College Newsletter - Friday 2 December
Formal Uniform Monday 5 & Wednesday 7 December
Last day of Term 4 - Weds 7 December, School closes at 12pm
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Headmaster's Message
The season of Advent and Christmas is a time of thanksgiving and optimism as we await the coming of our Saviour Jesus Christ into the world.
As the Tumuaki of Sacred Heart College I was filled with this same spirit of gratitude and positivity at the farewell of Br Gerard Mahony (36 years of service) and Mr John Sullivan (21 years of service). We owe both men a deep sense of gratitude for the generations of young Sacred men who have benefitted from their pastoral care, quality teaching, expert coaching and most importantly being living examples of our Catholic faith and Marist charism. It is staff like Br Gerard and John that make Sacred Heart a special place for all who enter the gates. Fortunately, we have remaining and new staff who follow their example.
I was honoured to witness the Junior Boys’ Water polo team claim the North Island Championship over Rosmini College last weekend. It was a wonderful display of athletic ability, discipline, and teamwork. More importantly, the Sacred spirit of community support, brotherhood and humility in victory reflected well the core values of the College.
As it is the last newsletter of the year, I take this opportunity to wish you all a safe and Holy Christmas. The most precious gift you can give your sons this Christmas is quality family time - full of joy, aroha, and rich conversation, given the year we have had.
Thank you for choosing Sacred Heart College for your sons. It has been a privilege to see their growth in all aspects of school life this year. The staff and I look forward to working with you in 2023.
Patrick Walsh
Headmaster/Tumuaki
Congratulations this week to
All award recipients at our Junior Prizegiving and the Junior Water Polo team for winning the North Island Championship.
- Academic Awards
- Stuart Robertson (Year 8) - for showing great maturity as a learner
- Archie Hanna (Year 7) - for excellent work in all subjects, being a part of the 7PE final debate team, and creating fine Religious Education and Statistics assignments.
- Sacred Heart Marist Man Awards
- Julian Pinfold (Year 8) - for showing care and concern for his fellow classmates.
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Week 8 - Term 4
MONDAY 5 DECEMBER
Formal Uniform
Year 7 trip to Panmure Pools
Learning Support Information Evening, 5.30pm
TUESDAY 6 DECEMBER
Year 8 trip to Panmure Pools
WEDNESDAY 7 DECEMBER
Last day of Term 4, school closes at 12pm
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Term Dates for 2023
Term 1: Wednesday 1 February - Thursday 6 April
Term 2: Monday 24 April – Friday 30 June
Term 3: Monday 17 July - Friday 22 September
Term 4: Monday 9 October – Wednesday 6 December
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Special Character
As 2022 draws to a close, we farewell some of our staff. Mrs Karyn Wrigley, from our Commerce Department, is leaving to undertake further study; Mr Pahlavi Timoteo from our Mathematics Department and College Poutu Pasifika, is taking some time out from the teaching profession; Mrs Helen Chadwick, our dedicated and inspirational Food Technology and Hospitality Teacher, is retiring after giving us a tremendous amount of service; and as mentioned above, Mr John Sullivan and Br Gerard Mahony. All of their contributions and significant involvement in the wider college and extracurricular areas have genuinely been recognised, and we wish them all the very best for the future. Earlier this week we shared a special celebration for Br Gerard and John, joined by some recent Old Boys.
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“Kia hiwa rā, Kiahiwa rā”
New Gate Sign - Te Ngākau Tapu
We are looking forward to the blessing and unveiling of our new sign - Te Ngākau Tapu at 10am on Wednesday 7 December. The new sign will be located at Gate 1, Crossfield Road, positioned alongside our current Sacred Heart College sign. The blessing will include prayer shared with our community, staff, students and guests.
Nau Mai Haere Mai
Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion for 2023
The role of Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion is an important one within the Church community, including our College and Hostel. Specific requirements for this role of distributing the Eucharist have been laid down by the Diocese and must be met prior to students' commissioning. If you are a Year 13 student in 2023, you are invited to apply for this role at the beginning of the year with training to follow. Please click here to apply. Any questions about this role should be directed to Mr O'Donnell.
Marist Man Programme
Thank you to all those involved in supporting and being a part of the Sacred Heart Man Service Programme for 2022. It is a core part of the mission of the College and a large number of boys have contributed generously to the welfare of others. Unfortunately due to production and supply chain issues outside of our control, there is a delay in the arrival of the service badges. These will now be distributed in 2023 to those who completed the fully prescribed hours per year level. Students may complete the service hours at any stage prior to the deadline, including, as some have asked, over the coming Christmas and New Year break. If this is done, please retain the signed forms and submit them at the scheduled due date next year.
