St Kevin's College News and Reminders Term 1 Week 3

Kia ora whānau and friends of St Kevin's College,

This week, we welcomed Ms Neeta Bhushan, the Indian High Commissioner to New Zealand, for the Oamaru Flight School Prize Giving on Monday; on Tuesday evening, we hosted the Filipino Parents' Information Evening; Wednesday saw our 2025 Peer Support Leaders come together to prepare for their role in guiding Year 9 students alongside the Service Day Expo; we wrapped up Week 3 with a Swimming Sports Day! 

Principals Post

Kia Ora Kevinians and Supporters of the College,

I'm not sure why I'd do this to myself on a Friday, but I started to read the ERO report on NCEA Level 1. Unfortunately, there are a wide range of recommendations which indicate that it is not likely to be fully fit for purpose for some time yet. This does not worry us as we have largely switched to Cambridge IGCSE, and those areas still working with NCEA Level One have a clear strategy to connect those areas with our vocational training, which is working well for those wanting to move into apprenticeships. However, the report does highlight that many parents still feel uncertain about how to navigate NCEA, and in our context with Cambridge qualifications as well, it is really important that families and employers understand what we are trying to achieve.

In essence, if you are going to go into a trade, you may take some IGCSE courses at Level One and mix them up with some NCEA courses, which are Achievement Standards-based, and you also might sprinkle in a few Unit Standard courses. These are usually really specific to the job you want to do, for example, 'First Aid Certificates', 'Equestrian Standards' or 'Chemical Handling', to name a few.

This 'mix and match' approach means you will not have a whole qualification, but you will have a record of learning in a range of different assessments. When you are in Year 11, doing Level One standards or IGCSE standards, the idea is that you are having a trial run at sitting a high stakes assessment. In the real world, no one would see any kind of Level 1 qualification as an ultimate goal of education. For that, you need either AS or A levels in the Cambridge system or NCEA Levels 2 and 3.

Our plan is for the vast majority of students at SKC to be aiming to achieve three AS or A levels by the time they leave school with high enough marks that they satisfy the literacy criteria for the universities OR that they leave school with at least the Level 2 NCEA qualification.

Because we can't always predict how life will turn out, over the next couple of years at least, we are going to aim to sit the AS levels in 2026 for most students in most subjects whilst, at the same time, students will complete NCEA assessments where it's convenient. This will give our students the best of both worlds.

An example of this might be that I am studying a novel for my AS examination which I am planning on sitting in June 2026. Whilst I am doing that, I write a practice essay under the supervision of my English teacher. That essay can then be marked by my English teacher so that I can have some feedback, but that essay can also make up part of my portfolio for the writing standard in NCEA Level 2.

By employing clever tricks like this, we can ensure that whilst doing the work for Cambridge, we can pick up the credits for NCEA, which will be especially important for those students who may or may not be planning on staying until the end of Year 13 or going to University. The same applies for the end of year examination round for the externals.

This approach provides a safety net for those who need it but also does require that families monitor their students progress carefully as we are not employing the tactic of throwing millions of standards at a student and hoping some of them stick, this is a much finer process with little margin for error.

As a final comment, I would like to draw your attention to the picture I have included. This year, we have spent $16,000 on upgrading our technology area so that those students who are interested in trade training in hospitality have what they need to learn at a commercially viable level. As an ex hotel manager and man with an incredibly rich background in the industry, we are lucky to have Mr Griggs steering this ship. We are hoping eventually to install a cafe on site so harassed parents can grab a caffeine shot on the way to work in the morning.

Have a great Valentine's Day!

Jo

School Notices

• This is a friendly reminder that parents and caregivers must let the office know beforehand if students have appointments during the day: 03 437 1665 or 021 437 176.
  
  
• All students in Years 9-12 are not permitted to leave the school grounds during intervals and lunch breaks.
  
  

• All Year 9-11 students must get caregiver consent to sign out during school hours. Caregivers can email or call the office to provide consent and reason for the absence. Students cannot sign out until the caregiver is reached.

