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Dear Parents and Caregivers
Kia ora koutou.
Last weekend the Year 11 Semi-formal was a much-anticipated event which students enjoyed. Thank you to prefects who helped supervise the event, Middle School Leaders who assisted with the organisation, and Head of Middle School Matt Parr, Assistant Head of Middle School Liz Gormack, and Year 11 Dean Lucy Curtis, plus Year 11 tutors and staff who made an appearance on the night. It was the usual busy weekend for sport and the Preparatory School Chapel Service was a lovely occasion with the message led by Rev. Paul Morrow and a delightful item from the Junior choir.
Last week our three finalist chamber groups from the regional competition found out they will feature in the South Island finals to be held at The Piano tomorrow night. This is a wonderful recognition of our talented musicians.
On Wednesday evening, the English department organised and hosted the finals of the 2024 speech competition, Festival of the Spoken Word. Congratulations to Year 9 and 10 winners, Amanda Watkins (Year 9) and Fletcher Cairns (Year 10) who also featured, and the Senior finalists Kiera Faass, Noah Fanene, Katherine Simcock, Joshua Adams, Maria (Masha) Pospolitak, Sarah Waddington (all Year 12), Isobel Forsey, James Hart, and Alexandra Hirshfeld (all Year 13). Thank you to English teachers Katrina Burk and Ellie Simatos for their organisation and Year 13 Jenna Howell who was an excellent natural story telling MC for the evening. The Harry Ellerm Cup overall winner went to Fletcher Cairns, the winner of the Impromptu Speech section went to Joshua Adams and the winner of the Prepared section went to Kiera Faass. It was an entertaining and thought-provoking evening.
This week has been a busy one with our Year 7–8 ākonga preparing for the performances of their production, The Aurora Stone, next week. The four performances feature all the students in Years 7 and 8 (split into two separate casts) and is a wonderful opportunity for them all to experience performing on the Gough Family Theatre stage.
The 107th Board of Governors AGM was held in the Strowan House staffroom on Thursday evening. Prior to the AGM the Board held a brief regular meeting at which Foundation Trustees had an opportunity to meet with the Board of Governors. The AGM presented the 2023 Annual Report Financial statements, the Board Chair Report and Rector’s Report, which included highlights from the year. Felicity Odlin was re-elected as Chair and Nick Letham as Deputy Chair. You can access the full 2023 Annual Report by clicking here.
In May, the Communications team launched a new St Andrew's website, which is aimed at attracting prospective parents and highlighting the best aspects of the school. The previous website, which went live at the end of 2017, was a shared site for both prospective and current parents. However, as the website expanded over the years, it became clear that separate sites were needed. StACNet was redesigned and released for current parents at the start of 2024, giving parents a more efficient way to access information about the daily running of the College and their child's education, with the most visited pages as quick links on the homepage.
StACNet > St Andrew's College website >
This coming weekend we will be hosting the 40 Years on Reunion. Old Collegians returning who were in the third form (Year 9) in 1984. A number of those attending currently have children at the College. As always it will be interesting to hear them reminisce about their times at the College and how these have changed.
Best wishes to all for a great weekend.
Ngā mihi nui
Christine Leighton
Rector
June is Pride Month, which gives us the opportunity to recognise the positive impact LGBTQIA+ people have in the world. Colour was evident around the campus this week as the College celebrated Schools’ Pride Week Aotearoa 2024, which is designed to celebrate and affirm rainbow identities, help increase a sense of belonging, and reduce experiences of bullying for rainbow youth.
Led by our Rainbow Group, the College celebrated diversity and put into action our value of Inclusivity. A rainbow flag flew proudly on the main flagpole and The Green Library and Innovation Centre celebrated the month with a book display titled Out on the Shelves. Staff and students wore colourful accessories on Monday and our Rainbow Group members and prefects provided a hot chocolate to. Thursday’s chapel message was delivered by Assistant Chaplain, Ben Hughes, who spoke of the need to widen our circle and embrace diversity. Today, prefects and the Rainbow Group led a ‘dance it out’ session in the Quad at lunchtime.
