Friday, August 28, 2015

Principal's Comment

Kia ora Kevinians and Supporters of the College

"With walls of grace surround us all, St Kevin who thine armour wear..." bellowed from the auditorium last evening as the 2015 Choral and Singing Festival began by showcasing House choirs. As lead adjudicator Neil Johnson noted in his summation, "the choirs are a mix of talent depending on who is in the House, so it is important that the group work as a team and take the opportunity to entertain us." The capacity audience was indeed entertained. As we moved into solos and duets we were treated to some stunning performances. My thanks to all those who have contributed to such a successful evening, from front of house to backstage. To the staff, thank you for giving up your time to coach and supervise the Houses. I look forward to tracking the progress of the many talented entertainers we are nurturing.
As we go into the long weekend we have a number of teams heading away to winter sporting tournaments across the South Island. The various draws have been posted on this week's blog as well as the College Facebook page and I encourage you to enjoy the sports on offer if you have the opportunity. Thank you to all of the staff, coaches, managers and parent helpers who will be giving up their time to travel with the teams. We wish you and all of the players a safe journey and every success as you take to the field or court.

Finally, I ask that you keep Mrs Ryan in your prayers.

Hei konā mai i roto i ngā mihi
Paul Olsen, Principal





Choral Festival 2015


The 2015 Choral Festival was held last night in the Auditorium and the capacity audience were treated to a fantastic evening!  Our thanks to our judging panel, Neil Johnson, Callum Ruddenklau (WBHS) and Maisie Robinson (WGHS), to Dan Lewis from Sound Plus and to all of the staff who coached and supported the singers, House Captains and choirs.

Winning House Choir - Treacy House
Best Conductor - Georgia Vickers (Whyte)
Best Accompanist - Eva Liardet (Magee)
Junior Girls' Solo - Polly Harper
Junior Boys' Solo - Jonte Kydd-Law
Duet - Georgia Sillibourne & Tivinia Misiloi
Senior Girls' Solo - Georgia Sillibourne
Senior Boys' Solo - Kurt Mordeno
Small Group - Ilaisipa Tahaafe, Georgia Sillibourne & GypsyMae Harihona Harrison
Overall Winning House - Treacy House

For those who were unable to join us last night, or who missed viewing the evening on the Live Stream page, you will be able to watch footage on Live Stream for the net couple of weeks.  Follow the link below to the St Kevin's College Live Stream page (if you don't have a Live Stream login in simply click on "create account" and enter your email address.  It will send a notification to your email inbox - click on the link provided, enter your name, create a password and your login is now active for you to enjoy all of the Live Stream events at the College)

ST KEVIN'S COLLEGE LIVE STREAM PAGE - http://livestream.com/accounts/9636732

Y9 Taster Changes

The last change for Y9 Taster subjects will be on Monday 7 September.


9S - Music and Art
9T - Drama and Information Literacy
9K - Graphics and Food Technology
9C - Material Technology and Mandarin

Y10 Cambridge Speech Competition

Rebecca Whittet took out the Y10 Cambridge Speech Competition which was held last Friday.  Students were given the topic of poverty and Rebecca's thought provoking speech challenged her peers to think about the priorities that are placed on other things at the expense of this world wide issue.  Well done Rebecca.

Thursday, August 27, 2015

Boys Hockey Trophy Haul


The Boys Hockey team have finished their season in style with a 7-5 win in the last game.  They secured the Champions of Champions Trophy and placed runner up for the Competition Trophy.  They were also presented with a trophy for the team that scored the most goals in any secondary school team (boys or girls) in the South Canterbury competition.  Well done boys!  All the best for tournament week.

Tournament Week Sporting Draws

Follow the action! Click on the links below for Tournament Week sporting draws.

BASKETBALL BOYS & GIRLS

HOCKEY GIRLS

FOOTBALL GIRLS

FOOTBALL BOYS

NETBALL

HOCKEY BOYS

Friday, August 21, 2015

Principal's Comment

Kia ora Kevinians and supporters of the College.

With fewer than 40 teaching days left for NCEA students in the school year, it is timely for teachers to have the opportunity to meet with caregivers to discuss student progress and achievement. While the meetings are more of a "touch base" for most, caregivers are welcome to schedule a follow up meeting if more time is needed. While these conversations may be informative and challenging, the most important result is the action that is generated. Please feel free to follow up your meeting by email or request feedback via Attitude to Learning comments.