Student stationery for 2025 is now available at the office!

Cash or Eftpos only, no account charges.

📚✏️ Prices include:

• Math Book: $2.70
• Exercise Book: $1.70
• Highlighter: $2.50
• Compass: $4.00
• Colouring Pencils (12-pack): $4.50
  

All profits go to Te Ngākau Nui, supporting our school community.

Attendance Matters

As we venture into Term 1, it is an excellent time to check in on your school attendance. 

Every day matters! 

SKC uniform shop

SKC desperately needs donations of any and all second-hand clothing for the SKC uniform shop. We especially need pants, shorts, white and blue shirts, and socks. Depending on their condition, we are able to buy back kilts, blazers, jumpers, soft shell jackets, and new PE tops.

Drop off at the shop on Thursdays (1-2 p.m) or the main school office. 

For all inquiries, call Jane at 0211996525.

SKC Moke Jackets 

The uniform shop is now selling wind and semi-waterproof SKC Moké student jackets.

These lightweight jackets have 90% Duck down lining, so you know they'll be toasty warm.

Available now from the uniform shop for $90.

Comes with its own bag and packs down for minimal space.

Love Teaching but Need Flexibility? Join Our Relief Team! 🌟

Are you a qualified primary or secondary teacher taking a break from full-time work?
Maybe you're at home with young children but miss the classroom. SKC is seeking relief teachers to join our supportive and welcoming school community!

✨ Stay connected to education without full-time commitment
✨ Be part of a great team and make a difference

Interested? We'd love to hear from you! 

Send your expressions of interest to Jo Walshe at jwalshe@stkevins.school.nz to learn more.

2025 Term Dates and Holidays

• Term 1 Monday 27th January to Friday 11th April
• Term 2 Monday 28th April to Friday 27th June
• Term 3 Monday 14th July to Friday 19th September
• Term 4 Monday 6th October to Friday 5th December

2025 Public Holidays

• Good Friday: Friday, 18th April
• Otago Anniversary Day: Monday, 24th March
  (The hostel will be closed from 5 pm Friday, 21st March until 2 pm, Monday 24th March)
• Easter Monday: Monday, 21st April
• Anzac Day: Friday, 25th April
• King's Birthday: Monday, 2nd June
  (The hostel will be closed from 5 pm Friday, 30th May until 2 pm, Monday 2nd June)
• Matariki: Friday, 20th June
• Labour Day: Monday, 27th October
  (The hostel will be closed from 5 pm Friday, 24th October until 2 pm, Monday 24th October)

Faith Facts

Week 3

Feast day 11 February: The World Day for the Sick was introduced by St. Pope John Paul II to help us remember to pray for all those who are ill and for their caregivers. He chose this day because it coincides with the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes; which commemorates the appearances in 1858 of Our Lady to a young French girl named Bernadette Soubirous. Lourdes has been a site of pilgrimage, renowned for healing, ever since.

The Importance of a Cathedral (DUNEDIN: Anniv. of dedication of cathedral, 1886) A Cathedral is the center of the life of the local Church. The very word "cathedral" in Latin or Greek, means "chair." From the cathedra, the chair or the seat, the Bishop teaches, sanctifies, and guides the people of God. From the cathedral, the church with the bishop's chair. The primary purpose of a cathedral is to be a place of worship but it is also often the oldest building in continuous use in its surrounding area and of significance to the heritage, culture and community life.

📢 St Kevin’s Feast Day – 3rd June 2025

Join us for a Mass of Initiation as we celebrate this special day! Any student wishing to be baptised, confirmed, or receive their first communion is welcome.

📩 Contact Mrs. Herbst for details: jherbst@stkevins.school.nz

Lately at SKC

Oamaru Flight School Prize Giving celebrations

On Monday, we hosted Ms Neeta Bhushan, the Indian High Commissioner to New Zealand, at the College for the Oamaru Flight School Prize Giving celebrations.