The annual Year 11 Semi-formal took place on Saturday evening at a beautifully decked-out Riccarton Racecourse. This year’s theme was ‘Casino,’ with the ‘Welcome to Vegas’ sign, playing cards, and gold, black and red decorations adding to the atmosphere. The students looked so grown up as they walked the red carpet and there was a lovely buzz and positive vibe throughout the evening. The photo booth was a huge hit, and the dance floor was popular with both the Year 13 prefects and Year 11 students. A huge thank you to the prefect team – they were amazing with their dedication and service. Thank you also to the Middle School Leaders who did so much of the planning and organisation for this great evening.
FLICKR >
The Senior Festival of the Spoken Word, hosted by the English Department, was held in The Green Library and Innovation Centre on Wednesday evening. This annual event is a showcase of the talented speakers we have at St Andrew’s College.
Amanda Watkins (Year 9) and Fletcher Cairns (Year 10) delivered their speeches after winning the Junior finals last week. In the Senior Prepared category, the finalists were Kiera Faass, Noah Fanene, and Katherine Simcock (all Year 12), with Kiera Fass winning this category. In the Senior Impromptu category, the participants were Joshua Adams, Sarah Waddington, Maria (Masha) Pospolitak (all Year 12), Alexandra Hirschfeld, Isobel Forsey and James Hart (all Year 13). The winner of this category was Joshua Adams. The prize for best speaker of the night and winner of the Mark Ellerm Memorial Cup was Fletcher Cairns (Year 10).
Thank you to our judges for the evening, Chris Waugh (Head of English at Christ’s College) and Thomas Kamo (OC 2022), as well as Jenna Howell (Year 13) who was our outstanding and entertaining Compere.
FLICKR >St Andrew’s College jazz combo, The Not So Big Band, performed in the Ara JazzQuest competition on Tuesday morning. They performed a set of four songs of some classic jazz standards and even some Rolling Stones. They will perform in the JazzQuest Gala concert on Friday night at The Piano.
The Interschool Chess Tournament was a great success on Tuesday. The St Andrew’s A team, consisting of Cayden Wang, James Anthony (both Year 12), Owen Menzies, and Kian Dharmasena (both Year 13), came second in the A grade, which qualifies them for the national competitions in August.
The B team, consisting of Alex Manson, Luke Manson (both Year 11), Joshua Adams, and William Sherborne (both Year 12) also had a successful tournament, finishing third in the B grade.
FLICKR >Level 1 Geography students went on a three-day field trip to the West Coast and Hanmer Springs last week. The main purpose of the trip was for students to complete their research in Blackball for their internally assessed NCEA assessment, and to gain an understanding of the Southern Alps and Canterbury High Country environment in preparation for the external NCEA assessment. The students heard from a range of guest speakers, visited the Brunner Mine Memorial, visited an operating gold mine, jet boated up a braided river system, and the Hanmer Springs Hot pools.
Week 6 was International Languages Week in New Zealand with students participating in a variety of activities. Teachers who speak another language put their favourite sayings onto posters displayed in the Arts Block. A Chinese calligraphy session was held in The Green Library and Innovation Centre, with around 150 students coming along to write Chinese words, some of which are now on display in the Arts Block.
The New Zealand Association of Languages Teachers ran a competition for students from Years 7–10, where students were able to submit a poster with reasons for learning languages. The Year 9–10 French students saw a film about a ballerina, Neneh Superstar, and the Year 11–13 classes watched The President’s Wife, a film about Bernadette Chirac at the French Film Festival. The Year 10 Spanish class made quesadillas which they enjoyed immensely. A haiku competition also took place and was won by Thomas Ambury (Year 9), with Samual Hu (Year 9) runner up. Today, an international food challenge was held in the Quad. Students were able to try chicken hearts, spicy chicken wings, snails, and dumplings. Needless to say, the food was a hit with students in all year levels.
A group of 21 Vocational Education students completed the conservation work for one of their assessments this week. The students cut close to 5000 wilding pines (Pinus Contorta primarily) at Cave Stream and the surrounding area. A smaller group of students focused on stoats and checked the stoat lines and traps around the Alistair Sidey Mountain Lodge. The local community much appreciated their combined conservation efforts, with community spokesperson and local conservationist, Ray Goldring, commending the students for their actions as young kaitiaki (guardians).
