Kia ora parents and caregivers,
It has been a busy few weeks and we are now at the end of Week 8, with just two weeks left until we break for Easter and the school holidays. Many of our students have been able to enjoy school trips and camps away, be it for sports, music, drama, dance or outdoor education.
We have welcomed international students from Kyoto Gaidi Nishi and Shinagawa in Japan, and from Bangkok, Thailand. It has been wonderful to see these students thrive with the support of their student buddy’s as they experience the New Zealand school study programme. For our Muslim students we wish them a happy Ramadan which lasts for 30 days and ends at sundown on Thursday, April 20.
On Wednesday 15th March we welcomed new and existing Pasifika families to our first Pasifika Fono for 2023. It was another great evening, meeting so many whānau and celebrating the success of their students. Our Pasifika families were able to meet the team of Pasifika mentors and connect with other families.
On Tuesday 21st March we hosted representatives from New Zealand Universities at our Tertiary Evening for our Year 13 Students and their families in the Events Centre. We were very fortunate to have Distinguished Professor Emeritus Paul Spoonley from Massey University as the guest speaker on the topic of Education and Work in the 2020’s. Professor Spoonley heads the Centre for Countering Violent Extremism in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet and is an advisor to the senior leadership of the Police and the Police Commissioner.
With more than 85% of our Year 13 students continuing on to Tertiary study, there was keen interest from our students to explore the options and learn more about university life.
For our Year 11 parents and whānau we held a NCEA evening On Thursday 23rd March to explain the changes to the NCEA Level 1 qualification system and what it will mean for the students who are part of the transition between the two systems.
Our Sports teams have been making the most of the good weather and doing us proud at championship events including the North Island Rowing Championship and the National Surf Lifesaving Championships. You can read more about these in the Sports section of the newsletter.
A big thank you to everyone who has already paid their School Donation for 2023. While we are a state-funded school, voluntary School Donations from our parent community allow us to provide a wider range of subjects thanks to more teachers in the classroom – which means smaller class sizes and more timetable flexibility for students. All donations are tax deductible. To receive a tax credit on your donation this year, payment needs to be made by the end of the financial year on Friday 31st March.
We have partnered with Supergenerous which is a way to make your generosity go even further by donating your tax credits on donations back to the school. You can find out more by clicking the link below.
www.supergenerous.co.nz/superpartners/westlake-girls-high-school
We have also joined Rewardhub, a website where 100’s of leading brands reward us with free donations, at no extra cost to you, when you shop online. To find out more and sign up to support us, follow the link below.
https://rewardhub.co.nz/westlake-girls-high-school
The Term 1 Interim Reports are now available on the parent portal. You can book interviews by clicking the ‘Interview booking’ tab to meet your child’s subject teachers and discuss their reports at the Report Evenings on Thursday 30th March and Tuesday 4 April.
Have a lovely weekend.
Jane Stanley
Principal
