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Dear Parents and Caregivers
Kia ora koutou katoa.
Last weekend was busy around our campus. The variety of activity included an Old Collegians 1st XV Rugby Reunion coinciding with the first official game of the rugby season against St Bede’s College, the New Zealand annual 48-hour Film Festival with eight students involved, the first games of the annual John McGlashan College and Columba College winter sports exchange, and the final night of the Senior production Legally Blonde, including a pre-show reunion of Old Collegian production students.
At the Production Reunion, it was great to meet up with the 25 Old Collegians who returned to see the new Gough Family Theatre and the Fife Foundation Drama and Dance Studios. Some of these young people are forging careers in the performing arts or film industries and were students here as far back as 2017.
Another exciting visit this week was from an Old Collegian, Joshua Guillemot-Rodgerson (OC 2013) who called in to see Ballet Academy Director, Dr Carolyn Cairns, and the new Ngā Toi Performing Arts Centre. Josh, now 26, is performing as Principal dancer in the Royal New Zealand Ballet performances of Swan Lake, at the Isaac Theatre Royal this weekend. What an achievement. I was delighted to manage to buy tickets to the Sunday performance and can’t wait to see him in action.
Thank you to the Year 9 parent class representatives who came to the coffee catchup on Tuesday. This was a great opportunity to check in and see how the Year 9 students are settling into secondary school at St Andrew’s and share some whole school information and perspective with this group. The StACTalks evenings on the importance of sleep was also a valuable opportunity for over 70 parents to gather together for some information on supporting teenagers through their secondary school years.
Last night at the third Board of Governors meeting for 2024, our Operations Manager of Outdoor Education, Jo Parsons, spoke to the Board and received questions about the programmes at Castle Hill, particularly from a Health and Safety perspective. St Andrew’s is so fortunate to own and operate this wonderful facility which offers such a valuable learning experience for our young people. The life skills and character development which results from the challenges of outdoor experiences are immeasurable. The Board is of course very cognisant of our responsibilities for managing Health and Safety and risk. Jo Parsons is a highly respected Outdoor Education specialist who, along with her experienced and trained team of instructors, has developed a programme with a carefully managed level of challenge and risk controls. We believe our Castle Hill programme, experienced by all our students in Years 7–10, is a unique StAC educational experience which is second to none in New Zealand.
Yesterday on my rounds at lunchtime I took the opportunity to all into The Green Library and Innovation Centre to see what is going on with the robotics programme. A group of Year 8–13 students are working together in teams and regularly take part in scrimmages. This Saturday is the final of the Canterbury VEX Robotics Challenges at Tūranga, with five StAC teams and eight schools taking part.
Today, St Andrew’s is hosting the South Island Ethics Olympiad. Nine school teams, including ten StAC students, are working in teams to develop the best possible answer to difficult ethical questions, such a critical attribute for young people in this complex world. Old Collegian Luke Zhu (OC 2022) has returned from completing his first year at Harvard University and is generously supporting teacher Ellen Hampson today with the Ethics Olympiad. Luke is a regular visitor to our campus when back in Christchurch, supporting our gifted and talented programmes and the Sustainability Council.
The first Black & Bling Ball was held in 2008 and since that time has been an important biennial fundraiser for a variety of St Andrew’s activities. Thank you to everyone who is supporting this event and especially to the parents of the hockey and netball organising committees. I am sure everyone will enjoy a great evening.
Ngā mihi nui
Christine Leighton
Rector
This year the John McGlashan College and Columba College sports exchange was a very close affair, with St Andrew’s College boys’ and girls’ coming out narrow winners against both schools. All matches were well contested and played in great spirit. While the weather was not the best, the skills shown in the matches played outdoors were very high, and it was great to see girls’ rugby being played in the exchange for the very first time in the history of any school exchange that St Andrew’s has played in.
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On Wednesday, the Staccoro and Stacchorus choirs, two barbershops, as well as a new Senior Quartet, performed at a lunch-hour choral concert at St Mary’s, which St Andrew’s College puts on each year. A piano trio was included, and all the items were well received by a very appreciative audience. The concert finished with a combined item of the two choirs singing The Water is Wide with Bring Me a Little Water, Sylvie.