A distinguished diplomat with nearly 30 years of service, Ms Bhushan has represented India globally and is the first woman to hold this esteemed position in New Zealand. Her dedication to strengthening India-NZ ties in politics, trade, defence, and culture is truly inspiring.

We were honoured by her visit and grateful for the opportunity to connect with such a remarkable leader! 

2025 Peer Support Leaders

It was fantastic to bring our 2025 Peer Support Leaders together on Tuesday as they prepared to guide and support our incoming Year 9 students throughout the year! 🎉👩‍🏫👨‍🏫✨

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🌟 What a Fantastic Service Day Expo! 🌟

🌟 THANK YOU! 🌟

A massive shoutout to everyone who helped make today’s Service Expo a success! 🎉

Your effort in showcasing SADD, Caritas, Leos, and the Choir made an impact.

Thanks for inspiring Year 9s to get involved; let’s keep the spirit of service alive! 💪✨

Filipino Parents' Information Evening 2025! 🙌

🌟 Thank You for a Wonderful Evening! 🇵🇭🎉

A huge thank you to all the Filipino parents who joined us for the Filipino Parents' Information Evening 2025! 🙌

It was fantastic to see such a great turnout and to have meaningful discussions about the New Zealand education system with our Senior Leadership Team (SLT).

Your engagement, questions, and insights made this another successful and valuable event. We truly appreciate your commitment to your children's education and our school community.

Maraming salamat po! 💙

We look forward to seeing you again at future events! 📚✨

School Events

Coming up this term

Friday 21st - 23rd February - Edmund Rice Leadership Weekend
Wednesday 26th - 28th February - 12GEO Trip - Aoraki Mt Cook
Wednesday 26th February - Mural Project Celebration Period 5
Tuesday 4th March - NCEA/Cambridge talk to Yr 11s
Wednesday 5th March - Otago Uni visit
Tuesday 11th March - Year 12 Retreat
Friday 14th March - Health and Safety course
Tuesday 18th March - Year 9 Retreat
Wednesday 19th March - Year 13 Bio trip 
Thursday 20th March - Otago Polytechnic visit
Tuesday 1st April - Year 11 Retreat
Thursday 3rd April - Yr 12/13 Transition Day

Sport Events

Coming up this term

Sunday 16th - 17th February - Roncalli Cricket exchange 
Thursday 20th February - Aoraki Tennis
Friday 28th February - Aoraki Senior Touch
Sunday 2nd -3rd March - Taieri Cricket exchange
Sunday 2nd March - Aoraki Triathlon
Tuesday 4th March - Aoraki Senior Girls Volleyball
Thursday 6th March - Aoraki Senior Boys Volleyball
Friday 7th - 9th March - SISS Rowing
Wednesday 12th March - Aoraki Athletics
Wednesday 12th - 13th March - St Thomas Cricket exchange
Saturday 22nd March - SISS Touch
Saturday 22nd March - SISS Mountain Biking
Monday 24th -30th March - Summer Tournament Week - MAADI Cup
Thursday 27th March - Aoraki Croquet
Thursday 27th March - NZSS Triathlon
Friday 28th March - NZSS Triathlon NZ Mixed Relay
Friday 4th - 6th April - SISS Athletics
Tuesday 8th April - Senior Quads

SKC Athletics Day 2025

Last Friday, 7th Feb, we held our annual Athletics Day 2025 at Centennial Park – what a fantastic day! 🏃‍♂️☀️

From incredible performances on the track to great team spirit, it was a day to remember.

Thank you to Mr Mawson for his support and our talented student photographers, Harriet Carter Trotman, Lucia Landaus and Sophia Mawson, for capturing the day's best moments!

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Are You Interested in Coaching Rugby in 2025?

St Kevin’s College is seeking passionate and dedicated coaches for the following teams:

• Boys Under 16.5
• Boys Under 14.5
• Girls St Taki Under 18
• Girls St Taki Under 15

If you'd like to be part of our coaching team, please email Mr. Smith, TIC of Rugby, at csmith@stkevins.school.nz to register your interest.

Congratulations to Kobe Narruhn!