Our office staff were also available to update the database information we hold on families. If the details in the caregiver portal are not correct, please contact us with the corrections so the we have up to date information for emergencies and mail outs. If you cannot get into the caregiver portal, give the office a call and we can sort any problems out for you.

Congratulations to our Māori performance students for their tremendous efforts at the Ako Hui on Tuesday. Thank you to Mrs Plunket and Mr Farrell for the preparations and arrangements on the day.

Please keep in your prayers Xavier Kahukura-Davis, Cheyanne and Korey Patrick and their whanau as they mourn their loved ones. We also pray for Mrs Potter as she recovers from illness and all those who are battling the ravages of winter illness.

Hei konā mai i roto i ngā mihi
Paul Olsen, Principal

Uniform Shop

The Uniform Shop will be closed during Tournament Week on Thursday 3 September.  Thank you.

Thursday, August 20, 2015

Ako Hui Hosted At SKC


Kapa Haka groups from across the district gathered at St Kevin's on Tuesday as the College played host for the 2015 North Otago (Hui Ako) Kaupapa Maori Festival. Congratulations to all of the children and young people who performed and filled the Auditorium with an inspiring array of song and dance.

Thank you - Nga mihi nui ki a koutou - to David Higgins, Nola Tipa, and Patrick Tipa from Moeraki Runaka for running the day (MC) and Lauana Thomas for her amazing organisation. A big thank you to all of the early childhood, primary and secondary school students and their tutors who attended, resulting in record numbers this year - Ka mau te wehi!

A special thank you to the St Kevin's College Kapa Haka group - you were awesome!

Student Representative Election for BOT

St Kevin’s College Student Representative Election for the Board of Trustees 

Nominations are invited for the election of one Student Representative to the St Kevin’s College Board of Trustees.  A nomination form and a copy of this notice is being distributed to all eligible voters on the student roll.  Further nomination forms can be obtained from the school office.

Nominations close at noon on Friday 4 September 2015 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, Daily Notices and the e-newsletter. The poll closes at noon on Friday September 18th 2015.

Signed
Sue McErlane
Returning Officer

Sporting Draws

Please find below links to the first round sporting draws that we have available.  Please note that the basketball is a weekly draw.


RUGBY

NETBALL

HOCKEY

FOOTBALL











Wednesday, August 19, 2015

Rowing Representatives

Y13 students Charlie Wallis and Sydney Telfer have been selected as members of the Otago Interprovincial Rowing Squad.  Charlie will row in the Mens U20 Quad, Double and Single while Sydney will be part of the Womens Four and Quad.  They have a combination of intense individual and squad training sessions before the regatta which will be held on the 3 and 4 October in Twizel.

Tuesday, August 18, 2015

Thank You Mr Fulton

A big thank you to Mr Peter Fulton for making these great looking pot plant stands which are now a feature in the Dining Room and frame the view across the playing fields.  

Monday, August 17, 2015

Unbeaten In Tournament

The Oamaru Squash Open Tournament was held over the weekend with 120 competing in the event.  Y12 student Thomas Pickles was placed first in the Men's B, going though the tournament without dropping a single game.  Congratulations Thomas!  Past pupil Chris Van der Salm is currently ranked 8th in the country and took out the Men's Open.

Hockey MVP

Congratulations to Connor Daly (Y13) who was named the North Otago Mens U18 Most Valuable Player at an awards evening last week.   Conner played in the team alongside brother Sean and they have a busy series of finals and semi finals ahead - Connor plays in the Tainui Division A Premier competition final and both boys will front for Tainui B Division 2 final in Timaru on Saturday.  The SKC Boys Hockey 1st XI take to the turf for their division semi final tonight with a win seeing them in the finals on the 24 August.  Good luck to all of our hockey boys.

North Otago (Hui Ako) Kaupapa Maori Festival 2015

We warmly invite our community to join us for the 2015 North Otago (Hui Ako) Kaupapa Maori Festival, which will be hosted by the College tomorrow (18 August) in the Auditorium.  There is a welcome at 10am before a wonderful lineup of performances begins.

