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Dear Parents and Caregivers
Kia ora koutou.
In this last edition of Rector’s Comment for 2025, we are sharing announcements including leadership roles for 2026, details of the special College awards from Prizegiving, and final updates on student activities and achievements. You will also find important information and reminders about laptop onboarding and preparation for the new academic year, as well as opening hours for the College uniform shop, Thistles.
Last week’s Year 9–10 Advent Chapel Service provided a moment of reflection for me after a wonderful message from Chaplain Rev. Paul Morrow about “Strawberry Moments”. These are moments when we appreciate the small, joyful experiences in life, especially during busy or challenging times. This made me think of the many “strawberry moments” my wife Judi and I have had the privilege to experience in our first year at St Andrew’s. There have been too many to list, thanks to the remarkable students who continually amaze and delight us through the wide-ranging opportunities and experiences on offer.
One very special “strawberry moment” was this year’s Prizegiving, a truly memorable occasion with at least 4000 members of our community gathered at Wolfbrook Arena. This event featured incredible performances from our talented young people, including our Kapa Haka, Pipe Band and Highland dancers, Ballet Academy, and a broad range of musical items from the choirs, orchestra, jazz, and rock bands.
The finale music item has now been released and represents the hard work of so many people. Thank you to everyone involved. What I really enjoyed was how this performance reflects who we are as a College, showcasing the breadth of talent among our students. Click here to enjoy this outstanding item.
Last week, I also enjoyed a special end-of-year Christmas visit from some of our Pre-school students. These visits from our youngest students are always such a delight, and on this occasion, they enjoyed exploring my office and meeting “Hamish” my Highland Bull soft toy.
While lessons have concluded for the year, many activities are still underway. Our athletes have been competing at the New Zealand Secondary Schools Athletic Championships in Hastings. Congratulations to all competitors, with highlights including bronze for our Mixed 4x100m Senior relay team, Jody McCarthy-Dempsey (Year 13) winning gold in the 100m Senior hurdles and bronze in the Senior high jump, Maiyah Martin (Year 9) winning silver in the 300m Junior hurdles, Orla Motley (Year 13) winning silver in the Senior hammer throw, and Melenaite (Tia) Havea (Year 12) winning bronze in the Senior discus.
Over the weekend, a small group of Year 7 students represented St Andrew’s at the VEX IQ Nationals in Palmerston North. While no teams qualified for the finals, the squad returned with two major awards: the Inspire Award for Team “The Terminator” and the Teacher of the Year Award for Andy Kerrison, Teacher in Charge of VEX Robotics, recognising his outstanding contribution to VEX Robotics locally and nationally.
I also wish the very best to our students competing in the New Zealand Secondary Schools National Touch Championships later this week, and to the group currently overseas on the Cambodia Cultural Encounter, returning on Thursday 18 December.
At St Andrew’s College, we continue to develop understanding and practice of Māori tikanga and te reo as part of our learning journey. Recently, there has been discussion about the government’s changes to the Education and Training Amendment Act, which passed its first reading in November. These changes have attracted media attention, particularly around state schools no longer having an explicit obligation to give effect to Te Tiriti o Waitangi. As an independent school, we have the freedom to shape a curriculum that reflects our own priorities. As part of this, we continue to weave te reo Māori and tikanga Māori into everyday learning experiences, alongside the rich traditions of our Scottish heritage and Presbyterian Christian character.
To conclude on a special Christmas note of giving and love, I want to thank all our families who contributed gifts to the Christchurch City Mission Appeal. This year we had the largest response to date, with an outstanding and humbling level of generosity from our community. The Christchurch City Mission is truly grateful for these gifts, which will bring joy to many families in need this Christmas.
Wishing you all a very blessed and safe Christmas season and an enjoyable summer holiday. I look forward to seeing you all again in 2026.
