E ngā reo, e ngā mana, rau rangatira mā, ngā matā waka, tēnei te mihi nui atu ki ā koutou katoa. Ko te wawata me te tumanako ka noho ora mai koutou katoa.

Powerful partnerships at WHS

It has been wonderful over the last month to see so many opportunities for our community to come together and celebrate our school and become part of our school. The wonderful Arts showcase was a brilliant example almost a month ago. More recently the Tournament week which has just finished, brought our community together again, through Sport.

We had over 20 staff and community members that helped seven teams and over 120 students have memorable experiences over the course of the tournament week. I would like to thank the following people for their contributions in each sport code:

We are lucky to have so many people who contribute to the wider life of our school. And whilst there were some mixed results, we know that the soft skills our young people learn as part of a team, competing and working for each other, are invaluable.

I would like to thank local sponsors and community funding for their generosity for making tournament week possible for our young people. In particular the NZ Community Trust who gave the school 19k of funding for teams and Podlife who sponsored the Rugby tour to the South Island. Not forgetting all the parents who helped with their love and support.

We also host the second of our bi-annual Mentoring Interviews this week. This is an opportunity for whānau, students and teachers to discuss personal goals, the school values report, subject selection and careers options. Subject Teacher interviews on the 15th September will also help build the learning partnership between school and home.

As always, a successful school is a community affair. We are lucky to have a great Board of Trustees who have worked hard over the most recent BOT term. These members of the community have given Whakatāne High School countless hours of their time to make the school what it is. On behalf of the school I would like to thank Paul Julian (BOT Chair), Tammy Rika, Stephen Lamb, John Spring, Jennifer Manning, Paul Goodman (staff rep), Jimmy Taylor (student rep) and Anne Nillesen (BOT secretary) for all their hard work. Whatever the election results mean for our school we can be sure we will have new group of supportive community members for WHS. As they leave I offer a quick snapshot of the school they have supported, as we are in 2022.

Open Day/Evening

Open Day and Evening on the 13th September is an opportunity to showcase our school. We already have over 100 enrolments for 2023 which is exceptional. Open Day tours are being coordinated through students contributing school. Open Night tours start at 5:45 from the front of the school. Please be at the front of the school for then. All attendees will be placed on a tour on arrival. We look forward to seeing you at WHS.

Ngā mihi nui

Martyn Knapton

The team bussed over to Mount Maunganui College for their final play off against Mount.

The first half saw Mount Maunganui go for a penalty kick & three minutes later Jon Tiwha-Smith equalised the score to 3-3. This was a tough first half with some big hits.

Jax Waterson crossed try line with a pick and go try and the half time score was 8-8. The second half saw WHS dominate with possession and territory but unfortunately the team gave away too many penalties & weren't able to capitalise off a few try opportunities which allowed the Mount team to get three more successful penalty kicks.

What a tough final and a lot of sore bodies. Well done to all the players that left it all out there on the field. Another fantastic season to place into the memory banks. We are proud of our U16s team comprised of U14s, U15s & U16s. We knew it was going to be a big task this season and the players rose to the occasion!

BOP Representatives

Congratulations also to the following students who have gained selection into BOP U18 rugby squads:

• GIRLS - Kokako Raki
• BOYS - Jacob Gilbert & Brimsy Marshall

Congratulations also to Kokako and Jordyn Shadrock for their selections in the Upper Central Zone U18 team that will be participating in the NZ Rugby League Youth Nationals.

Health services provided FREE in school:

• School Nurse: daily except Wednesday morning
• School Doctor: Tuesdays P2