Details for the 2023 programme for Years 7-11 can be found by clicking on the links below:
Year 7&8 Marist Man Service Programme
Year 9&10 Marist Man Service Programme
Year 11 Marist Man Service Programme
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Academic
Junior Prizegiving
This week we celebrated our Junior Prize-giving, recognising the achievements and talents of our young Year 7-10 students. Congratulations to all our award recipients and their families. To view all photos from the event please visit our website.
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English Text Books
We ask that the boys who have not returned their English text they studied this year, please drop it off to the Library before the end of the year. If your book is not returned, a charge will be put onto the parent portal to cover the cost of purchasing new copies. If you are unsure if you returned your book or not, please get in touch with Mr Don Harland.
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Reader Writer Volunteers Morning Tea
As a thank you to all our reader writers and volunteers we have had helping our students through their exams this year, we would like to invite you to a morning tea hosted by Mr Jason Cornford and Mr Patrick Walsh in the Staff Room on Monday, 5 December at 10am. We look forward to seeing you all.
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SHC Google Account
A reminder to all students leaving Sacred Heart in 2022, your SHC Google Account will be deleted NEXT FRIDAY, 9 December. This means you will no longer be able to access any content stored in your Google Drive or school email account. Please make sure you have a copy of anything you would like to keep.
You can transfer all of your school Google Account content to a personal Google account using Google Takeout. Follow this link for instructions: https://takeout.google.com/transfer
If you have any issues or questions please email Angela Gamil.
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Pastoral Care
The Pastoral Care team would like to thank the school community for their ongoing support throughout this year. It has again been a year that has provided us with a number of disruptions and challenges, but the support and care our community has shown for each other has been incredibly humbling. We wish you all a safe and happy holiday. May you have time to gather as a family, recharge batteries and celebrate a new year in.
Last day of the year – Wednesday 7 December, 12noon
School finishes for the year on Wednesday, 7 December at 12noon. Kiwi Coach buses and the Pukekohe bus will leave at that time but all other AT buses will be departing at their normal time of 3.15pm. It may be advisable for parents of boys catching these buses to make alternative arrangements.
Online Safety
As the summer holidays approach, we reinforce the importance of keeping safe online. As well as the valuable resources provided by Netsafe, Linewize Education Blog, and John Parsons, who has some great resources. In particular, his book Keeping Children Safe Online. Please take time to view these resources.
Uniform and Grooming standards
Students are reminded that hair and grooming need to meet school guidelines at the commencement of the 2023 academic school year. These can be found on our website. All school holiday “hairstyles” must be corrected by the commencement of the 2023 academic school year.
Donations of second hand uniform items that our son no longer requires are most gratefully received by the Pastoral Care Team and families in need. Please contact Mrs Kelly Jennings at the uniform shop to arrange drop off.
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Please also ensure when purchasing items of uniform, specifically shoes, that they meet school requirements (black leather lace-ups and polishable). All uniform items need to be named.
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Devices
All students are expected to bring a fully charged device to school each day as part of their school equipment. With impending sales and Christmas approaching, a new replacement device for school could make an excellent purchase. Information regarding purchasing a device can be found on our website. It is completely your choice where to purchase a device for your son, however as an example Cyclone have put together a Chromebook bundle for SHC, please view details here.
Vaping
Te Whatu Ora – Health New Zealand has launched its Protect Your Breath, a youth vaping reduction campaign. Young people need supportive environments to navigate their paths and live healthy lives; this includes having supportive adults and parents around them. The campaign website also provides information for parents and caregivers. Please refer to these links for facts about vaping: Protect Your Breath and Vaping Facts.
Wellbeing
School holidays can often be difficult times for families. Please see below a range of supporting resources and helplines for children and young people:
Support for parents, family and friends
- EDANZ – improving outcomes for people with eating disorders and their families. Freephone 0800 2 EDANZ or 0800 233 269, or in Auckland 09 522 2679. Or email info@ed.org.nz.
- Parent Help – 0800 568 856 for parents/whānau seeking support, advice and practical strategies on all parenting concerns. Anonymous, non-judgemental and confidential.
- Family Services 211 Helpline – 0800 211 211 for help finding (and direct transfer to) community-based health and social support services in your area.
- Skylight – 0800 299 100 for support through trauma, loss and grief; 9am–5pm weekdays.
- Yellow Brick Road – Supporting families towards mental wellbeing.
As always if you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact Deputy Headmaster -Pastoral - Tracy Purcell, Assistant Headmaster - Ric Knight, or Assistant Headmaster in 2023 for Years 7-10 - Andrea Butler.
