WHS Newsletter | Issue 4.5 | 13 November 2020
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Principal's Message
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Branches Camp Update - Week 5
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Branches Trust
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Attendance Update
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School Network Security (and VPNs)
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Inaugural Scholarship Awarded
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Trades Academy Graduation
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Principal's Awards
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Karate - New Zealand Nationals and Secondary Schools
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The Readers' Cup team does us proud!
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Arts Update
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Sports News and Results
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Careers Department - Student Job Vacancies
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Key Dates
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Community Notices
Principal's Message
Kia ora and welcome to the Wakatipu High School newsletter as we enter the second half of the term - which is flying by.
Today is a special day at WHS, our annual Orientation Day when we welcome our incoming students. This day is always a mix of lots of excitement and a few nerves for the students, and probably for some parents too - and a very warm welcome to the WHS newsletter to our new parents! The day has gone very well, the students have been great (and special thanks to our senior student leaders and peer mentors for their contribution) and we look forward to welcoming them back for their first day on Friday 29th January next year. Parents, please put that afternoon in your diaries for our Year 9 BBQ and chance to meet key people.
Part of Orientation Day today is that the school is very quiet for our new students, with Seniors on exam leave and Year 10s on their Branches Camp Workday - an important fundraiser for the camp. A huge thanks to Bennie Neilson for all her work over many years with Workday, and also to everyone supporting Workday. Another reminder that if Branches Camp fees are an issue our Awhi Fund is available to support students and families financially, please either contact one of our Guidance Counsellors or click here for an online application. Please see below for more on Branches.
Last Sunday evening was the Generation Give grant giving ceremony. Generation Give is our wonderful youth philanthropy programme, and the ceremony - the culmination of their year’s work, saw them give grants totalling $10,000 to five local charities. A huge thanks to everyone who made this fantastic programme possible, notably including Christian and Jennifer Belmont, and to the students for their commitment to giving back to our community.
Phase 2 continues to progress. Yesterday morning a small group of us took a tour through the temporary classrooms which are being assembled ready for the start of next year, and we were pleased with what we saw in terms of size and quality. Maths and languages are going to be based out of the temporary classrooms next year. Work is progressing on the foundations of the extension to the main building and we have had some noise in that end of the building this week. This will be an issue we will deal with at times as the project progresses.
VPNs - Virtual Private Networks are an issue for schools, both in terms of students using them to circumvent the systems which are in place to provide a safe network for our students, and in the extra traffic they cause on our wifi system (eg one student’s device ‘polled’ our system 11,000 times in a week!). Accordingly we are doing something about it, please see below for more.
‘Accord (Teacher Only) Day’ - a reminder that this is next Tuesday 17th November. This is the first in a series of nationwide days for teachers to work on the upcoming NCEA changes. Exams continue for seniors but no school for juniors.
Next week is the Sotheby’s International Queenstown Marathon and the chairman of the Wakatipu High School Foundation, Wayne Foley, is running and raising funds for the Foundation. The Foundation makes a very significant difference to WHS - if you are able, please click here to support him.
NCEA exams start for seniors on Monday, and we wish them all the very best. Certainly seniors who have been in tutorials and studying here this week have been focussed and on-task. Re our lovely seniors, please see below for lists of end of year Principal’s Award recipients - congratulations to them all.
While not quite the stunning weather of this week, it will be a reasonable weekend weather-wise. Both days will be warm, with Saturday again the best day for outdoor activity and lawn-mowing. Support the seniors to study well, and Year 10s to start getting their Branches gear together. Enjoy :)
Steve Hall
Principal
Branches Camp Update - Week 5
It definitely feels like summer has arrived with hot sunny days this week. As I write this, Year 10 students are out and about completing their Community Workday, raising funds for the Branches Trust which provides essential support in keeping the camp running at an affordable cost for families. Thank you to all the individuals and businesses that have taken on students for Workday, your support is hugely valued and appreciated.
