Acting Principal's Blog

Kia ora Kevinians and Supporters of the College

The North Otago Ako Hui was something extraordinary. I was so proud of our students and the way they projected the passion of waiata and haka. If you have not seen the video take a look on the Facebook page.

It was lovely to watch the Singing Festival last night. I usually work outside the auditorium on these nights and so only hear it all in the distance, so it was exceptional to be entertained by the fantastic talent we have in this college.

Today the school performed a practice tsunami drill where we evacuated to higher ground in our case the dining hall. The practice went well with points to reflect upon. It's always best to practice these things.

  

I wish you all a pleasant and restful weekend.

God bless
Ngā mihi Nui
Kerry Ryan

2019 Kaupapa Maori Festival "Hui Ako"

Yesterday St Kevin's College performed at the 2019 Kaupapa Maori Festival "Hui Ako" at the Oamaru Opera House

Hui Ako, means "to gather and learn together" and it was great to see a wide range of performances across our North Otago schools.

In our Roopu we had 40 performers made up of a choir and 12 soldiers, representing the Maori Battalion. We performed 3 Waiata, the school Haka and the Ka Mate Haka. Check out the video posted earlier for the full performance!

Congratulations to Jerome Misiloi and Serena O'Brien who were recognised for showing leadership within the group.

Agrilearn Courses

Recently Year 12 students from St Kevin's and Waitaki Girl's were hard at work completing a Small Engines course with Agrilearn Ltd. St Kevin's College is a Primary Industries Trades Academy school, which offers students a great opportunity to develop skills, explore career pathways and gain qualifications in the Agricultural sector.

We are grateful to the excellent Agrilearn tutors for teaching and encouraging our students. Health and Safety is a vital component of the workplace, so students are getting a headstart by being taught how to operate farm vehicles, handle stock and carry out fencing and trough repairs etc.

Thanks also to Dave Heffernan for kindly allowing us to use the farm facilities and sheep at the Oamaru racecourse for the Agrilearn courses.

FieFia Night 2019

Looking back to Fiefia Night last Thursday at the Rec Centre. It was great to see the cluster of schools whose Pasifika communities are so active and contribute so highly to Oamaru.

There was a lovely performance by our Pasifika group and congratulations to our well deserved Excellence Community Award recipients Veronica Kauapa and Leonard Varu.

Thanks to everyone who made this event happen, and our own Tina Dooley for the wonderful work she does with our students.

📷: Rowan Stringer

SKC Knights win the Ryan O'Connell Cairns Memorial Trophy.

On Saturday the SKC Knights played their peers from Central Otago in an annual fixture between SKC and Cromwell for the Ryan O'Connell Cairns Memorial Trophy.

It was a brilliant day for rugby and the lunchtime crowd were treated to a great game. The final score 45-12 to St Kevin's. Well done boys!

Senior B win 1.2 Netball Final!

Congratulations to the SKC Senior B Netball team that won the 1.2 Final yesterday!

They had a close encounter with Valley Bronze and took the win 35-34!

1st quarter 7-10 to Valley 

Half time 17 all 

3rd quarter 27-26 to SKC 

4th quarter 35-34 SKC 

All the girls stepped up and kept their heads, with having only played the same 10 players all season and having 2 of them out for the final the girls adjusted well with having to shuffle positions. The team all came together and played a good team game, Harriet Heaphy in the mid court helped get the ball up the court and done great feeds into the shooters, Peta Katoa at GS really stepped up this week and held nicely, Ruby Bradley in defence had a great game picking up some crucial ball.

Acting Principal's Blog

Kia ora Kevinians and Supporters of the College

Last night I had the absolute pleasure to be part of the annual Fie Fia event held at the rec centre here in North Otago. It was great to see the cluster of schools whose Pasifika communities are so active and contribute so highly to Oamaru. There were performances and awards. Well done to Veronica Kauapa and Leonard Varu for receiving an Excellence Community award. It was so beautiful to shake their hands and see the smiles on faces who did not expect any recognition.

My special thanks to Tina Dooley, who has worked with these great students for many years. I never fail to appreciate the input made by many of our teachers behind the scenes.

I have enjoyed reading the feedback from the Student-Led Conferences last week. It really informs our planning for next year and helps with knowing where everyone is on the spiral of learning.

I wish you a pleasant and restful weekend.