Ngā mihi
Mark Wilson
Rector
Head Prefect: Charlotte Galvan
Head Prefect: Tom Simpson
Deputy Head Prefect: Lila Waghorn
Deputy Head Prefect: Jake Farrelly
Head of Girls’ Boarding: Katie Taggart
Head of Boys’ Boarding: Henry Tayler
Charlie Bisphan
Amelia Blockley
Metua Cranwell
Jacob Farrelly
Sam Foote
Charlotte Galvan
Iona Garrett
Reece Glennie
Eva Jeffries
Zachary Lang
Daniel Liu
Chloe MacDonald
Ewan Mander
Oaklan Marshall
Carley McNee
Hannah Papali'i Taimalelagi Malietoa
Olivia Ratcliffe
Scarlett Ryan
Tom Simpson
Katie Taggart
Henry Tayler
Lila Waghorn
Oliver Wallace
Xanthe Ward
Henry White
Matthew Wilcox
Annie Young
Thomas Ambury
Alyssa Blackman
Marshall Coles
Jakob Dana
Saskia Fifield-Kraal
Noah Fihaki
Vincent Gardiner
Charlie Gregg
Charles Hayes
Samuel Hu
Lucas Jemmett
Ana Kamo
Leah King
George Kotepong
Cameron Lyons
Abbey Marr
Toby Maw
Violet McInnes
Danica Minson
Katherine Morris
Louis O'Neill
Frederick Paterson
Sophie Schouten
Anthony Song
Marika Tavendale
Gemma Walters
Amanda Watkins
Charlotte Withers
Thanks to the generosity of previous Board member, Jay Scanlon, each Prizegiving we recognise a teacher with the Marily Scanlon Award for Teaching Excellence. This year’s recipient is Performing Arts Co-ordinator and Dance and Drama Teacher, Ginnie Thorner. Ginnie has dedicated 21 years to St Andrew’s College, excelling as a teacher and production director, and recently led both Preparatory and Senior Drama programmes. Her passion, high standards, and ability to inspire creativity have produced outstanding, nationally recognised productions and strengthened arts education through mentoring and conferences.
The winner of the David Wilton Prize for the Dux of St Andrew’s College for 2025 is Jasmine Hooker.
Jasimine was also awarded a General Excellence prize and a Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Hillary Award.
Daniel Officer won Proxime Accessit, runner-up to the Dux for 2025.
Daniel was also awarded a General Excellence prize.
The J R Bierwirth Cup for Dux of the Preparatory School: Emma Zhang
The M J Hill Cup for Proxime Accessit of the Preparatory School: Elina Wang
David Wilton Prize for the Dux: Jasmine Hooker
Proxime Accessit: Daniel Officer
Amelia McGoldrick Memorial Cup for the Best All Round Sportswoman in Year 8: Mila Rule
Cartwright Cup for the Best All Round Sportsman in Year 8: Patrick O’Byrne
St John Trophy for the Best All Round Student in Year 8: Chenxiao (Leo) Yang
Dennis McIlraith Cup for a student making a Positive Contribution to the Year Group (Year 9): George Hubbard
St Andrew’s Cup for All-round Excellence in Year 9: Cong (Zilong) Chen
St Andrew’s Cup for the Best All-round Junior Sportswoman: Hayley Stowell
Mauger Family Cup for the Best All-round Junior Sportsman: Zac Hibbs
St Andrew’s Cup for the Most Positive Contribution to the Year Group (Year 10): Leah King
J R Little Memorial Cup for All Round Excellence in Year 10: Samuel Hu
Box Family Cup for Middle School Sporting Excellence (Boys): Hugo Millar-Bell
Scott Family Cup for Middle School Sporting Excellence (Girls): Maniah Taefu
Burrows Family Cup for the Most Valuable Contribution to the Year Group (Year 11): Edward Keenan
S J Long Cup for All-round Excellence in Year 11: Hanxi (Cicy) Chen
Bill Thompson Memorial Cup for All-round Excellence in Year 12: Charlotte Galvan
E. N. T. Reese Memorial Award for the Top Academic Performance in Year 12: Luke Manson
Duke of Edinburgh's Hillary Gold Awards: Sophie Burnett, Edward Connolly, Iona Garrett, Hazel Hall, Jasmine Hooker, Thomas Jefferies, Ricky Kotepong, Lily McHarg, Sasha McIntyre, Ruby McPhail, Spencer Menzies, Anton Monk, Mia Montgomery, Maria (Masha) Pospolitak, Ivan Ren, Oliver Searle, Elia Short, Katherine Simcock, Sophia Voice, Madison Wallace, Henry White, Amy Zhu
Tuu’u Family Cup for an Outstanding Contribution to Intercultural Relationships: Manzhao (Cherry) Xu
Collins Cup for Culture: Miu Kim
Charles Young Cup for Senior Music: Mookmanee (Mookee) Lee
Duncan Field Cup for all-round contribution to Year 13: Madeline Davidson
Tapper-Green Cup for Citizenship: Kiera Fass
A. R. Liddell Memorial Trophy for Service to Sport: Alexander Black
Rocklea Cup for Champion House (Rutherford 2025): Beau Hopkinson and Rylee McBride
Bruce Ullrich Trophy for all-round Sporting Excellence (Boys): Oliver Jackways
Ladies Circle Cup for all-round Sporting Excellence (Girls): Orla Motley
Trophy for Senior Sportsman of the Year: Noah Cole