FLICKR >On Monday, rangatahi from the Year 9–13 Te Reo Māori classes were fortunate enough to do a Wayfinding experience in Whakaraupō/Lyttleton. The day was filled with culture, learning, fun relays, games, mihi, waiata and laughter. It was facilitated by Māori and Pasifika guides (who are a bit like the Polynesian Wiggles). Our rangatahi learned about the star compass, navigation, sailing knots and sailed onboard Hinemoa, a twin hulled canoe. Rangatahi were able to learn more about their heritage and more about Te ao Māori. E mihi kau atu ana ki te hunga whakahaere. A big mihi to Te Toki Voyaging Trust who sponsored a huge portion of this kaupapa.
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St Andrew’s College students and staff participated in another successful planting day last Sunday. Around 300 people participated, and collectively put around 5000 plants in the ground in two hours.
Head of Physics at Christ’s College, David Newton, Chairperson of the Eco-Action Nursery Trust, founded the Trust in 2016 with the purpose of it becoming a competent and productive community organisation supporting schools, students, and local people to restore the natural environment and to develop more sustainable lifestyles. St Andrew’s College has been a member of the Eco-Action Nursery Trust since 2019. The community is invited to attend our next planting on Sunday 23 June.
The International Committee launched the 2024 International Club this term, with the aim of making international cultures more accessible to all students with a range of activities. This week students embraced the vibrant spirit of Hispanic culture during Spanish Language Week with an exciting piñata activity. Students came along to have a turn to smash open the piñata, which didn’t last long, and the abundant sweets were shared amongst everyone.
On Sunday, the Alliance Française held a French breakfast for French students. Students were offered a croissant, a piece of baguette and a hot or cold drink, plus the opportunity to mingle with other French students from the area. Five Year 9 students and two Year 13 students took up the opportunity to attend and it was a really enjoyable morning.
This week, former All Black forward Mike Cron worked with our 1st and 2nd XV forward packs. The boys learnt a lot and it was a fantastic learning experience for all involved. Mike is about to head to Australia to take up the forward coaching position with Australia Rugby, joining Joe Schmidt’s coaching group.
The past week has been a whirlwind for the girls' rugby team, marked by a series of challenging matches and history-making shift in attitude. The week kicked off with the first Wednesday game, a great clash against local powerhouse Christchurch Girls’ High School. Despite the mix of rookies and established players on the team, the girls displayed remarkable tenacity, managing to clinch a narrow victory with a score of 38–34, thanks to some brilliant team tries.
The team then played in their inaugural exchange against the formidable Columba College, playing back-to-back matches with no rest days in between. Columba's team presented a tough challenge, but the St Andrew’s girls focused on honing their skills and achieved the goals set by their coach, Michael Wilson, whose expertise, along with Aidan Elvines', has been invaluable. Michael also has a connection to St Andrew's College's rugby through his dad, Richard Wilson (OC 1972), a former All Black and Old Collegian.
This week has been more than just about victories for the team; it's been about laying the foundations for a legacy that will inspire future generations of young girls at St Andrew’s. With such dedication and talent, it wouldn't be surprising to see these young athletes representing their province or even country at the Olympics or leading the Black Ferns in a World Cup someday.
As part of Road Safety Week, the children in the Pre-school practiced some safe traffic and pedestrian movements. There were scooters and bikes on our makeshift roads, and a pedestrian crossing. It is great to see our little ones get behind road safety – ka pai!
This week the Ballet Academy enjoyed four full days of classes with the Specialist Dance Educator, Neve Pierce, from the Royal New Zealand Ballet. Dancers in Years 3–8 experienced learning new repertoire from the current RNZB production of Swan Lake, including the classic Four Cygnets, while the Secondary School dancers took up the challenge of having entirely new contemporary works set on them. These new performance pieces will be presented at the Ballet Winter Showcase in Term 3. This event is an exciting opportunity for our dancers to learn and experience dance from New Zealand's role models of excellence.
FLICKR >Last week our Year 4–6 students had the privilege of meeting best-selling author Jacqueline Harvey. Jacqueline is the author of the internationally successful Alice Miranda series. She also writes the exciting spy series, Kensey and Max, and the adorable Willa and Woof stories. All her stories expertly capture the hearts and the imaginations of younger readers. Larger than life and with so much to share, Jacqueline had students rolling in the aisles as she shared tales of her childhood and teaching days that inspired her writing. These hilarious stories, and her engagement with the children, showed an exceptional depth of insight into the minds of young readers. Feedback from staff and students has been enthusiastically positive, and we can see that Jacquleine Harvey now has many new fans in the Preparatory School.