Next week, on Friday 20th are the Pre-Branches Day Tramps. This is when the students' essential clothing and equipment is checked. All students then head off on a day walk with 2-3 other activity groups and staff around the Queenstown Hill environs. Groups all finish back at school in time for the end of day buses.
A number of Year 10 students are sitting NCEA exams on Friday 20th, and will receive an email with instructions on getting their essential gear checked before camp. Students who are not attending Branches or who cannot complete the day tramp are expected at school to help with food packing. They may wear appropriate mufti and should bring a packed lunch, water and be at school by 9am.
Bridget Janse
Branches Camp Coordinator
Branches Trust
Term 4 is always busy and exciting here at Branches Trust and we have a few things to note and gratitude seems to be the theme so please read on.
WORK DAY – THANK YOUs
By the time you receive this the Year 10 students will already be home from their work experience day out in the community. We would like to say a huge THANK YOU to all the businesses who supported this day be it through placing a child or two at your work, sponsoring work on a community project or supervising a Year 10 student at your work station. As we have previously mentioned, due to this extraordinary year, we have not sought payment for their efforts, however we have been overwhelmed by the generosity of those who feel they can still contribute, so another THANK YOU! This work experience is so important for all students as for some it is their first day at work! I have to say it is logistically huge as well, so another THANK YOU must go to Bennie Neilson who somehow works her magic to place an ever growing number of students in the community. This year it was close to 240 students ... I am told next year there will be more!
LONG DROPS AND HARD KNOCKS
Our fabulous book is our main fundraiser for the Trust for this year. We are so proud of this book and as often happens, projects evolve into spaces not previously envisaged. This book was originally designed to record the first 50 years of WHS iconic Branches Camp but it has become so much more than that. It is now a piece of local history, charting the changes in the town as well as the school and the camp. It is an excellent read and I can’t stress enough the words of Craig Smith, author of The Wonky Donkey and past Branches Camper when he said ‘Every Queenstown family and business should have one’ .... so have you got yours yet?
You can buy a book from various locations around town, another THANK YOU to these businesses who continue to support our book: WHS front desk, Summerfields Pharmacy, Arrowtown Museum, Halo, The Exchange, Provisions, Dorothy Browns, Brandlands, Paper Plus or online at www.branchestrust.co.nz
Now priced at $49.95 we also have a great pre-Christmas deal of 2 for $90 .... so again, have you got yours yet?!
Remember, ALL proceeds go to fund future Branches Camps.
FERG FOR BREAKFAST ON THE HITS
A number of drama students and I were lucky enough to head to The Hits radio studio this week to record readings from our Branches book LONG DROPS AND HARD KNOCKS. These exerpts will be played out twice daily during the week Mon 30 Nov – Fri 4 Dec, while the Year 10s are on Branches Camp themselves.
Another huge THANK YOU goes to long time local Radio DJ, QLDC Councillor and passionate community supporter Ferg for allowing us to do this, we think you will enjoy hearing some of the stories, there are many more in the book!
Another THANK YOU to the excellent readers who I have listed below, you all did a great job! Ferg tells me they will be played at 6.40 and again at 8.05 ... ish!
Mon 30 Nov – Greta Balfour
Tues 1 Dec – Sophie Thompson
Wed 2 Dec – James Scoles
Thur 3 Dec – Ryan Connaghan
Fri 4 Dec – Helena Hornbacher
And finally, we have some fabulous new ads playing out on social media at the moment, designed by Scott Conway and his team at Feast Creative. They have done a wonderful job of conjuring up an old cine reel of yesteryear which is on our Branches Trust Facebook page.
So have you got yours yet?!
Enjoy your weekend everyone,
Belinda Crichton
Branches Trust
Attendance Update
We are updating our attendance procedure at WHS and would like to take the opportunity to remind parents and caregivers of the importance of contacting the school prior to a student's absence, or at the very latest 48 hours after.