This Saturday, Kobe has been selected to trial for the New Zealand U17 Junior Tall Blacks team. 

The selection process includes identifying a squad during the trials and a camp in April, where the final team will be chosen for the FIBA U17 Oceania Cup.

Wishing Kobe the best of luck on this exciting journey! 🚀🏀

2025 New Zealand Rowing Championships

Good luck to all our rowers heading to Twizel next week to compete in the 2025 New Zealand Rowing Championships, which will be held from February 18th to 22nd at Lake Ruataniwha! 🚣‍♀️🏆

This event marks the final regatta of the season for our rowers representing ORC before they transition to their school squads for upcoming competitions. 🎉

A special mention goes to the following SKC students competing with ORC: Gemma Aker, Greer Dickson, Indeg Jones-Hogan, Isla Kappely, Kouper Lynch, Laura Aker, Paddy Spillane, Payton Dickson, and Summer Colombus. 🌟 

We wish them all the best on the water; give it your all! 💪💦

School TV

Sleep

As the school year is about to begin it is timely to consider our holiday sleeping routine. Young people today have extremely busy schedules, with ever increasing responsibilities at school and at home. Many young people, especially adolescents, are going to bed later and later and are at risk of sleep deprivation. This affects three areas of a young person’s development: psychological, physiological and psychosocial. All three are essential to a person's growth, learning ability and overall well-being. Sleep is vital to a young person's overall development and is as important as diet and exercise.

Sleep also strengthens a young person’s immune system and supports their ability to function properly on a daily basis. Young people who do not get enough sleep show increased levels of aggressive behaviour, are less attentive and are much less active. Trying to catch up on sleep on weekends is not the answer and can still lead to severe sleep deprivation.

In this edition of SchoolTV, families will learn about the importance of sleep and how sleep deprivation can have adverse effects on a young person's health and wellbeing.

If you have any concerns about your young person, please contact the Pastoral Care Team/Dean or our school counsellor for further information or seek medical or professional help.

Here is the link to the Sleep edition of SchoolTV

https://stkevins.nz.schooltv.me/newsletter/sleep

Guidelines for Attitude to Learning

General philosophy.

The purpose of ATL feedback is so that parents and students can have real time information about how students are engaging in each subject.

The overarching objective should be to have ‘no surprises’ for caregivers.

ATL numbers should cover how students are working generally in relation to:
How they are developing the habits of an independent life long learner.

This means: 

Teachers will be providing opportunities within classes for independent, differentiated learning opportunities.

ATLs will be used with the Junior reports. This will require additional weight to be given to ATL, meaning that periodically, a curriculum statement will be added to the ATL report. At the end of Term 1, the focus will be on setting goals and identifying learning challenges for the students so that we head things off before they become a problem.

Comments.

These should be specific and address immediate concerns or celebrate recent, specific achievements.  
These should provide caregivers the opportunity to be able to participate in supporting their student.
These should be brief and accurate. 
Only be provided for immediate and relevant issues.  

What ATL’s are NOT.

They are not a method for punishing a student.
They are not a forum for diagnosing medical or learning issues e.g. suggesting a student is dyslexic
They are not a place for long term guidance such as large general statements about learning.
They are not a report which you must feel compelled to write every fortnight.
They are not a replacement for Dean involvement, discussions with HoF’s, phone calls to parents etc.
They are not a ‘restorative chat’.

Community Events/Notices

🐑 Lamb Day 2025 🎉

Join us for fun, food, music, and heritage!

📅 Date: Saturday 15th Feb - 10 am - 3 pm
📍 Location: 565 Alma-Maheno Highway, 8km south of Ōamaru

Enjoy live music, delicious food, market stalls, heritage demonstrations, kids' activities, and more!

A great family day out celebrating our agricultural roots.

🧶 Calling All Crafty Souls! 🧶

The St Kevin’s College Knitting Circle desperately needs wool, knitting needles, and crochet hooks! If you have any spare needles (sizes 6 to 8), hooks, or wool gathering dust at home, we’d love to use them.