On Monday 20 May the Preparatory School held their annual Cross Country. The build up to the event, involved students practising at home, with their classroom teachers and during PE lessons. With a variety of goals in mind, students were encouraged to demonstrate ‘their best’ on the day. As a College, we can be very proud of every student who participated in this year’s Cross Country from our Preparatory School. Overall, a lot of organisation went into the event and involved a wide spread of stakeholders from the school. Thank you to everyone who contributed to the day, marshals, the Maintenance Team, teachers, support staff and management.
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FOOTBALL
Unfortunately, the St Andrew’s College Boys' 1st XI faced a tough match against Cashmere High School, ending in a 4–1 loss. Despite the setback, the 1st XI is already looking ahead to next week's match, eager to bounce back stronger and showcase their determination on the field.
Last Wednesday, the Girls' first XI team played a tight match against Hillmorton School. It was a nail-biter, but St Andrew’s emerged victorious with a final score of 5–3. This win solidifies their top of the table position.
NETBALL
StAC A netball team played against Christchurch Girls’ High School on Wednesday. In a challenging match, they took the lead after the first quarter by five goals and continued to build on this to secure a solid win of 38–20. Maniah Taefu’s (Year 10) contribution as goal defence, stepping in for injured players, was pivotal in gaining turnovers and supporting the team's scoring efforts.
RUGBY
The 1st XV began their Miles Toyota cup season with a very narrow loss to St Bede’s College. St Andrew’s played with good tactical awareness and led 11–5 at the break. The teams were evenly matched, but St Bede’s managed to come out on top 21–18. The St Andrew’s boys showed grit and courage and there were many positive aspects to build on from this performance.
FLICKR >Recently the St Andrew’s College Adventure Race team, made up of Elliot Graves (Year 13), Adam MacFarlane, Madison Wallace (both Year 12), Joshua Morrow, Toby Wilson, Abigail Scott-Douglas (all Year 11, Sophie Lampe (Year 10), and a student from Christchurch Girls’ High School, took part in the Hillary Challenge Qualifier. St Andrew’s was one of the top five teams that now go through to the final held in October this year at the Hillary Outdoor Centre in Tongariro National Park. It is a gruelling five-day experience that is made up of team building activities, an overnight tramping expedition and an adventure race.
During the holidays, the South Island Secondary Schools’ Adventure Race took place in Kaikoura. Teams had the choice of doing either the 12, six, or three-hour race. This year St Andrew’s College put a team into each of the three races, however the three-hour team pulled out of the race so did not place. In the 12-hour Senior Mixed race, the StAC Prickly Thistles teams, made up of Adam MacFarlane (Year 12), Joshua Morrow, Toby Wilson, and Abigail Scott-Douglas (all Year 11) came second. This was a massive effort as some of the team members had never done a 12-hour race before. In the six-hour race the St Andrew’s team of Elliot Graves (Year 13), Isabella Cody (Year 12) and Kupa Rule (Year 11) came a creditable 18th.
Over the weekend, eight Media students from Years 9–11 participated in the 48Hours film competition. This is a unique competition where teams of filmmakers are given just 48 hours to write, shoot, and edit a short film. The challenge is not just about speed, but also about creativity and teamwork. Each team is assigned a genre, and four elements that they must incorporate into their film. Our students were assigned the genre of ‘The Animal Adventure’ and they rose to the occasion with an imaginative time-travelling hijinks story. The 48Hours Film Festival is New Zealand's largest guerrilla filmmaking competition. It's a serious challenge for both first-time filmmakers through to experienced directors. Participants enjoy the thrill of seeing their work on the big screen, networking with film enthusiasts, and competing for prizes.
Bodie Oxenham and Jacob Bunting (both Year 12) played in the Canterbury Schools Squash Championship last weekend. Unfortunately, both lost their first games of the tournament but bounced back to win their second. This set them up for the fifth/sixth playoff match against each other, which Bodie won in a close match.
The St Andrew’s College Pipe Band students had an extremely busy day on the solo boards last Sunday. The Highland Piping Society of Canterbury first solo piping event of the indoor season was held in the Spiro Science and Mathematics Centre at the College. For many students, it was their first solo performance since December last year. The Canterbury Drummers Club also hosted their first competition of the year in the Spiro Science and Mathematics Centre, with many of our drumming students having the opportunity to perform.