Absences can be communicated by:
- email: attendance@wakatipu.school.nz
- phone: 03 442 7370
- our new school app found here for Apple and here for Android
Emily Ellice
Attendance Officer
School Network Security (and VPNs)
The school has an obligation to provide a safe digital environment for all students. The safety of our students is of paramount importance and we take cybersafety seriously, this includes protecting our network, protecting the students and preventing cyberbullying.
WHS needs to ensure that the school's ICT network, hardware and software is effectively maintained and secure, including content filtering. For this reason, the use of VPN (Virtual Private Network) software, which is designed to circumvent the school’s network security and content filtering, is prohibited on our network.
To ensure the safety of the students and the network, we are activating a quarantine facility for devices that have VPN software installed and/or active. The school's filtering system will detect VPN software and quarantine the device. The quarantine will stop ALL internet traffic to/from the device for a period of five minutes. The device will continue to be quarantined until the software is removed.
VPN filtering and quarantining will be implemented for Years 9 & 10 on Monday 16 November.
VPN filtering and quarantining for seniors will be implemented after exams in preparation for 2021.
Andrea Wilton-Connell
Executive Officer
Inaugural Scholarship Awarded
We are proud to announce the recipient of the new Cosgroves professional engineering focused scholarship aimed at Wakatipu High School Year 13 students. Congratulations Emma Saxon!
Emma intends to study at the University of Canterbury starting in 2021 and as part of the scholarship she will have the opportunity to work with Cosgroves over the holidays to complete her professional development requirements and experience life as a professional Engineer.
The Directors of Cosgroves are pleased to support the Wakatipu community via this scholarship and the high quality of applications received indicate that Wakatipu High School and the community have cultivated an environment for excellence.
Linda Richards
Head of Careers and Pathways
Trades Academy Graduation
The Careers Department would like to acknowledge and congratulate the 29 students from Wakatipu High School who graduated from their Otago Polytechnic vocational pathway courses on Wednesday.
It requires a real willingness to learn, passion and committment to travel to Cromwell on a weekly basis and be successful in these varied and hands on courses. Some of the courses include Sports Turf Management, Beauty Therapy, Automotive, Cookery and Construction.
We also had students graduate from the SIT Trades Academy Salon Skills course.
A number of these students will now transition into apprenticeships in the work place, and we wish you all the best for the future!
Linda Richards
Head of Careers and Pathways
Principal's Awards
Congratulations to the following senior students who have received Principal's Awards this week.
Arthur House
Alice Gilbert AONT
Annabelle Ferguson APHN
Antonia Gavin ADRS
Arwyn Donnelly Cranston AJGB
Bella Middleton AKBM
Esther Vile AJGB
Indigo Little ADRS
Ivy Barker ARSC
Jack McBeth AJGB
Liam Climo ARSC
Lucy Glover AONT
Maggie Frew AJGB
Mikayla Evans AKBM
Will Cooper AKU
Zoe Barham ASKG
Duncan House
Adam Numara DMPR
Alice Price DNPT
Alix Long DEQD
Ben Barke DEQD
Briar Greer DEQD
Daniela Tapper DMPR
Elke Koehn DNPD
Emily Clearwater DMPR
Ethan Mendoza DEQD
Evie Brown DMPR
Fineen Hingston DNPD
Greta Balfour DNPT
