Week 9, Term 3 | 2025

Executive Principal’s Update

Ngā mihi o te wiki o te reo Māori. Nau mai, haere mai ki tā tātou panui.

As we draw the term to a close, it is a pleasure to reflect on the many outstanding achievements of our students. Over recent weeks we have witnessed excellence across academic, cultural, and co-curricular domains. The energy, creativity, and commitment demonstrated by our young people has been remarkable, and it provides a most encouraging platform as we look ahead to next term.

A highlight last week was the hugely successful Foundation Gala Dinner. Our thanks to all the members of the Foundation who have worked tirelessly over the past few months to bring this very important event together in order to support our scholarship and bursary programmes. We were privileged to welcome guests from our wider community and to welcome Sir Michael Jones as our guest speaker. His address was both inspirational and thought-provoking, leaving a lasting impression on all in attendance.

We were also extremely proud of our student ambassadors, who worked selflessly at hosting our guests and showcasing their musical talent. They certainly represented the school with distinction and we were very proud of them.

It was also a pleasure to welcome the Proprietors Board to the school on Tuesday as they continue with the invaluable oversight of the school and its progress. Our school is well placed for meeting the upcoming challenges of the new curriculum and we look forward to engaging with our community as our staff work hard to the plans for 2026.

We extend our warmest congratulations to the Year 9 EPro8 team, who secured first place in the grand final last night after winning their heat earlier in the week. Competing against 12 other schools from the region who had qualified through the regional heats, our students faced three hours of demanding engineering and problem-solving challenges.

With the scores tied just minutes before the conclusion, the team displayed exceptional resilience and focus, ultimately prevailing by an impressive 80-point margin. This is a tremendous accomplishment and a testament to their teamwork and determination.

We are very proud of Gabriel Anthony, Adhi Kumarasamy, Hunter McArthur, Max Tai, and Thomas MacCoy for representing Whitby Collegiate with such distinction. A special thank you to Mr Free who has supported the team and agonised with the parents supporters while waiting for the final results.

The Year 10 Social Sciences Market Day once again proved to be a resounding success. Students designed, produced, and marketed a wide range of products, gaining invaluable insights into the realities of entrepreneurship, customer service, and business planning.

This initiative continues to provide a vital bridge between classroom learning and the wider business sector, equipping students with practical skills that will serve them well in future endeavours. We express our thanks to the staff who guided the process and to the parents and community members whose support contributed greatly to the day’s success. As we move into planning for 2026, we are certainly excited to announce further development in this particular curriculum area. Many thanks to Mrs Patel for her drive and oversight and the development of many of the skills that students require for future focused learning.

The term concluded with the eagerly anticipated Battle of the Bands house competition, an event that highlighted the depth of musical talent within our school. The performances were diverse and engaging, ranging from innovative string-band arrangements of ABBA to moving interpretations of Coldplay, and culminating in a bold rendition of Led Zeppelin’s Stairway to Heaven.

Particular commendation is due to Zayn and Camille for their outstanding solo performances. Our appreciation also extends to all students who represented their houses with courage and creativity. The event was both a spirited competition and a celebration of music at Whitby Collegiate.

We also wish the Girls Basketball team that are heading away to the National Basketball tournament being held in Palmerston North next week all the very best for their competition. The team has worked very hard to qualify for this event and also in all their fundraising efforts. Well done to all and a special thanks to Mr LeToa for all his coaching expertise.

This has been a term marked by achievement, creativity, and community. We are immensely proud of our students and grateful to staff and families for their ongoing support. As we enter the break, we do so with a strong sense of accomplishment and anticipation for what lies ahead next term.

Ngā mihi nui,

Shelley Addison
Executive Principal

Deputies’ Updates

Deputy Principal (Academics)

Kia ora e te whānau o Whitby Collegiate,

The end of Term 3 already! And what a fabulous, busy and successful term it has been.

The last day for senior students is Thursday 30 October, before the November 4 start to the NCEA examinations. There will be tutorials being offered for L1-3 subjects during study leave, usually during normally scheduled double periods of the term-time timetable. From the beginning of Term 4, students will have access to a live document showing the tutorials.

I thank all our current Y10-12 students for completing their 2025 subject selections. Confirmation and discussions regarding any potential clashes will occur early next term. I’m excited to indicate that our teaching staff has been investigating possible new subject areas, with specific focus on Year 11 Accounting/Finance and Business Studies, alongside our existing Economics courses. More information about how this could potentially impact subject choices will be made available to students next term.