Pipers Sam Foote (Year 11) and Finlay Trewinnard (Year 9) performed at the Rangi Ruru Girls’ School Founders’ Day Celebrations on Monday. Both students have recent or current connections with Rangi Ruru, with Sam’s sister Annie having graduated a few years ago and Finlay’s sister Ruby currently in Year 12 and Head of Chapel. The pipers played very well and received a great reception from the school.
Thirteen students competed in the Speech and Drama Section of the Oamaru Performing Arts Festival during the weekend. Some of the highlights included Year 7 students Aaron Yu and Ben McKendry earning some well-deserved recognition for their engaging solo poetry performances, sight reading, characterisation and Bible reading. The boys came first and second respectively for the 12 and Under classes. Aaron Yu took home the top awards for the most points overall, beating competitors in the Under 14 years, 16 years and Open classes. Riona McKendry (Year 5) impressed the adjudicator with her creative approach to improvisation and expressive speaking, and was awarded the most points for the 10 and Unders. Violet and Watson Winterbourn won the most points for Under 8 years and Under 6 years respectively. Violet moved the audience with her portrayal of Hans Christian Anderson's character, The Little Match Girl, while Watson wowed the adjudicator with his big clear, expressive voice. In July these students and others from St Andrew’s will compete in the Christchurch Speech and Drama competitions.
Watson Winterbourn (Year 1) performed over the weekend at the Oamaru Performing Arts competition. He won the Most Promising Highland Dancer Award.
The following students have been selected for representative hockey teams:
The Canterbury Under 18A Women will compete in the National Under 18 Women’s Tournament in Christchurch from 7–13 July. The Canterbury Under 18A Men will compete in the National Under 18 Men’s Tournament in Hawke's Bay on the same dates. Both teams will play in the Mainland Cup over King's Birthday Weekend in Dunedin.
Daisy Thake (Year 11) has been selected for the Canterbury U17 indoor cricket team.
Ming Macarthy (Year 5) has made the U15 Canterbury Ice Hockey representative squad 2024.
Alex Rippin (OC 2023) was named in the Canterbury U18A team and Kaylee McDonald (OC 2023) was named in the Canterbury U18B team alongside Jospeh Connolly (OC 2023).
Tom Turner (OC 2022) is playing for the Young New Zealand polo team as part of the Gloucestershire Festival of Polo 2024 in the Buckmaster Trophy (Young England vs Young New Zealand).
Joshua Guillemot-Rodgerson (OC 2013) and Patron of our St Andrew’s College Ballet Academy returned to campus this week to tour the new Ngā Toi – Performing Arts Centre with Artistic Director, Dr Carolyn Cairns and Rector, Christine Leighton. Joshua was thrilled to see the outstanding studios and beautiful theatre as he well recalls the prior facilities, having joined classes on his student holidays, tutored and choreographed works for the Academy dancers, and performed on the old stage. Joshua was recently promoted to the rank of Principal with the Royal New Zealand Ballet and is in Christchurch for the season of Swan Lake, in which he performs the lead role of Siegfried.
On Saturday 18 May, the College hosted over 50 Old Collegians at the Sports Pavilion for the annual 1st XV Rugby Reunion. This year, we were joined by teams and coaches from 1954, 1964, 1974, 1984, 1994, 2004, and 2014. We were delighted to host three Old Boys from the 70 Years On team, Euan Hilson (OC 1954), Buddy Shirley and Don Davison (both OCs 1956), who enjoyed mingling with some of the younger guests. The teams from 1964, 1984, 1994, and 2004 had a strong presence this year. Twins, Robert and David Le Lievre (OCs 1994), returned to celebrate and participate in the humorous post-match re-enactment of their Collegian rugby photo. Regrettably, St Andrew’s fell short in the final moments of the season’s opening match against St Bede’s College. The game was closely contested with a final score of 18–21. However, everyone concurred that rugby, old friends and hot pies were the true victors of the day.
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On Saturday a small group of Old Collegians were invited to attend a Gough Family Theatre tour, catch up and to see the final night of Legally Blonde in the new venue. The invited group were made up of past Cultural Captains, Heads of College who were in shows, and others those who gave a great deal of service to many shows over the past 10 years, with two travelling from Australia for the event. It was fantastic to catch up with each other and there were lots of stories shared. The group were impressed with the new Theatre with some wishing they could come back to school to do another show. The Old Collegians enjoyed catching up with the cast after the show too.