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Sport
Cricket
SHC Cricket Results 26 November
SHC 2nd XI lost to MAGS
MAGS 347/6, Jared Faulkner 3/53.Jack Williams 2/54, SHC 143 all out, Jakub Kozyniak 31*, Paddy McNamara 30.
SHC Colts lost to Westlake
Westlake 239/7, Owen Dabner 3/49, SHC 92 all out.
SHC Junior A won against St Peter’s, St Peter’s 97/4, SHC 98/7
Year 9 NZCT Tournament
Lost to Westlake, SHC 113/6, Tom Lees 37*, Westlake 115/4
Won against Takapuna Grammar, TGS 87 all out, SHC 88/4, Cooper Blake 32*
Lost to AGS, AGS 152/10, James Vettori 5/21 including a hattrick, SHC 56 all out.
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Water Polo
North Island Secondary Schools Championships
It has been a great finish to the season for our Junior Red Team who won NISS Championships on the weekend. There were some hard-fought games against Tauranga and Rangitoto College, but the boys rallied to win the final against Rosmini 13-6.
Congratulations also to Jett Evans who was awarded Most Valuable Player and Blaise van Heerden who was awarded the Most Valuable Player overall at the NISS tournament.
Our Junior Blue Team also played in Division 1 and had some wins and losses finishing in 13th place.
We would like to thank our supporters for showing up on Sunday to cheer our boys on. It meant a lot to the team and was noticed and admired by other schools.
This weeks games:
This week the finals of the College Sport League are being played:
Friday 2 December
Junior Red vs Rangitoto at 5.45pm @ Dio
Junior White vs Selwyn Black at 8.30pm @ St Cuths
Sunday 4 December
Finals tba
Our Performance Aquatics Program has been very successful this term and we will be running it again in Term 1 next year. Please email Deb Evans if you are interested. A google form will be sent out next year to sign up.
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Careers
The Electrical Training Experts are offering a final opportunity for students who are interested in applying for an apprenticeship to come to their recruitment day on Wednesday 7 December from 10am to 2pm. For more information see the attached flyer.
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College Information
Year 7&8 End of Year trips
Our Year 7&8 students will be travelling to the Panmure Pools (Year 7) on Monday 5 December and (Year 8) on Tuesday 6 December. If you are available for parent help, please contact your son’s homeroom teacher or Mrs Deborah Boughtwood.
Learning Support Information Evening
You are invited to an Information Evening for parents of students that learn differently. It will be held in the College Staffroom on Monday, 5 December 5.30pm-6.30pm. This will be an opportunity to learn practical ways to help your son and how to access resources, meet Support Staff, network with other parents, as well as to share information and advice with others. We will have parent and student speakers as well as information about our Library, Career Advisory, School Counsellors, Learning Coaches, Digital Support and Literacy Support. Light refreshments will be served. Please RSVP to msmidt@sacredheart.school.nz
Current Job Vacancies
Uniform Shop Assistant
We have a temporary ‘on call’ requirement at present to help in the Uniform Shop in January 2023. There may also be other days throughout the year where this person could be required (usually beginning and end of term). Main responsibilities will include:
- Serving and fitting students for uniform needs
- Using the “Point of Sale’ system
- Unpacking Stock, assisting with Stock Takes
- Carrying out general administrative tasks as assigned by the Uniform Shop Manager
- Processing Online Shop Orders
We require someone with effective communication skills and the ability to work quickly and under pressure. Please direct any interest in the first instance to our Uniform Shop Manager Mrs Kelly Jennings
Te Reo Maori Teacher
The College is looking to appoint a fixed-term, part-time Te Reo Maori teacher. Please visit our website for the full job description, including how to apply.
Uniform Shop
A reminder that if you need to purchase uniform items for 2023, the Uniform Shop will close for the year on Tuesday 6 December, opening hours can be found here. The Uniform Shop will reopen on Monday 23 January 2023. Please note, the shop is NOT open on Saturday 3 December as previously advised.
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Community Notices
Mark Wylie
Former SHC teacher, Mr Mark Wylie died peacefully, aged 81, at Oamaru Hospice last Monday after four days in care. Mark taught Senior Mathematics at SHC for 24 years from the early 80s. During that time, one of Mark's Year 13 students topped Statistics for the country. Mark lived in Oamaru for the last decade or so, and was active in the Parish and wider community. Mark was a life-long friend and colleague of Br Kevin O'Malley and taught in Samoa prior to SHC. May he rest in peace.
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Gifts 4 Kids This Christmas
This Christmas, thousands of families are struggling to make ends meet. If you would like to donate a gift for children ages 0-18 years old, please email Gifts 4 Kids to find your nearest drop-off site.
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