Ladies Committee Cup for Sportswoman of the Year: Catherine Cook and Mia Montgomery
McKenzie Cup for Service to the House: Oliver Cotter
D. C. Wilson Memorial Prize and the Dianne MacDonald Cup for Head of Girls’ Boarding: Catalina Serrano Burgos
D. C. Wilson Memorial Prize and Letham family Cup for Head of Boys’ Boarding: Lachlan Sidey
Oughton Cup for Deputy Head Girl: Sophia Voice
Newton Cup for Deputy Head Boy: Ricky Kotepong
Clive Crozier Memorial Prize and Brookes Family Cup for the Head Girl: Katherine Simcock
Clive Crozier Memorial Prize and Yee Family Cup for the Head Boy: Jake Elvidge
Faletoese Cup for best all-rounder in Year 13 (Boys): James Anthony
Suter Family Cup for best all-rounder in Year 13 (Girls): Katherine Simcock
The Tuuta Iho Pūmanawa Award: George Wesley
The Christine Leighton Prize: Ricky Kotepong
Secondary School Prizegiving WinnerS > Preparatory School PRIZEGIVING WINNERS >
Each year thousands of students sit these examinations in various subjects and most years at our Prizegiving we recognise one or two of our students who achieve an ICAS Gold Medal, gaining the top mark in New Zealand for their year group. This year, four medals have been achieved in Mathematics, Science and Writing.
Last Friday, the Preparatory School celebrated the end of the year with a vibrant Term 4 Assembly. The event opened with the Pipe Band, setting a lively tone for the morning. The newly formed Preparatory School rock band, Cobalt Cats, then took the stage with an original song, Same Page, written by vocalist Lila Gordon-Glassford (Year 8). She was joined by a talented line-up of Carter Robinson (Year 7) on drums, Jacob Wang (Year 8) on bass guitar, Stanley Young (Year 7) on electric guitar, and Tianyu (George) Feng (Year 7) on keyboard.
A heartfelt moment followed when Ruby Richards (Year 7) presented departing Principal Jonathan Bierwirth with a special gift prepared by Assistant Principal Heather Orman, a book titled The Jolly Principal, created by Year 1–8 students to honour his lasting impact. Music scholars Ethan Waines (Year 9) and Caleb Waines (Year 7), both accomplished violinists, performed a beautiful violin duet of Johann Pachelbel’s Canon in D. The celebration continued with a specially arranged version of A Million Dreams, written by Music teacher Sonia Lewis and sung by the entire school in tribute to Mr Bierwirth. The recognition concluded with a powerful haka led by Jack Ellwood (Year 8), followed by the Year 8 leavers’ message. In a playful farewell, students attempted, unsuccessfully, to score goals against their Principal, who also happens to be an New Zealand Masters goalkeeper!
The assembly was a fitting finale to the year, with many students crossing the stage to be acknowledged for their achievements. It was a joyful and memorable way to close the chapter on 2025.
Assembly and Prizegiving Award Recipients >
Flickr >
A team of 11 athletes represented St Andrew's College at the New Zealand Secondary School Athletics National Track and Field and Road Race Championships in Hastings last weekend, competing in extremely hot and challenging conditions.
Day 1 focused on qualifying rounds, with strong efforts from Kupa Rule (Year 12) in the 400m and 800m, Samuel Hardy (Year 11) in the 400m, and Tayla Ford (Year 9) in the 400m. Day 2 brought our first medals, with Jody McCarthy-Dempsey (Year 13) winning bronze in the Senior Girls high jump, and Melenaite (Tia) Havea (Year 12) also winning bronze in the Senior Girls discus, and fifth in the Senior Girls shot put.
The final day saw more impressive performances. Tayla Ford finished fourth in the Year 9 Girls 3000m race (just over half a second from a medal) and later seventh in the Junior Girls 400m final. Cohnor Walsh (Year 12) was ninth in the Senior Boys 6000m race among over 70 competitors, backing up from a personal best in the 1500m the day before. Jody McCarthy-Dempsey won gold in the Senior Girls 100m hurdles, and Maiyah Martin (Year 9) finished fifth in the Junior Girls 80m hurdles and silver in the Junior Girls 300m hurdles with a new personal best. The weekend was capped off with Orla Motley (Year 13) winning silver in the Senior Girls hammer and sixth in the Javelin, and the Mixed Senior 4x100m relay team of Sophie Paterson (Year 11), Jody McCarthy-Dempsey, Samuel Hardy and George Suter (Year 11), winning bronze. Samuel Hardy and George Suter joined Kupa Rule and Cohnor Walsh to place seventh in the Senior Boys 4x400m relay.