God bless

Ngā mihi Nui


Kerry Ryan

2019 Sporting Blue Nominations

Nominations are open for students who have achieved at a high level in their sport (in or out of SKC) within our Sporting Blues Criteria.

Please forward all nominations no later than midday on Thursday 29th August to sclapperton@stkevins.school.nz or csmith@stkevins.school.nz

Ryan O'Connell Cairns Memorial Trophy.

On Saturday 24th August the St Kevin's Knights will play their peers from Central Otago in the annual fixture between SKC and Cromwell for the Ryan O'Connell Cairns Memorial Trophy.

The game will be played at St Kevin's at 1pm.

Hostel Ohau Ski Trip

On Sunday a group of 50 from the Hostel enjoyed a fantastic day on the snow at the Ohau Skifield.

The weather conditions were superb for a great day of skiing and snowboarding. There was a wide range of skills on display from the very experienced to first-time skiers and snowboarders.

A big thank you to Rachel Fowler, Sam Tatupu, Stacey Jordan and Gerard Shea for giving up their time to take the kids up to the skifield.

St Thomas of Canterbury Exchange 2019

Yesterday some of our boys had an early start to the day as they left for Christchurch to play St Thomas's in our annual interschool.

Results were as follows:

Basketball⛹️‍♂️
Senior Top 5 won 89 - 78
Juniors lost 59 - 79

Rugby🏉

1st XV lost 22 - 59
U14 lost

Congratulations to Tupou Fifita on his 50th cap game for St Kevins 1st XV

Debating 👨‍💼
Seniors lost by 2 points
Juniors lost
Best speaker Bethan

Thanks to Sarah Clapperton for the photos.

Leos Club Fundraise for Kidney Kids Organisation

The SKC Leo's Club in partnership with the Lions club is now collecting aluminium cans for recycling, with proceeds going towards the Kidney Kids organisation.

If you have any aluminium cans lying around home (not tin cans like spaghetti) please help them out by bringing them to school to be placed in the pink bin found in the lower quad.

Thanks to Mrs Hesselin and the Leo's club for starting this initiative for a great cause!

Choose To Reuse Meet with Local MP

The Young Enterprise Group 'Choose To Reuse' have again increased their profile by meeting with Jacqui Dean.

Jonte Kydd-Law, Anna Taylor and Joshua Williams sat down with our local MP on Wednesday to discuss their product, reusable bin liners- a waste product recycled to help with further waste disposal. How good is that! Tarras Weir and Mason Caldwell are also part of the group. 

The group source and clean milk powder sacks from Milligans Food Group, then sew them into bags that can be used in a household rubbish bin.

We look forward to seeing these young entrepreneurs continue to grow through this experience.

Click here to read the article in last week's Oamaru Mail that further profiles their product:

http://www.oamarumail.co.nz/community/pupils-recycled-bin-liners-a-hit/

FieFia Night Thursday 22nd August 2019

All are welcome to the annual Fiefia evening on Thursday 22 August at the Waitaki Community Recreation Centre.

Farewell to Obirin High School Students

Our Obirin High School students left on Sunday to return home.

Their week days were busy with ESOL classes but our visitors also had the opportunity to get out and about, exploring the Waitaki District and some of what it has to offer!

The farewells began at assembly on Wednesday where the Obirin students were presented with certificates. A mini basketball tournament between the students and the SKC Junior Boys and Girls basketball teams followed on Friday.

Once again, a BIG thank you to those who have hosted students in their homes.

We wish our new friends all the best!

Acting Principal Blog

Kia ora Kevinians and Supporters of the College

What a positive way to end the week. Students discussing and leading their own conferences getting involved in their own learning. Having conducted these conferences myself with my own whanau group they are strengthening and very empowering. All vested parties working together to bring about valid learning outcomes.

Our Obirin friends depart this weekend. A special thank you to all the hosts, teachers and buddies who have worked to make the trip so worthwhile.

On Monday the school is closed for teacher training.

I wish you a pleasant and restful weekend.

God bless

Ngā mihi nui


Kerry Ryan

Student Representative Election for the Board of Trustees

Student Representative Election for the Board of Trustees

Nominations are invited for the election of one Student Representative to the Board of Trustees.

Nomination forms can be obtained from the school office.

Nominations close at noon on Friday, 30th August 2019 which is 14 days before the election date and may be accompanied by a signed candidate’s statement.

