REPORT OF THE ST MICHAEL’S SCHOOL PRINCIPAL

TO THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF ST MICHAEL and ALL ANGELS PARISH

Sunday 2 May 2010

Our 2009 School year began with 185 pupils: a roll that compared favourably with commencement figures in recent years. Owing to the expected and predicted global recession, our roll did not reach the ‘highs’, by the year’s closure that we had experienced in the last few years.

Two academic staff members, Julie Lee and Teresa Price, resigned their respective positions at the conclusion of 2009: Mrs Lee moved to an appointment at the Cathedral Grammar School for Girls, whilst Mrs Price returned to North New Brighton School. Two fixed term positions were advertised and the successful candidates were: Mrs Raylene Tennant and Mrs Brigit Craig, who assumed control of our Year One and Year Two classes respectively. Mrs Jo Clarke moved from her Year Two position in the Junior Syndicate to our Middle Syndicate’s Year Four class.

As I write I am mindful that we are soon to farewell Mrs Dorothy Burrows and as stated at our 2009 Prizegiving: ‘Dorothy’s exemplary attention to a wide range of tasks in her dual role of Bursar and School Secretary has made her a hard act to follow: indispensable.’

During the course of the year, our staff again demonstrated their ability to be diverse and embrace what has become a full and intricate N.Z. Curriculum: the Middle Syndicate’s Technology unit, entitled ‘Food to Go’, proved to be most successful. Indeed, our School’s unit exemplar has now been included as part of the N.Z. Curriculum’s Technological studies and, entitled our unit writer, Mrs Jo Clarke, to be one of the three National Technology Education 2009 awardees.

The launching of the Government’s National Standards, towards the end of 2009, has been placed well ‘on track’ by our Curriculum leader, Lynne Horwood.

Other notable 2009 academic achievements included:

ICAS (International Competition Australasian Schools) with Taylor Keys (Science) and Vincent Kenworthy (Mathematics) maintaining of our average of two High Distinction awards per year. Our School has now attained 18 of these prestigious awards since 2001.

Otago Problem Solving: Jacob Fitzgibbon earned a place in the Final Challenge group from the original 40,000 entrants.

Science Fair (Canterbury- Westland): again our School was among the prize-winners with Raphaela Walsh, Connor Lindsay and Kevin Jonker receiving awards.

Our School prides itself, in the Cultural arena, by ensuring that it offers opportunities for each of the pupils in our care to develop and mature in the all important skill of acting, playing, singing and speaking to an audience: be it their class, parents, School or syndicate.

The features of our 2009 Cultural pursuits were:

Biennial production: our declared policy is that each pupil will participate in our School production: staged every two years. For our community, our 2009 show ‘Jack’ was a team effort and, in keeping with past years, has provided our School with a true memory moment for 2009. I have stated it a number of times that some of our pupils will earn a living from their cultural skil1s: indeed the lead in ‘Jack’, Austin Harrison, already has a role as the safari man in the popular children’s television show: ‘What Now’. Testament to the popularity of ‘Jack’ was the purchase of 70 DVD’s of this performance.

Chess: this important skill continues to be well nurtured by parent/coach, Hamish Kenworthy. Recent successes have included: a win (19-5) in their contest with St Mark’s Church School (Wellington), four level One and Level Two passes and a Level Three pass, normally sat by Secondary School students, from Vincent Kenworthy, when he was in Year Four!

Debating: our team (Georgia Rouch, Emma-Kate Gardenbroek and Emma Pearson) retained the Goodall Family Cup, in the annual debate with St Mark’s Church School, for the third year in succession.

Festival Choir: our School was honoured to have its strongest representation in the Christchurch Music Festival’s special Senior Choir: Ella-Jane Todd, Laurel Gregory and Rebekah Boyce (2007, 2008 and 2009).

General Knowledge: this course was introduced in 2008 and the winner of the W.H. Boyce Memorial Trophy for the second time: Megan Lord superseded her 92% result in 2008 with a perfect 100% in 2009.

Kapahaka: our new tutor, Maaka Kahukaranui and staff representative Sarah Mahoney have maintained the high standard set by Suzanne Pitama with our group treating Independent Schools’ special visitor, the Hon Heather Roy to her ‘best Christchurch Schools’ welcome’.

School Orchestra: this group accompanied a hymn for the annual grandparents’ morning, the Mass with St Mark’s Church School and entertained visitors on our major Open Day.

Our Schools’ sporting successes included:

Athletics: Karenia Anderson (long jump and 50m sprint) and Simone Gale second placings in long jump and 100m sprint at Canterbury Primary Schools’ Championships.

Cross Country: Simone Gale was selected again in the Canterbury Primary Schools’ Cross Country Championships.

Gymnastics: James Nicholls was placed 10th in the Level Five section at the National competitions.

Hockey: our School boasted five teams with two teams winning their respective championships: the Juniors and Super Eights, who won their grade for the fourth year in succession.

Rugby: our 2009 Sportsperson of the Year (Naylor Trophy) Alex Irvine being selected in the South Island team from the Primary Schools’ tournament in Dunedin.

Rugby League: Jed Scott-Stafford was also selected in the South Island team, after the League tournament on the West Coast.

Trampolining: Shannel Cartwright performed with credit at National events and was ‘on track’ to be chosen in the Indo-Pacific championships: her second occasion in a N.Z. selection.

In our Church School, our Spiritual dimension is an important and integral part of each and every one of our children’s development: this Christian Ethos or Special Character permeates or pervades all that we do at St Michael’s. We have continued to live out a weekly Virtues’ theme, which the Principal introduces and speaks to at the Monday morning School assembly. Again we were pleased to offer the opportunity for pupils and parents to be baptised and receive their first communion: 17 pupils requested a baptism and 28 pupils and one parent received the opportunity for a welcome to the Christian sacrament of Eucharist. Our School is now in its fifth year of its use of the N.Z. Anglican Religious Education Curriculum.

Our School was privileged to receive a first official visit to our enterprise of our new Warden: Bishop Victoria Matthews. Our Junior Syndicate, Middle Syndicate, Year Sevens and Year Eights each received an exclusive audience with our Bishop.

Our Worship Committee, comprising: Lynne Horwood, Suzie Walker, Tony Kendrew, Murray Lennox, the Principal and the Vicar meets at the beginning of each term to choose hymns and songs for School Masses.

Our Senior pupils have continued to acquit themselves well in School Masses as prayer leaders, readers and servers. I thank Rev Lynne Horwood and the Vicar who have presented our pupils with meaningful, purposeful weekly masses.

Our St Michael’s School Board has endeavoured to forge stronger links with the other community stakeholders: P.T.F.A., Trust and Vestry. This can only be made more cohesive with the recently adopted Strategic Plan, which has a shared vision: St Michael’s is a Christian community providing quality education and empowering learners to be compassionate, responsible, resourceful citizens. Our Board has been a focussed, forward thinking committee lead by Hamish Kenworthy, who has also been President of our P.T.F.A. Our P.T.F.A. Secretary, Moranne McIvor, who has organised and run a number of events and our uniform shop is a true ‘gem’1, out of the same ‘mould’ as our longstanding School Secretary.

May I, in closing, pay a special tribute to our Site Chairperson, Mr Michael Ladd, whose caring, gentlemanly approach has ensured: a smooth, workable liaison between our Church and School and that both groups’ aspirations, interest and needs are best met and realised.

Kevin R Boyce

Principal

8 April 2010

1 Websters Dictionary 2002 ‘gem:anything extremely precious or valuable’.