Hannah Battrick DCSB
Izzy Cheifetz DCSB
Jacinta Ricketts DEQD
Jett Fa'amalepe DKWB
Katie Westphall DNPT
Linus Ritchie DAWR
Megan McCulloch DJHE
Niki Nakao DNPD
Olive Ritchie DJHE
Paddy Lawn DCHW
Rachel Scobie DEQD
Sam Davis DKWB
Savannah Bowman DNPT
Sophie Thompson DMPR
Tessa Jones DAWR
Tobi Hughes DCHW
Yzza Rizo DNPT
Zoe Crawford DNPT
Fox House
Alisha McKinney FSTM
Amelia Grufferty FHWD
Amelie Saint-Pere FKMT
Grace Hall FJDC
Hannah Stevens FJRD
Hannah White FJDC
Harry McVicar FSTM
Jacob Marriott FJRD
Jacob Wilkinson FJRD
Jasmine Crichton FRND
Johannes Mackay FRND
Kira Almquist FABR
Lucy Tulloch FJRD
Mia Crawshay FRCA
Michaela McLister FHWD
Micky Nguyen FKJA
Minna Zhu FKMT
Mucha Milne FBKL
Pippa Bashford FKJA
Rei Watanabe FSTM
Sade Kaihe FKMT
Sofia Taquet FBKL
Hay House
Alicia Robert HJRM
Aliyah McPherson HJST
Allegra Boyd Slawson HNKU
Annie Fraser HJKN
Emily Bisset HDAS
Harry Thomas HNKU
Jack Higgins HJST
Jasper Cuisel HJHZ
Julia Salonga HDAS
Kloe Vermeir HJKN
Millie Jamieson-Gough HJAD
Olive Watherston HMBN
Ollie McLean HDAS
Paige Cuisel HJST
Ruby Ruski-Jones HJHZ
Sebastian Cera HJKN
Todd Vermeir HNKU
Mackenzie House
Ally Wilkinson ZAR
Angus Forrest MLRY
Bella Archibald MRML
Charli McLeod MDHR
Ed Forrest MLHI
Ella Lanuel MLHI
Ella St John MKJK
Emma Saxon MKJK
Finn Hyndman MKJK
George St John MDHR
Hanna Cerecke MBJN
Hannah Gaboda MAPC
Isaac Frewen MHDX
James Scoles MLRY
Kate Edmonds ZAR
Keanu Panapa MDHR
Lucy Viggers MBJN
Marigold Kunath MRLM
McKenzie Galbraith MLRY
Nadia Burns MLHI
Natsune Suzuki MLHI
Nieve Collin MKJK
Ollie Pope MKJK
Om Alva MDHR
Toby Hart MRML
Karate - New Zealand Nationals and Secondary Schools
On October 31 the New Zealand Karate National Competition and the National Secondary Schools competition were held in Auckland. Mackenzi Jackson who is in Year 10 represented our school in both the Kata and Kumite disciplines. She had a very successful day, coming away with a silver medal in her Open Kumite division, a bronze medal in the Premiere Kata and a bronze in her weight division Kumite. These were accompanied by a silver medal in the Secondary School Championship as well. Mackenzi is looking to be strong contender in her age divisions in karate, consistently finishing in the top three for her age group. She has done very well in a year when most competitions were cancelled. Travelling to Chrischurch in September she was able to get a bronze in Kata and a gold medal in her Kumite division. At the Christchurch competition Sensei Pat managed to win a silver medal in the Open Kata and at the Nationals a bronze medal in the Premiere Kata division.
Sensei Pat
The Readers' Cup team does us proud!
For the second year running, the Wakatipu High School Readers' Cup team flew to Auckland to compete in the National Competition. Although we did not place this year, we are very proud of the combined effort of the team to participate competitively. The competition continues to grow throughout New Zealand and this year over 70 teams competed for a position at the Nationals. A huge congratulations goes to the awesome Year 9 team: Katherine Read, Milky Tam, Ava McIntyre and Abby Fookes.
Arts Update
Junior Music Performance Night
The 5MUSB Music Class has their Music Night next Wednesday 18 November starting at 6.00pm upstairs in the Music area. Parents/caregivers and friends are welcome. We look forward to seeing you there.
Junior Auditions for 2021 Musical
Junior students will be auditioning for the 2021 Musical next week (Week 6). Any students who still want to audition must find Mrs Price or Mr Hansen as soon as possible.