10am - Welcome
Order of performance:
Casa Nova Kindergarten
Glen Warren/Te Ana a Raki Kindergarten
Oamaru North School
Hato Hohepa St Joseph's School
Pembroke School
Waitaki Girls High School
11.20 - Wa Whakata
Hampden School
Totara School
Fenwick School
Weston School
Waitaki Boys' High School (tbc)
Ardgowan School
Oamaru Intermediate School
St Kevin's College
1.00pm - Closing waiata

Friday, August 14, 2015

Principal's Comment

Kia ora Kevinians and supporters of the College

Last weekend we traveled to Invercargill for the Bishop's Shield.  Verdon were tremendous hosts and although the weather was a challenge, the teams enjoyed networking and the experience.  Thank you to the staff who accompanied the team and the families who provided billets.
Today we celebrated the Feast of the Assumption of Mary at our weekly Mass. This was an opportunity to sing "Mo Maria" which the College has been learning as part of our Māori language focus. We have been consciously integrating more Māori into our rituals in order to build competency with the language as a community. Thank you to our musicians and staff who have helped with this initiative.

Earlier this week we had a spike in absences due to winter illness. Considerable pressure was placed on our office administration staff due to parents not reporting absences. Can I ask that you use one of the following ways of reporting an absence by 9am: call the office, leave a voice mail, email the office or use the web-portal to report an absence. This will allow us to focus on the unexplained absences. Thank you for your support with this matter.

Congratulations to our young mathematicians who as we acknowledge Maths Week, have come 8th in an international schools online competition.

Attached with today's blog is a link to the annual College community survey. Can I encourage you take a moment to complete the three key questions: What are we doing well and should continue? What are we not doing as well and should stop? What could we do to improve or develop and should start doing?

Finally, please keep Xavier and his whānau in your prayers as they deal with this weeks tragic accident.

Hei konā mai i roto i ngā mihi
Paul Olsen, Principal

Top Shot

Congratulations to Jessica Fraser who competed at the Aoraki Secondary School Clary Target Shooting Champs, held in Timaru last weekend.  Jess took home a second place in the Girls Single Rise and was the winner in the Girls Points Score, where each shooter get one round of twenty targets - 3 points are scored for a hit off the first shot and two for a hit off the second shot, for a possible perfect round of 60.


Kevinian Addams Family Connection

There is a strong Kevinian connection to the Musical Theatre Oamaru's 2015 production of The Addams Family, which opens at the Opera House on the 11 September.  Among the cast of twenty actors, singers and dancers are Gypsy Mae Harihona-Harrison as Wednesday Addams, Mark Whittet, Meghan McCorkindale, Reuben Mihaere and Ms Cathy Keep as four of the ten Addams Family Ancestors and Mr Tiernach Farrell as a Backing Vocalists.  They have been busy with music rehearsals since the beginning of June and spent many hours in the July holidays with choreographer Emma Hollaway before director Doug Kamo arrived to begin an intense schedule of rehearsals to put the show on the floor.  It's a high energy musical comedy with something for everyone.  Tickets are available from TicketDirect (Oamaru Opera House or Oamaru iSite) and as Gomez Addams might say - bring your family to meet ours!  

Thursday, August 13, 2015

Obirin Memories 2015


This week the students from Obirin High School were presented with certificates as a memento of their time at the College.  They left Oamaru on Wednesday after three weeks and take with them some very special memories of their visit.  Thank you to all of the families who so generously opened their homes and to our students who, as always, welcomed them into the St Kevin's College Family.  A special thank you to Trudy Foster for her ESOL teaching, Lou Pearson and Raelene Anderson for assistance with transport and to Paula Eatherley for a wonderful hands on farm experience.

NZ Council for Educational Research Survey

The New Zealand Council for Educational Research (NZCER) regularly surveys people in schools to get a national picture of what is happening in our secondary schools and what is changing.  Parents' whanau and caregivers' experiences are part of this national picture.  In early August questionnaires will go to a random sample of parents, whanau and caregivers from our College Community.  If you receive a questionnaire please take a few minutes to share your thoughts.  

Choral Festival Is Coming

Choral Festival is coming!  

The 2015 Choral Festival finals will be held on Thursday 27 August, 7pm in the College Auditorium.  There are some new sections this year and auditions will begin soon so put your hand up to sing!  Remember, you win house points just for entering.

The categories are:
Junior Girls Solo
Junior Boys Solo
Senior Girls Solo
Senior Boys Solo
Junior Duet (must have harmony)
Senior Duet (must have harmony)
Song in Language other than English
Song of Worship
Group 3-6 members (must have harmony)

Entries close on Wednesday 19 August and the audition round will begin with the Songs in Language other than English and Song of Worship on Friday 21 August, Junior Girls and Boy on Monday 24 August, Senior Girls and Boys on Tuesday 25 August, before finishing with the Duets and Groups on Wednesday 26 August.