Last Sunday, the Preparatory School hosted the Anglican Church Grammar School from Brisbane – known as 'Churchie'. This was Churchie’s first visit post-COVID, though the two schools had resumed their fixtures in 2023 when St Andrew’s College visited Churchie as part of the 2023 Australian Sports Tour. The students competed in football, rugby and basketball and enjoyed a lunch together in the boarders’ Dining Room. Churchie also attended the Preparatory School Chapel Service that evening. It was a great day of sport for all concerned.
Last Sunday, over 80 students from eight Christchurch schools gathered in The Green Library and Innovation Centre to start working on the new World Challenge for VEX Robotics 2024/25. The VEX IQ Challenge, Rapid Relay, involves robots passing and throwing balls around the field and into. The VEX V5 challenge, High Stakes, gets students to pick rings, put them onto mobile goals, keep them safe, and then try to climb a ladder in the last seconds of the match. There was a great atmosphere, with students working hard all day to plan their strategies and robots before they started on building them.
Luke Zhu (OC 2022) provided an excellent seminar for a group of students this week, focusing on his Harvard University experience and the international university application process. This was very well received by the students. A workshop is planned for late July focusing specifically on the Common App application process.
As part of Pre-school’s ongoing learning about Road Safety Superheroes (the emergency services), on Tuesday morning a crew from the Ilam Fire Station visited the Pre-school with their fire engine. The fire fighters were impressed with how much knowledge the Pre-school tamariki had about how to stay safe if there was a fire. After they talked with the children about fire safety, they invited Pre-school teacher, Ashleigh Gargiulo, to try on a fire fighter’s uniform, and then everyone was excited to look at the fire engine. The fire fighters even turned their sirens on as the fire truck left.
FLICKR >FOOTBALL
On Wednesday, the Boys’ 1st XI played St Bede’s College. In a very tight match St Andrew’s scored early, but late in the first half St Bede’s equalised. St Andrew’s again scored first in the second half, and as the final whistle was pending, St Bede’s got a penalty in the 80th minute and scored, ending the match in a 2–2 draw.
The Girls’ 1st XI played a particularly good Rangiora High School team at the Kendal Park Turf. The game was very even with both teams playing some good football. In the end St Andrew’s won 3–2.
NETBALL
In a competitive match against Halswell A, the netball team started strong, leading by 14 goals at the end of the first quarter. Libby McNee’s (Year 13) excellent shooting contributed significantly to the team’s success. The defence worked tirelessly to turn over the ball, while the midcourt players put in great effort to feed it into the shooting circle. The final score was 63–50 to St Andrew’s.
On Sunday, the team faced a crucial match that would determine whether they remained in Premier 2. The game began with both teams going goal for goal, but with determination, the girls steadily increased their lead in each quarter to win 69–47.
In the first quarter of Wednesday’s netball game against Ashburton College A, both teams were neck-and-neck, exchanging goals. The girls maintained composure, persevered, and worked together to win 42–20.
RUGBY
The 1st XV played their rescheduled match against Selwyn Combined Schools on Monday at Tai Tapu Domain under lights and had a fantastic 36–20 win. The team worked hard to build constant pressure by generating multiple phases on attack. Good ball security and some intelligent kicking helped secure vital field position. The set piece was accurate, and the forwards scored two excellent tries from powerful driving mauls. The backline functioned well and were dangerous on attack. The entire group defended extremely well and were very physical at the breakdown. It was an impressive collective team effort.
HOCKEY
The Boys’ 1st XI played Christ’s College in wet conditions that tested both teams. The team started poorly and were down early in the match. The team never bounced back, and Christ’s College won 7–0.
BADMINTON
The Premier Boys’ badminton team played Christ’s College. The team played well with a mixture of wins and losses, but despite some close matches they lost 4–6.
The Premier Girls’ badminton team played well against the Premier Burnside High School Girls’ C team. The girls controlled the pace of the game and managed a comfortable 6–0 win.