Sports News and Results
Seven’s Success for Olive Watherston
Year 11 student Olive Watherston has been named as one of four high school students in New Zealand to be involved in this year's Red Bull Ignite Sevens series to be played in Tauranga in early December. Olive will be mixing it with the very best of New Zealand’s Women's sevens players in a week long training camp followed by a two day tournament. The four teams to play are selected on a draft system and Olive will be selected as a player apprentice to one of these teams. Olive has been identified by the New Zealand sevens coaching group as a player with significant potential and has also been named in the New Zealand Secondary School Sevens squad for the World Schools Sevens Aotearoa tournament in Auckland on the 19th and 20th December. This is an amazing achievement and opportunity for Olive and a rugby player from Wakatipu High School. We are super excited for the next six weeks for Olive, all the very best!
EVO South Island Downhill Champs
It was great to see a large number of WHS mountain bikers compete in last weekend's EVO South Island Downhill Mountain Bike Champs in Dunedin, there were some awesome results achieved, congratulations!
Riley Adlam - 2nd U19 Men
Maia Jowett - 5th U19 Women
Josh Bonnar - 3rd U17 Men
Joe Baker - 6th U17 Men
Jamie Gaboda - 7th U17 Men
Toby Meek - 10th U17 Men
Rory Meek - 3rd U15 Men
Thomas Hulsman - 8th U15 Men
Reon Fernandez - 9th U15 Men
Zach Dixon - 10th U15 Men
Tavi Rasnoveanu - 16th U15 Men
Eva Hemingway - 2nd U15 Women
Gillette Cup - 1st XI Cricket
The semi final match of the Gillette Cup against Otago Boys High School was unfortunately rain affected in Dunedin last weekend with play being called off on Sunday, the match was rescheduled for Monday but was still rain affected. WHS posted 125/9 off 28 overs with Om Alva top scoring with 60. OBHS achieved the total in just over 20 overs. This means WHS is down to play Kings High School in the 3rd/4th playoff match, whether it is to be played, we are still yet to find out. A huge thank you to Daniel Gibbons, who had his last match as head coach of the 1st XI cricket team. Daniel has been fantastic in his role as coach and organiser of this group of young men and has had a significant impact on the growth and progress of Wakatipu High School cricket over the last five years, helping to cement WHS as the top co-ed cricket school in Otago and Southland. Thank you Daniel for your service to WHS sport, you will be missed. The team will be coached by WHS sports stalwart, Damien O’Connell in 2021.
Otago U19 Cricket Squad
Congratulations to Toby Hart who has been selected into the 18 man Otago U19 Men’s cricket squad to play at the national U19 champs in Lincoln over the holiday break. All the best Toby!
Careers Department - Student Job Vacancies
Please continue to keep a look out for jobs over the remainder of the school year as we will continue to update accordingly!
Are you looking for work in the school holidays?
We are now hiring students for the very busy Christmas and New Year holiday period, and beyond. We are looking for people who either just want holiday work, or they also want to work part time (one or two shifts) around school and extra-curricular activities during term time.
We have a number of positions available in Customer Service and Food Preparation.
Apply Now at https://careers.mcdonalds.com/new-zealand/ enter Queenstown as your location and begin your application.
Please only apply if you are legally entitled to work in NZ.
Wanted: Part-time lawn mowing job at an Arthurs Point home.
Contact Betty Gray - 442 7187
Bed Bath and Beyond are now looking for a student to work weekends and holidays. No experience needed, you just need to be keen to work! See Ali at Bed Bath and Beyond.
Casual Position Available for Student
Hours
- 3.30 pm-5.30pm Weekdays
- 9am-12pm Occasional Saturday
Requirements
- Restricted car drivers license
- Good computer skills
- Prior interest or knowledge around motorcycles
- Excellent communication skills
- Ability to follow direction and use initiative
Duties
- Pick up & deliver motorcycles & parts
- Order parts & accessories
- Talk to customers, sell parts & gear
- Light duties in the workshop may include, tyre changing, washing bikes, sweeping, recycling.
- Stock handling
We are looking for a responsible person with an interest in motorcycles to join our team at Remarkable Motorcycles. This is a casual after school position with flexibility to work around extra-curricular activities with extra hours potentially available during school holidays.
This is a new role so there may be some changes to the job as time goes on. It will be quite varied giving you the opportunity to experience many sides of the business.