As we seek to continually improve our teaching and learning as a faculty, today we’ve spent a very productive teacher only day holding robust discussions and forward planning. An area of future focus has been Artificial Intelligence (AI) and how this is and will continue to impact teaching practice and assessment, and how we can be responsive to a continually changing landscape in education.

I wish everyone a very happy and relaxing term break, with lots of time for recuperation and preparation for Term 4.

Ngā mihi,

Debbie Mitchell
debbie.mitchell@whitbycollegiate.school.nz

Deputy Principal (Pastoral and Wellbeing)

Tēnā koutou e te whānau o Whitby Collegiate, ngā mihi mahana ki a koutou katoa,

It is important to take a moment to really marinate in our school’s successes. These achievements don’t just happen by chance, they are the result of the dedication, hard work, and servant leadership shown by our students, staff, and wider community. It’s worth pausing to celebrate just how far we’ve come, and to be proud of the unique strengths of our staff, students and parents that make our school community so special.

An exciting way to close the term was our House Battle of the Bands—a brand new initiative led by our Arts Prefects, Aari Bhat and Nadia Roach. The event was a wonderful celebration of the musical talent within our school. Aari not only MC’d the event with enthusiasm but also joined his Resolution House Band, delivering a standout performance. Resolution took out first place, with Adventure coming a close second and Endeavour placing third after a fantastic medley of ABBA classics. These performances wouldn’t have been possible without the dedication of our student leaders, who inspired and supported younger students to have the courage to perform in front of the whole school. Once again, we saw servant leadership in action.

We would like to extend a big thank you to the following student leaders for their invaluable contributions to this year’s House Battle of the Bands: Aari Bhat, Ben Reichenvater, Rodi Ngwa, Mya Gaualofa, Nadia Roach, Lonasei Lolo, Marcia Laurenson, La’ie Nimarota Vatuvei, Leo Gore, Lucy Bain, Lily O’Rourke and Caelan Taylor. We are so proud of the servant leadership continually modelled by our students—it is becoming part of the very culture of Whitby Collegiate.

Another highlight of the week was bringing together our Year 12 future leaders with our current Prefect team for a valuable leadership workshop. The Prefects openly shared their experiences, from what events worked well this year to tips on being better prepared for leadership challenges ahead. A key takeaway was that strong school culture grows out of positive actions and behaviours, lived out and modelled by both leaders and students. As some of our Year 12 students complete their applications for Student Leadership for 2026, they shared their reflections on Servant Leadership:

Finally, during our school assembly yesterday, as part of celebrating Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori, Year 12 student Safira Schultz shared the following whakatauki: “He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tāngata, he tāngata, he tāngata.” This is a timely reminder for our school community, as we journey through the busyness of end-of-year events and examinations, that people are at the centre of everything we do. Our strength lies in the relationships we nurture, the servant leadership we encourage, and the opportunities we create for every student to flourish. Guided by our faith-based values, let’s continue to celebrate the achievements of our students, staff, and wider community, recognising that it is people, working together with compassion, humility, and purpose, who make our school community thrive.

Kia māia, kia kaha, ā, me haere tahi tonu tātou ki te pae mutunga.

Ainslie Sauvao
ainslie.sauvao@whitbycollegiate.school.nz

School News

Art of the week - Creative Approaches in Year 11

Our L1 Visual Art students are all to be congratulated on having truly embodied the spirit of creative exploration. From refining their skills in more traditional approaches they have also discovered that art can be found and made in unexpected ways. From coffee to motorbikes, Art knows no bounds.

Year 10 Student Market Day Supports Local Charities

We're proud to acknowledge the generous contributions our Year 10 students have made to local charities through their Market Day tax donations:

• 10AB raised $254 for the Starship Foundation

• 10SL raised $265 for the Cancer Society

• 10KS raised $197 and counting for the SPCA

These donations demonstrate our students' commitment to giving back to the community while participating in their entrepreneurial Market Day activities. Well done to all classes for supporting these worthy causes!

Solar System Model - Photo Highlights

Year 7 students brought the Solar System to life in Science this term, designing and building their own models as part of our Astronomy unit. Here’s a glimpse of their creativity in action.

Student Perspectives

Last week, acclaimed NZ musician Louis Baker visited our school on behalf of the NZ Music Commission to mentor music students on songwriting and the music business. We were able to ask him questions about his life as a full-time musician and even got a sneak peek at some of his unreleased songs!

Here are some thoughts from our Year 10 students about their experience with Louis Baker:

Upcoming Events

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Sports Update

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Student Achievements

We love to celebrate our students’ achievements. For inclusion in the Whitby Collegiate newsletter or on our Facebook page, please submit via the button below or email communications@whitbycollegiate.school.nz