FLICKR >Good luck to all students who are representing the College this weekend in sports and cultural activities,including:
Tonight at 7.00pm our St Andrew’s College rock bands will perform in the Gough Family Theatre in preparation for the Smokefree Rockquest this weekend. This year we have 10 bands entered. Your support at either the event this evening in the Theatre, or at the Aurora Centre at Burnside High School tomorrow at 4.00pm would be greatly appreciated.
Unfortunately due to a change in scheduling, the Ballet Academy photo planned for Friday 31 May has been postponed. A new date will be confirmed for Term 3.
The Black & Bling Ball kicks off at 6.30pm this Saturday. The Silent Auction is open on GalaBid, an online auction platform. Details on how to register with GalaBid are below. Anyone over 18 years of age can access this platform and place bids, even if you can’t make it to the Ball in person.
There are some fabulous items available for you to bid on, including a variety of holiday home stays in Wanaka, Twizel, Coromandel; a fantastic built-in BBQ; gym membership; a number of delicious food and wine options; beauty vouchers; hockey coaching, Crusaders and Tactix memorabilia and much more. There’s something there for everyone! To view all items, please register through the following process:
Silent Auction Registration
Or register via galabid.com/stac24.
Alternatively, the QR code will take you straight to registration. Happy bidding and thank you for supporting.
The Aurora Stone is a mystical crystal that fell from the sky and brought peace to two fighting realms. After a mishap with the stone, three children must find out if they are the chosen ones to return the stone and help the people of Norina. Will they be able to fulfil the prophecy?
Come along and see this delightful show performed by all Year 7 and 8 students. This musical script and lyrics have been written by Preparatory School students, with music written by Year 13 Music students.
When: Monday 24 – Thursday 27 June 2024 (four shows)
Time: 7.00pm–8.00pm
Venue: Ngā Toi Performing Arts Centre – Gough Family Theatre
Ticket price: $22.00
Are you a proud supporter of St Andrew’s College? Whether you’re cheering on the Pipe Band or braving the elements at a sports event, our St Andrew’s College branded Blunt Metro Umbrella is your perfect companion. The St Andrew’s College Pipe Band has teamed up with Blunt Umbrellas to bring you this stylish St Andrew's College-branded, Blunt Metro Umbrella in our iconic navy blue. At just $139, it’s the same price as Blunt’s limited edition Metro umbrellas. Every purchase directly contributes to supporting the St Andrew’s College Pipe Band. Funds raised will help us purchase new equipment and cover expenses for the New Zealand Pipe Band Championships in 2025 (Invercargill) and our next World Championship trip to Scotland!
Collection Information:
Are you curious about how to support your child’s interest and engagement in sport? Interested in finding out the latest research on concussion? Join our upcoming StACTalk, where we’ll explore practical strategies and insights to support the ongoing development of our students. This event is for parents in the Secondary School who want to understand how to help their young people flourish in sports. Students are also encouraged to attend.
What to Expect:
Speakers:
Date: Tuesday 11 June
Time: 6.30pm–8.00pm
Location: Centennial Chapel
On Sunday 9 June, the Preparatory School is holding a Quiz Night at The Elmwood (end of Normans Road) as a fundraiser for this year’s Preparatory School Australian Sports Tour.
Arrival at 6.00pm, the Quiz Night starts at 7.00pm. $20.00 entry per team member with teams of six to eight people.
With raffles, games, and a silent auction this is a night not to be missed! Tickets will sell fast so get in quickly and email Keryn Ford at by clicking here to reserve your team a place.
The online sales for the following 2024 photographs are now available:
Details of how to order the photographs can be found on our website using the button below and you will need to log into StACNet using your St Andrew's College login.
If you have any questions relating to this service, please email photography@stac.school.nz
For any illness, students should stay home if unwell. Any student should also feel free to wear a mask if they wish to do so while at school.
For any absence, whether ill-health (including COVID-19) or otherwise, the College’s preferred platform for reporting this is via our online form which can be found at the button below:
If you are not able to report your child's absence using the online form, please report their absence via the relevant email address below. If you cannot get through to us via the form or email, please call our attendance line on +64 3 940 2031 (term time only).
The Community Business Directory is on our website under Alumni & Community and represents over 100 parent businesses. Please take a look at how many businesses you can support locally.
The St Andrew's College Community Business Directory >
If you would still like to register your business, complete the following form.
Community Business Directory Registration >
For a full list of upcoming school events, please refer to the fixtures page on StACNet.