If you think you have the skills needed for this role then call Rebecca on 027 3785768 , email us at contact@remarkablemotorcycles.co.nz also feel free to pop into the shop to discuss the position at 4/27 Glenda Drive, Frankton. You can also learn more about us on our website www.remarkablemotorcycles.co.nz or our socials @remarkablemotorcycles
COUGAR SECURITY IS NOW RECRUITING STUDENTS 18 Years
- Applications must be over 18 year (this is a requirement for the security licensing) – further info at the Careers Hub.
- Full Drivers license is an advantage but not a must at this point
- Full and part time roles available
- Be able to work independently
- As we are a 24/7 operation, we have a mixture of roles with nights and weekend work included
- Each of the roles have their own skills, therefore the CCTV/Monitoring role a reasonable sense of IT would be required
- Absolute discretion and confidentially in all the roles is a must as we deal with some fairly sensitive topics
- Male or female applicants are welcome
- Staring hourly rate is $19.50ph
If interested please submit a CV and cover letter to jamie@cougarsecurity.co.nz or HR@cougarsecurity.co.nz
GIBBSTON VALLEY : Summer Holiday Jobs Available for Students
Gibbston Valley are actively looking to fill the following roles for the summer period Dec-Feb:
- Cheesery café front of house
- Cellar door assistant (clear tables, polish glasses & customer service)
- Kitchen hand
- Housekeeping
- Packing for wine club shipments in the warehouse, which happens once per quarter.
If interested please make contact with Maggie Fea - hr@gibbstonvalley.com
We are a New Zealand owned food delivery company operating in 15 cities across the country. You can find more about us here: www.delivereasy.co.nz
We're currently looking for a lot more drivers in Queenstown. Drivers are brought on as self employed independent contractors and get to choose when they would like to work. Students would need their own vehicle and would be paid per delivery, so street smarts and efficiency = great pay!
Click here for the link where students can take a better look at what the job involves. We'd love to hear from any students who are keen to jump on board as soon as possible! We're getting busier by the day so there is a lot of work available.
Contact Brett Johnston for more details - brett@deliveryeasy.co.nz
NZSKI have part time employment opportunities for students this summer at Coronet Peak. They are operating from December 17th – March 13th seven days a week until mid January then Thursday – Sunday after that. 10:30am – 6:30pm, 8:30pm on Friday nights. They are keen to offer the right people an opportunity to work, learn and ride with them this summer. This is a unique opportunity to learn some kitchen operations, barista and front of house service skills.
Contact Dan Maroszek daniel.maroszek@nzski.com for more details.
Key Dates
16 November - NCEA exams begin
17 November - Accord (Teacher Only) Day
20 November - Pre-Branches Tramps
26 November - Whanau Hui
27 November - Branches Camp departs
7 December - Board of Trustees Meeting
8 December - Branches Camp returns
9 December - Year 10 Branches rest day
9 December - Year 9 Prizegiving
9 December - Year 13 Graduation
10 December - Year 10 Prizegiving
Community Notices
Otago Regional Council would like to hear what you want for the future of your waterways?What do you value most about your local lake, river, groundwater, stream or wetland? Is it being able to go fishing or swimming? Or do you rely on freshwater for your crops or farm animals? Maybe you want to see native animals and plants living in the water? What’s your vision for your waterways? Please tell us here www.orc.govt.nz/
Startup Queenstown Lakes 27 Nov
Startup Weekend is a high-energy, 54-hour event for established entrepreneurs and budding founders, for designers, developers, business-focused, and non-technical people alike. It's like outward bound for entrepreneurs!
You can expect to:
- Meet potential new co-founders and make some great friends.
- Have a FUN time - make some great memories with passionate, energetic people.
- Learn from the best - engage with mentors who will keep you going and foster your entrepreneurial spirit.
Just 50 tickets available + selling fast - don't miss out.
https://startupqueenstownlakes.lpages.co/startup-weekend-2020/