All of the information you need to know about times, accompaniment etc are on the student notices, or you can see Mrs Foster in the Music Room.  Good luck, and get singing!

Tuesday, August 11, 2015

Parent/Teacher/Student Interviews

Parent/Teacher/Student Interviews will be held in the afternoon on Friday 21 August until 6.30pm. We encourage students to attend with you so that their teachers can talk with them about both their progress and the best options for their chosen career path.

To book your interview please go to www.schoolinterviews.co.nz
The EVENT CODE is 7A5GH

Monday, August 10, 2015

Thank You From The Netball Girls

Thank you to all of our sponsors who helped us get to Junior South Island Secondary School Netball Tournament, where we placed 11th (Top team from Otago).
  • Farmlands Kurow, Ranfurly and Oamaru
  • Placemakers
  • FMG
  • Miss Hyde Boutique
  • Whitestone Panel Paint & Coach 
  • Oamaru Exhaust and Radiator
  • 0800 Mr Painter
  • Oamaru Vehicle Rentals
Thank you also, to everyone who bought tickets and joined us for our movie night.

Friday, August 7, 2015

Principal's Comment

Kia ora Kevinians and supporters of the College

Today we celebrated the Feast Day of St Dominic at our Friday Mass. Thank you to local Dominican Sister, Mary Horn, who challenged us to to reflect on our College charism in a contemporary setting. This decade the Dominicans have been celebrating milestones on their way to the 800 anniversary of the Order's formation in 2016. The motto of the Dominicans is Veritas (Truth). The quest for truth is central to a Dominican education and deeply underpins our FIRE Values. Examples include: Integrity - being true to our mission and Excellence - the pursuit of truth in all we do. We thank our local Sisters for their presence, guidance and hard work in our local community.
Following Mass, Year 12 and 13 students attended the Mayoral commemoration ceremony for the centenary of the Battle of Chunuk Bair. This poignant service was very fittingly held in the Hall of Memories at Waitaki Boys' High School. Our students joined locals in the firing party, pipe band and our head students were flag bearers. Mayor Kircher and guest speakers highlighted the tremendous loss of life to the Otago Mounted Rifles in the fateful battle and the impact that this had on the North Otago community. I wish to extend my thanks to the organisers for arranging such a moving tribute to those who died. May we keep alive the memories of those who were killed in at Gallipoli in this tragic battle. I finish with the fourth stanza from Laurence Binyon's poem For the Fallen.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them. 

May God bless you all
Paul Olsen, Principal

St Dominic's Feast Day


Today students and staff gathered in the Chapel to celebrate St Dominic's Feast Day with a Mass.  We were delighted to have the local Dominican Sisters join us and it was fitting to have Sister Mary Horn speak about our College charism in a modern world.

Bishop's Shield 2015

GOOD LUCK to our 2015 Bishop's Shield team!  They left this morning bound for Invercargill as Verdon College play host to teams from Kavanagh College, St Peter's College (Gore) and ourselves in a weekend long competition of of speech, drama, debating and scripture reading.

Aoraki Boys Badminton

Congratulations to Matthew Cullimore, Karan Ratgali, Max Stewart and Thomas Pickles who took second place at the Aoraki Boys Badminton Tournament which was held in Timaru on Wednesday.  In true Kevinian spirit they were also award the Fair Play Award.  Well done boys!


Thursday, August 6, 2015

Aoraki Maths Competition

Three teams travelled up to compete in the Aoraki Maths Competition in Timaru last night.  All of the teams did well, but a special congratulations to the SKC Y10 A team (Quinn Hargreaves, Levi Sherman, David Xie and Rebecca Whittet) who came second, leading the competition until the last nail biting minute!  Well done!

Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Urgent Reminders

The closing deadline for applications for Financial Assistance for NCEA fees is fast approaching.  Applications must be received at the school office by WEDNESDAY 12 AUGUST at the latest.  If you are the person paying the fee you can apply if:
  1. You are on a benefit (Work and Income or Studylink)
  2. You have a community services card or you family income is such that you would qualify to receive one.
  3. You have two or more children sitting NCEA and the total amount you would have to pay is more than the $200 max amount
(please note that you can't put in an application for Financial Assistance if you are an international student)


If you have any questions please contact Mrs Potter - but sooner rather than later and leaving it to the last minute :)


The standard NCEA fee of $76.70 is due to be paid by MONDAY 31 AUGUST.  This can be paid by cash/eftpos at the school office, or to the school via internet banking (using the student name and NCEA Fee as a reference). 