Your donations will help us continue creating warm, handmade items for those in need. 💙

📍 Drop-off Location: St Kevin’s College School Office

Every little bit helps—thank you for your support! 🙌

❄️ Winter Sports Footwear Night ❄️

📅 Wednesday, 26th February

⏰ 4:00 PM – 8:00 PM

📍 223 Thames Street, Oamaru

🔥 Get ready for the new winter sports season with the latest footwear! 🔥

✅ Exclusive in-store specials – one night only!

✅ Exciting giveaways!

✅ Meet the Asics New Zealand rep!

✅ Enter the draw to WIN a pair of Asics shoes! 👟*

(*Conditions apply)

🚀 Beginner & Advanced Coding Lessons for Kids! 🎮💻

Looking to equip your child with essential digital skills?

CodingNZ offers fun and engaging coding lessons for Years 5-10 students!

📌 Weekdays after school

📌 Attend online from home

📌 Learn a valuable skill for the future!

🎉 Sign up for a FREE trial today!

🔗 codingnz.com

Get Waitaki Fit for the Future!

Welcome back to a new school year. Waitaki District Council is warming up to get the District fit for the future this year, and consultation on the Long-Term Plan runs from February 4 through to March 3 this year.

We're putting in the hard yards and want your opinion on the future of water services, selling council-owned property, setting up an economic development agency, and protecting some of our coastal assets.

You can find out more by going to Let's Talk. waitaki.govt.nz. It'll also have information about the online Q&As, Community Q&As, and other consultation events we're running throughout February.

It's time to have your say; make sure you submit the Long-Term Plan this month.

St John Youth in Oamaru

St John Youth focuses on helping people aged 5 to 18 develop their potential through leadership, community engagement, and fostering hauora (a holistic approach to health and well-being).

Meeting Details:

• Location: St John Oamaru, 23 Exe Street, Oamaru.
• Cadets Meeting Time: Mondays from 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM.
• Penguins Meeting Time: Mondays from 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM.

Contact Information:

• Email: youth@stjohn.org.nz
• Phone: 0800 ST JOHN
• Website: youth.stjohn.org.nz

Papakaio School 2025 Fundraiser

Battle of the Bikers Ride - 15th March 2025 - Willow Park ​

Compete against other schools to take out the title. ​

How to score and represent your high school:

• Lap Crushers: Every lap earns 1 point for your school. ​
• Team Power: Each team entry gets 5 bonus points. ​
• Solo Legends: Individual riders score 10 points for their school. ​
• Chill Points: Every entry on the Easy Rider track earns 1 point. ​

Register online from 1st January 2025 at www.papakaio8hour.nz. ​

Edge portal and app guide

We have an updated guide on how to use the Edge caregiver portal/app that allows you to view school information about your child(ren), and to pay school bills online if your school supports this. The portal & app gives you quick and easy access to the information for the children in your care and can receive announcements and notifications from the school. Please view the guide here

Edge is Becoming Helix! 🚀

We're thrilled that Edge is evolving into Helix—an upgraded platform for secondary and area schools! 🎓

For now please still use your existing Edge logins

What's new?

✅ Specialised Features: Helix offers enhanced modules and tools tailored to secondary and area schools' unique needs.

✅ Dedicated Teams: Helix and Edge are now separate products, allowing us to focus on delivering the best for each school type.

✅ Continued Development: Helix will grow in ways that support secondary/area schools, while Edge remains the go-to platform for primary and intermediate schools.

What about the mobile app?

📱 The Helix App is coming soon! In the meantime, you can continue using the Edge app to stay connected.

With Helix, you'll still get the same great functionality you love from Edge; it's just upgraded for your needs.

Stay tuned for more updates! 🎉

News to Share?

We love celebrating our students' success. Photos are always a bonus; please email these as Facebook Messenger compresses the quality!

Please let me know via email any relevant news we could share - srees@stkevins.school.nz

You can follow St Kevin's College on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube

Have a great summer! 

Ngā mihi
Shane Rees
Communications and Events