The voting roll is open for inspection at the school and can be viewed during the hours the office is open.

There will also be a list of candidates’ names for inspection, as they come to hand, on the St Kevin’s College Blog, Student Noticeboard and the e-newsletter.

The poll closes at noon on Friday, 13th September 2019.

Signed
Dee Hayes
Returning Officer

Aoraki Maths Competition

Last week a group of Year 9 and 10 students attended the Aoraki Maths Competition in Timaru. Well done to all 4 of our teams who competed.

A special mention to Sam McCarthy, Morgan Baillie, Rico Mitchell and Toby Growcott from one of our Year 9 teams who placed third!

Max Yanzick selected as non-travelling reserve for NZSS ISF World Schools Cross Country Team

A big congratulations to Max Yanzick who has been selected as a non-travelling reserve for the NZSS team to travel to the ISF World Schools Cross Country Championship in Slovakia in April next year.

Max's selection is based on his Cross Country season so far including his 4th placing at the NZ U18 Cross Country Champs on 4th August in Wellington. This is an awesome achievement! Should someone withdraw from the team or not pass the pre-fitness test, then Max has a good chanceof being called into the team.

All the best Max!

You can find the complete team list here:

https://nzssaa.org.nz/static/isf-team-2020.pdf

Bishop's Shield 2019

St Kevin’s College attended the Bishop’s Shield at Verdon College in Invercargill over the weekend. We competed in speech, debating, drama, impromptu speech, and scripture reading. Our team delivered some stand out performances and did themselves and the school proud.

Congratulations to our Senior Debating team who were awarded first place! Our team was affirming and they defeated St Peter's College, attaining the highest points' aggregate. Cara Anderson, Bethan Ardouin and Joel Kunnethedam passionately debated the topic that the government is delivering good outcomes for New Zealand.

Well done to Cara who was awarded Best Team Leader and to Joel who was awarded Best Speaker.

A big thanks must go to our large contingent of teachers who travelled to coach the students. Congratulations to Kavanagh College (Dunedin) for winning the Bishop Shield overall.

Business After 5 networking event - Young Enterprise Scheme

The South Canterbury Chamber of Commerce hosted a Business After 5 networking event on Wednesday 31 July, at the Ara Institute of Canterbury.

Jonte Kydd-Law and Tarras Weir from one of our Young Enterprise Scheme (YES) groups "Out of the Shed" attended. They had an exhibitor stand to promote their company and sell their product, recycled calf seed bags turned into reusable bin liners.

It was a hugely successful night for the teams, and they sold out of all the bags they had with them! It was a great opportunity to network with the local business community. We heard great feedback that all the students were very professional and engaged with the chamber members who went around to talk to them.

Well done boys!

Acting Principal Blog

Kia ora Kevinians and Supporters of the College

It's been a very interesting week. I have been at the New Zealand Deputy Principal Conference in Wellington. There is so much happening in education that will have real impact on our students futures. I have attended keynote talks by Anne Milne, Marcus Akaharta- Brown and Nigel Latta to name a few but much more of an impact on me has been the workshops run by senior managers from schools all over the country. These people are doing really innovative things and I will definitely bring some of the ideas back to our community to add to our initiatives.

Obirin school have spent the week in classes experiencing lessons with their buddies. It is really a valuable experience for all concerned.

This weekend the Bishops Shield team will be competing at Verdon College. We wish them every blessing and hope they have a cultural experience that adds depth to them as people. I'm confident with the build up and practice that they will bring back some silverware for the trophy cabinet. My special thanks to the large number of teachers involved and for their commitment to their students.

I hope you have a pleasant and enjoyable weekend.

God bless

Ngā mihi nui


Kerry Ryan

New Basketball Banners in School Gym

Check out the new addition to the school gym! A big thank you to Stephen Robertson and LJ Hooker Oamaru who have proudly sponsored these awesome basketball banners.

Thank you Allan, Stefan and Mr Hitchcock for putting these up this week, they look fab!

SADD- 'Focus or Fail' Activity

Last week we had Elton Crane from Road Safety Waitaki at school helping our SADD Committee run a ‘Focus or Fail’ activity.

Students created an obstacle course and timed people completing the course, then had them repeat the same course but doing it while they simultaneously completed a complex task. The idea demonstrated how distractions affect reaction times and accuracy when you are not focused.

Thank you to Elton and our SADD Committee for organising the event.