The New Zealand Secondary Schools Cross Country Championships were held in Christchurch last Saturday at Ascot Green with six St Andrew’s runners competing. With over 100 athletes in each race, the best individual result came from Sophie Lampe (Year 10) finishing 11th in the Junior Girls’ race, with Abigail Scott-Douglas (Year 11) coming in 41st. Elliot Graves (Year 13) finished 46th in a strong Senior Boys’ field, and Hannah Hughes (Year 13) 60th in the Senior Girls’ event.
On Sunday, the provincial relays were held including two of our athletes in Canterbury A teams. After not finishing the individual race on Saturday due to illness, Kupa Rule (Year 11) returned to anchor his team to a silver medal in the Junior Boys’ event. Abigail Scott-Douglas’s team finished fifth in the Junior Girls’ race.
A new event this year for the squash players was the Canterbury Secondary Schools Squash Tournament (team event). The A team of Rory Forsythe, Jacob Bunting and Bodie Oxenham (all Year 12) finished third after losing to eventual winners St Bede’s College in their semi-final. Oliver Gilbert (Year 9) also played in a Mixed school team through the tournament. Jacob, Bodie, Oliver and George Reynolds (Year 9) will compete this weekend in Dunedin at the South Island teams’ competition.
Following last week’s Canterbury District final of the 2024 NZCT Chamber Music Contest, three St Andrew’s College ensembles have been selected for the Southern Regional Final, a record number for the College. Twelve groups from around the South Island will give their performances tomorrow, competing for one of the eight places available across the country for the National Final in early August. The performances are at The Piano and all St Andrew’s College groups play in the first of two sessions, beginning at 11.30am. Entry is free.
Finalists:
As part of their preparation for the Southern Regional Final, 8 Strings 88 Keys and AAA Insurance performed in a lunchtime concert on Thursday at the Transitional Cathedral. Supported by the trumpet trio, One Gold Two Silver, the students were able to experience a fresh acoustic while further developing their interpretations of the pieces.
Sophie Lampe (Year 10) was awarded the Junior Athlete of the Year by the Canterbury Triathlon Club.
Gemma Thomas (Year 11) competed in two karate competitions last weekend. At the Canterbury Westland Karate Championships, she won gold in the Female Kata 14/15 years Premier event and at the South Island Schools event she won gold in the Female Kata U16 event.
Today, Katherine Simcock (Year 12) provided an exceptional speech to a large audience at Tūranga as part of the Speaking 4 the Planet (S4P) series. Katherine spoke of the urgent need for everyone to make choices that will result in protection of New Zealand’s unique biophysical environment. She is Co-Head of our Sustainability Council, and this is her second time entering in this speech competition. S4P is a public speaking, spoken word, performance, and visual arts competition. It provides opportunities for students to express their ideas for a better world. Environment Canterbury is the principal sponsor of S4P through its Waitaha Action to Impact Fund.
Georgia Gregg (Year 7) competed in Oamaru Highland Dance Championships last weekend and won Most points runner up U12.
Iselle Bromhead (Year 3) competed with her cheerleading team, Allstar Pride Kittenz, in Wellington last Sunday. They won their division (Mini Level 1) and were named Level 1 grand champions. Iselle’s team also won the highest tumbling score out of the whole event, including the older teams.
Jackson Morrow (Year 8) came first in the Mixed Open category of the four-hour wicked Rogaine in Teviotdale.
Sam Lane (OC 2015) is set to make his second appearance for the Black Sticks at the Olympics, following his participation in the Tokyo games. Hailing from Temuka, the formidable striker is renowned for his exceptional stamina, consistently outperforming others in aerobic fitness tests. Sam's goal-scoring prowess has been on the rise, with an average of one goal every two games over the past two years. Prior to an unfortunate injury, he was the top scorer in the Dutch Hoofdklasse, the premier division.
Feature-length documentary, Maurice and I, co-directed by Rick Harvie (OC 1989) is now screening around New Zealand. The film pays tribute to the powerful architectural collaboration between Sir Miles Warren and Maurice Mahoney. Their significant legacy, which was nearly obliterated in the tragic Christchurch earthquakes, is beautifully portrayed in this documentary. Maurice and I blends archival footage with exclusive interviews featuring Sir Miles and Maurice Mahoney, including their last shared interview. The film also stars Kelvin McMillan (OC 1977) as Sir Miles. Sir Miles was a student in the St Andrew’s College Preparatory School from 1934 to 1935.
