Andrew’s College was once again well-represented by akōnga and kaiako, a particular shout-out goes out to the Senior College boys who finished runners-up in Round 15.
Rhys Mariu (OC 2019) made his Canterbury debut during the week and what a game he had. Making 68 in the first innings and guiding Canterbury home to outright with a 78 n.o. in the second innings.
Good luck to all students who are representing the College over the weekend in sports and cultural activities over the weekend.
We seem to be in a good space with regards to COVID-19 at the moment, with staff and student absence related to the virus very low. However, it is important that we keep a close eye on the situation and as such we please ask that you continue to report to the College any COVID-19 related student absence using the same process as for non-COVID-19 related absences. Ākonga (students) who are household contacts but test negative and do not have COVID-19 symptoms, should continue to attend school.
Parent Guidelines >
Ākonga Absence and Ill-health
A polite reminder that any ākonga who are unwell should not attend school. For any absence, whether ill-health or otherwise, the College’s preferred platform for reporting this is via our online form below.
Recording a Student Absence >
If you are not able to report your child's absence using the online form, please report their absence via the relevant email address below. If you cannot get through to us via the form or email, please call our attendance line on +64 3 940 2031 (term time only).
We have made the decision to have all the upcoming Parent-Teacher Interviews online. This includes day and boarding student interviews. You will receive further communication to book your timeslot in due course.
Interview dates will be as follows:
Parent Teacher Association (PTA) members are formally notified that the 2023 Annual General Meeting will be held as follows: Tuesday 7 March, 6.30pm, Preparatory School staffroom.
Exchanges are an opportunity for young people to experience, challenge and grow. The Year 10 exchanges allow St Andrew’s College students to travel to Australia for four weeks. During these four weeks they will live with a host family, have an exchange brother or sister, attend school, have the opportunity to engage in extra-curricular activities, and visit and experience new sights and sounds. The student is an ambassador for the school, Canterbury region and New Zealand. They may be asked to conduct public speaking, engage in activities and situations that are foreign to them. The student and the family will also be required to host either their exchange partner or another student for four weeks.
If this sounds like an experience you would like your child to be part of, please contact Director of International Students and Exchanges, Palē Tauti at PTU@stac.school.nz for more details.
Further to our recent notice about the start of outdoor winter conditioning, the indoor sports codes are also offering some pre-season training. This will include cross-code movement patterns with a focus on improving overall athletic capacity and injury reduction. These are voluntary sessions for Year 11–13 students and designed as an extra opportunity to assist our athletes across many codes. Summer sport is the priority. These will be held on Monday, Wednesday and Friday 12.45pm–1.25pm in the Fitness Centre for the remainder of Term 1.
Please get behind the St Andrew’s Basketball Development Programme by purchasing a ticket for the annual iPhone Raffle. Tickets are only $5.00 and are limited to 1500 in circulation. Get in quick!
As part of our Sports Performance Programme, guest speaker Lea Stening will be presenting a talk on Sports Nutrition. Parents and student athletes are encouraged to attend. This session will provide key tips for growing and supporting developing athletes, including information relating to cognitive function and well-being. Lea Stening has worked with various sports organisations including New Zealand Rowing and has authored multiple books. For more information about Lea, please click here.
Registrations are open now for this second event in our StACTalks event series.
When: Wednesday 15 March, 6.00pm–6.45pm
Where: Centennial Chapel
Meet our teachers who make the difference at our upcoming Open Days. Please help spread the word for interested families to register online.
Secondary School Open Day: Wednesday 8 March, 9.00am–12.00pm
Last Tour Commences: 10.30am
Rector's Address: 11.00am
Boarding House Open Day: 12.00pm
Preparatory School and Pre-school Open Day: Thursday 9 March, 11.00am–12.30pm
Principal of Preparatory School Address: 11.45am
The Community Business Directory is on our website under Alumni & Community and represents over 100 parent businesses. Please do take a look at how many businesses you can support locally.
The St Andrew's College Community Business Directory >
If you would still like to register your business, complete the following form.
Community Business Directory Registration >
For a full list of upcoming school events, please refer to the fixtures page on StACNet.