Please note that the NCEA fee will not be sent home as an invoice and can't be charge to your school account.  The New Zealand Qualifications Authority charge a penalty for overdue fees.  

If you have any concerns then please get in touch with Mrs Potter :)

Phortse School Mission

As part of the fundraising efforts for the Phortse school and village in Nepal Peter Hillary and Jason Laing were guest speakers at a charity event in Cromwell recently.  Each spoke of their experiences in Nepal during and immediately following the devastating earthquakes earlier in the year and over $12000 was raised from ticket sales and auctions throughout the evening.  

This of course is part of the mission that Y13 student Georgia Haggerty has been a part of, with their trip to the Solo Khumbu region on track for next month.  They have already arranged the delivery of shelter tents and tarpaulins, along with cash to support the rebuild effort of the school, as well as providing school resources and village support.

The team is very appreciative of all of the relief efforts and financial support for the Phortse school and village, knowing it would not be possible with the involvement of the wider communities each team member belongs to - including Georgia's St Kevin's community.  

CLICK HERE to view their Facebook page.



Outstanding Winter Sports Subs

There are still a number of sports subs that remain outstanding.  If you are unsure as to whether you have paid your winter sports sub please check with Sandra at the school office.

Outstanding amounts will need to be paid as soon as possible, and prior to Winter Tournament Week and Sports Photos.

Thank you in advance.

U17 Development Basketball

Good luck to Y12 student Matt Brien who has been invited to attend an U17 South Island wide development camp in Christchurch this weekend.  Two other camps will be held in the North Island (also this weekend) and from the three, a twelve man NZ U17 squad will be chosen for a developmental tour of Australia in January.  With only four players from Otago attending Matt is very excited about the opportunity.  All the best Matt!

Tuesday, August 4, 2015

TeenAg Naitonal Finals

The 2015 TeenAg National Finals were held in Taupo at the beginning of July and the Gumboot Girls (Brittany Caldwell and Georgia Malcolm) and the High Country Hillbillies (Ella Sanderson and Holly Malcolm) represented the Aorangi region as the only all girl teams out of the 21 national finalists.  The Gumboot girls won the speech section and were placed 5th Overall in the whole competition.  The younger High County Hillbillies placed 9th and either of the teams were first place getters in the Working Dog, Fertiliser and Stock Judging sections of the practical modules.  Congratulations girls on and outstanding effort!

Brittany, Georgia, Ella and Holly would like to sincerely thank the sponsors who supported their representation of the Aorangi region in Taupo:
PGG Wrighton, Parkside Quarries, Dean and Associates, McKenzie and Co Accountants, Night and Day, Ray White Realestate, Plunket Electrical, Rural Transport, Oamaru Honda, G&J Fencing, Bennet Transport and Whitestone Livestock.

Monday, August 3, 2015

Seesaw Basketball Battle

On the Basketball court an epic see saw battle raged between the Boys TopV and their foes from Waitaki. With the scoreline constantly changing throughout the game there were many heart stopping moments, but relief when the final buzzer went with the score 52-50 to SKC. Mr Hitchcock and the team pass on their thanks to all of the parents who traveled to support them, to Coach Ollie and of course LJ Hooker who make it all possible. Not to be forgotten, congratulations to the Girls TopV who also had a win, against Roncalli College in Timaru.

The U18 Boys Football team took the win over top seeded Timaru Boys High School Hawks 5-3 which has them positioned first equal in the league. The U16 team were not as fortunate against Waitaki Boys. The girls had two solid wins - SKC Red taking on Waimate High School for a 4-1 win, and SKC Blue (depleted with illness) won over Waitaki Girls Black 3-0 with only 8 players.

The 1st XV traveled to Mosgiel to take on Taieri College and were convincing with a 51-17 win. The U16 boys were unable to mirror that with a loss to Roncalli College, while the U14 Red won against Waimate and U14 Blue lost against Timaru Boys.

Y10 Hockey

The PE department have thrown a competitive edge into the Y10 sports education unit by arranging a student run hockey tournament.  10K began their unit today and they will play amongst themselves with the winning team playing against the other Y10 classes.  Each student has a role within the team .... manager, fitness trainer, coach, first aid etc.  The unit runs for the next two weeks and we look forward to a Y10 hockey showdown!