Moses Armstrong-Ravula (OC 2022) has been named in the Fijian U20 team heading to South Africa for the World Rugby U20 Championship, which will take place between 29 June and 19 July.
Good luck to all students who are representing the College this weekend in sports and cultural activities, including:
This year World Vision’s 40-Hour Challenge is taking place from 8.00pm this Friday to 12.00pm on Sunday. No matter how badly we believe we are affected by the climate crisis here in New Zealand, it is infinitely worse in some other countries in the Asia-Pacific region, which is why this year the proceeds from the challenge will be going towards supporting relief in these countries via the Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration process, which regrows native forests in as little as one year. Regrowing these forests helps combat disasters such as flash flooding, while also minimising carbon emissions and supporting healthy ecosystems. St Andrew’s College has a rich history of supporting World Vision and the 40-Hour Challenge, and we are hoping to keep that going. Our goal is to raise $10,000, and we are about a fifth of the way there, so any donations would be greatly appreciated!
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The Aurora Stone is a mystical crystal that fell from the sky and brought peace to two fighting realms. After a mishap with the stone, three children must find out if they are the chosen ones to return the stone and help the people of Norina. Will they be able to fulfil the prophecy?
Come along and see this delightful show performed by all Year 7 and 8 students. This musical script and lyrics have been written by Preparatory School students, with music written by Year 13 Music students.
When: Monday 24 – Thursday 27 June 2024 (four shows)
Time: 7.00pm–8.00pm
Venue: Ngā Toi Performing Arts Centre – Gough Family Theatre
Ticket price: $22.00
This year, the winter clothing drive Snug Up Rug Up is back. Last year we were able to make such an impact by donating over 300 pieces of winter warms to the charity Clothed in Love. We thank everyone who supported us last year. There are two collection bins located in the Senior College office and the Middle School office to place warm winter clothes in. We are hoping that students will work together with their tutor groups and collect clothes as a class to donate. There will be a pizza lunch prize for the tutor group that donates the most winter warms. The collection bins will be onsite through to mid-August.
The annual StAC Ag show will be held on Thursday 26 September. Pre-school, Preparatory and Secondary school students can enter several fun events such as baking, art, flower arrangements and Lego creations, with placings from first to third receiving a ribbon. They can also submit a video of a furry or feather pet to be judged or a lamb for the handling and turnout classes. More information regarding timing and entering will be made available at the start of Term 3.
At this stage, we are looking for members of our StAC Ag community that may wish to donate a small prize(s) for the different classes. This could be a gift voucher, or a physical prize associated with your business, such as coloured pencils, soft toys, lolly bags, animal products, etc. This event will be for our Pre-school and Preparatory School.
Please contact teacher Natasha Cloughley on NCY@stac.school.nz for further information.
Experience the thrilling sounds of StAC Attack 2024! A St Andrew’s College Pipe Band event at the prestigious Christchurch Town Hall – James Hay Theatre, this highly anticipated showcase guarantees an unforgettable evening of traditional Scottish entertainment.
Immerse yourself in the rich harmonics of the bagpipes, the infectious beat of the drums, and the flair of the Highland dancers as they take the stage. With talented St Andrew's College students from Years 4–13 displaying their skills, StAC Attack promises to be an action-packed performance.
Be a part of the magic at StAC Attack 2024!
When: Sunday 28 July 2024
Time: 5.00pm – 7.00pm
Venue: Christchurch Town Hall, James Hay Theatre
Tickets: Adults $49.00, students/children $29.00 (student ID may be requested).
The online sales for the following 2024 photographs are now available:
Details of how to order the photographs can be found on our website using the button below and you will need to log into StACNet using your St Andrew's College login.
If you have any questions relating to this service, please email photography@stac.school.nz
For any illness, students should stay home if unwell. Any student should also feel free to wear a mask if they wish to do so while at school.
For any absence, whether ill-health (including COVID-19) or otherwise, the College’s preferred platform for reporting this is via our online form which can be found at the button below:
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).
The Community Business Directory is on our website under Alumni & Community and represents over 100 parent businesses. Please 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.