At the conclusion of the event, Jody McCarthy-Dempsey and Orla Motley were named in the New Zealand Secondary Schools team, a fantastic achievement.
Over the weekend, an excited group of 11 Year 7 students travelled to Palmerston North for the 2025 VEX IQ Nationals, the largest group from St Andrew’s College ever to go to this event.
Two days of intense competition followed, with each team playing 11 matches and working hard to score as many points as possible. At the end of day one, the “Yellow Calipers” were in 11th place out of 37 teams, but a tough second day saw them finish 23rd, just behind “The Classified Bananas”, who were the top-ranked South Island team in 22nd place. The “Mongolian Tree Wessels” faced a last-minute challenge when a team member was injured but still gave their all.
Although no teams qualified for the finals, St Andrew’s returned with two major trophies:
Last week, 35 Year 11–12 students took up the final opportunity for the year to complete either their Silver or Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Hillary Award Adventurous Journey.
Three Year 11 Silver groups completed their journeys on the Mt Somers track, while Year 12 students undertook their Gold Qualifying Journey crossing the Binser Saddle. All groups were supervised and trained by our experienced instructors from Castle Hill, focusing on navigation, campcraft, and team leadership.
Careful planning and preparation ensured every group was well equipped before departure, which contributed to the successful completion of all journeys in a range of weather conditions.
On Saturday, a group of 35 Year 2–12 students were part of the Julie Hawke School of Dance cast of Second Star to the Right for two very successful shows held in the Gough Family Theatre. It was truly a wonderful Highland showcase, delighting the audiences with the young Pixie Dust and Lost Boys, right through to the energetic pirates and fearsome Captain Hook, with Peter Pan and Tinkerbelle weaving their magic through each scene. Thank you to Theatre Operations Manager, Stuart Lloyd-Harris for his superb creative lighting and stage effects throughout the show.
Thank you to all the families who gave a gift to the Christchurch City Mission this year. We had the largest response to date, with an outstanding and humbling response from students. The Christchurch City Mission is truly grateful for these gifts, which will be given to the many families in need this Christmas.
Wednesday 28 January and onwards
Wednesday 28 January
Thursday 29 January
Friday 30 January
Wednesday 28 January (New to St Andrew’s College students only)
Thursday 29 January (all students)
Friday 30 January
Wednesday 28 January (New to St Andrew’s College students only)
Thursday 29 January
Friday 30 January
The St Andrew’s College ICT Services team will be offering an opportunity for new students to have their laptop set up in preparation for the new academic year. To book your time slot, please visit:
Day Students:
This will take place in The Green Library and Innovation Centre (entrance from the main Secondary School Quad).
Please click here to book your time slot.
Any day students unable to attend on any of the above dates, please email Helpdesk via helpdesk@stac.school.nz to arrange an appointment.
Boarders:
Year 9 boarding students will be on-boarded as part of the Boarder Orientation programme (Saturday 24 – Wednesday 28 January 2026).
Year 10–13 boarding students, please click here to book your time slot for the following times:
Current Students:
Current students who will have a new device in 2026 have the option of booking an on-boarding session or setting this up from home. Follow the on-boarding instructions for either option by clicking here.
The College Shop, Thistles, will be open in December from Monday 1 December – Friday 19 December 2025, 8.00am–4.30pm. Thistles will re-open in 2026 with the following hours:
The final operating day for the Second-Hand Uniform Shop in 2025 will be Friday 19 December. In January 2026, the Second-hand Uniform Shop will be open with the following hours:
JANUARY
Wednesday 28 January – Term 1 Commences Years 1–9
Thursday 29 January – Term 1 Commences Years 10–13
Thursday 29 January – Secondary School Mihi Whakatau and Assembly, 8.30am
Friday 30 January – Secondary School Leadership Assembly, 8.25am
FEBRUARY
Friday 6 February – Waitangi Day observed – College closed
Sunday 15 February – Boarders' Chapel Service, 6.00pm
Friday 27 February – Secondary School Athletic Sports Day
MARCH
Sunday 1 March – Middle School Chapel, 5.00pm
Please view the fixtures on the College intranet for more upcoming events. The intranet is updated daily.
Visit the College intranet, StACNet >
The Christmas Eve Chapel Service will take place on Wednesday 24 December at 6.00pm in the Centennial Chapel. Everyone is welcome to this family-friendly service.
All 2025 school photographs are now available to purchase online:
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
The Community Business Directory is on our website 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 >
