Newsletter No 16 31 October 2001
Dear Parents
A Letter from the Board of Trustees to our School Community
This letter is to inform you of the stance that the Board of Trustees has agreed to take with regards action taken by our staff who are PPTA members.
The Board discussed the matter at length on Monday night after speaking with a representation of the PPTA members in the school. We appreciated their attendance at our meeting and the valuable input and insight that this gave to us.
After this discussion the following motion was put and agreed to by the Board:
‘The Board wish to state their concerns to the Ministry at being placed in such an invidious position between teachers, parents and the Ministry.
The Board is to write to the Ministry in support of the key issues of the PPTA claim, namely, workload issues of non-contact hours, the support required for Year Two teachers and for recognition of the extra workload created by NCEA.
The Board is also to request information from the Ministry as to what initiatives are being proposed to improve the recruitment and retention of teachers.
The Board request the Ministry to actively pursue measures to settle the current negotiations with urgency.’
Discussion was also held as to other avenues that may be used to publicly support our teaching staff.
In addition the Board agreed to pay teachers for the first two days of "rostering home" (17 & 24th October), but not to pay them for any further similar action.
This was a very difficult issue for the board to have to deal with and the statement "meat in the sandwich" has been used regularly!
The PPTA’s claim addresses major issues with regards teacher workload and the recruitment and retention of secondary teachers which we strongly support as we are very aware of the stress that this is placing on our teaching staff.
We unanimously support all of our staff and also the concerns of parents and students. We are all aware of the disruption this has caused but we can also see why the staff have felt impelled to take this action
We are sure that you will have support for the teachers claims and that you will find this compromise to be a valid solution.
Gloria Crossley Jain Gaudin
Chairperson Principal
FURTHER POSSIBLE INDUSTRIAL ACTION:
On 6 November PPTA members will not be teaching Years 11, 12 and 13. However rooms will be available for them to study at school. Non PPTA members will be teaching classes as normal and will expect their students to attend.
SENIOR PRIZEGIVING - A very warm invitation to all parents and friends of the school to be present at our Prize Givings to be held in the Assembly Hall.
The Senior Prize Giving will be held on Friday 16 November at 1pm – Guest Speaker, Mrs Dale Copeland
There will be afternoon tea for Year 13 students and their families in the Year 12 Study at the end of the ceremony.
GRADUATION DINNER - On the evening of Prize Giving Year 13 students and their parents are invited to attend the Graduation Dinner to be held at the Plymouth Hotel
Mix ‘n Mingle from 7pm Dinner at 7.30pm
Cost $33 per person
Tickets are only available through the school Student Support Office.
HOUSE SINGING - Congratulations to the girls and the House Captains in particular for a colourful and very lively inter-house singing competition. It was a joyful and enjoyable occasion and results were:
1st Kurahaupo 2nd Aotea
3rd Tainui 4th Tokomaru
This leaves the House Competition very evenly poised indeed with only the academic results from the Senior Prize Giving to come. So the final result will not be known until November 16…
It has been a great year for the House Competitions.
DEBATING - Television Stars Shine.
The NPGHS Senior Debating Team are the winners of the Inaugural Television Taranaki Great High School Debate.
The team comprising of Naomi McKean, Amanda Slater and Kathryn Helms convincingly argued "That Experience is more beneficial than Education".
They were up against Francis Douglas who were a very polished team and it was a very closely fought debate.
The Debating team, which also includes Frances-Rose Schumacher, have won all their debates this year. The debate will be shown on Channel 7. Congratulations team!
SPORTS ASSEMBLY -
Special Awards to:
Alisa Ravji – NZ Indoor Hockey Team and NZ U18 Hockey Team
Karla Sutton – NZ U20 Basketball team and NZ Netball Development Team
Michelle Clement - NZ Junior Archery team
Anna Carrington - NZ Inline Hockey team
Hannah Bromley - NZ U16 Soccer Squad
At the TSSSA Indoor Bowls Championships, Danelle Gopperth gained 1st place in the Senior Girls Singles.
Our 1st XV Rugby team went through their league unbeaten and played Hawera High School in the final. They won a hard-fought game by 15-7. Team members : Greer Lean, Jane Symons, Laura Newell, Leisja Doyle, Amber Pasilli, Carrie Lobb, Erin Lobb, Sigrid White, Crystal Smithers, Stephanie Joe, Sharleen Cassidy, Charlotte Trundle, Oriwia McSeveny, Liz Tinney, Keisha Grant, Conal Grant, Paula Daville Jackson, Rangi Piripi, Te Rina Waiwiri.
Congratulations to Laura, Oriwia, Keisha and Sharleen named in the Taranaki Secondary Schools team: Leisja and Greer who played in the Taranaki Women’s Combined NPC team; Keisha Grant who made the Hurricanes Secondary Schools Tournament team.
TSSSA Indoor Rowing Competition Results:
Helen Riley 2nd – 1000m Individual Event Junior
Stephanie Walden & Ruby-Jane Russell 2nd – 500m Pairs Event Intermediate.
Emily Hill, Kate Campbell, Karla Sutton, Megan Roper – 2nd Teams Event Senior
Basketball – Several of our teams gained places in their League:
NPGHS Fireman – Won the winter league and runners up on finals night.
NPGHS All Stars 69’ers won the Open B Girls League and winners on finals night.
NPGHS Keks – runners up in the league and on finals night
Netball successes for 2001
Wild Things – winners of NP 6th grade
Russells Angels – winners of Stratford 6th grade
Sour Teddies – winners of NPO 10th grade
Flyers – winners NP 11th grade
Senior A1 – runners up in NPLeague and winners at Taranaki Champs
Congratulations to Fern Sargent, Ana McSeveny, Courtney Walsh & Emma Souness who were named in the Taranaki U15 Development team.
At the MacDonalds Junior Tournament in Palmerston North, our 4A team went unbeaten in section play and won the final convincingly against Palmerston North.
Round the Lake Relay - Our junior team finished third:
Karley Sim, Miranda Dravitski, Myra White, Ami Bennett.
AWHINA’S "NOT THE MAGGIE BARRY GARDEN TOUR" : On Sunday 11 November a number of Awhina staff have kindly offered to open their gardens as a fund raising activity to help our students to attend TOPEC. There will be six family gardens, situated in New Plymouth for you to visit. Devonshire Teas will be available at Beth’s garden for a gold coin donation. Tickets $5 will be on sale at NPGHS office or obtainable on the day. Please come and share this day with us – 11am to 5pm
ART FOLIO DISPLAY EVENING - Parents, Friends of the School, Students and the General Public are very welcome to come and view the 2001 School Certificate Art Folios in the School Hall on Wednesday 7 November from 7pm – 9pm. Any queries contact Kirsty Grieve at the school.
HOCKEY - Recently Stratford hosted the Aotearoa Haupoi Maori Hockey Tournament Gemma Bayley was goalkeeper for the Aotea Tuarua team and played very well receiving the Player of the Day and also making the New Zealand Maori U21 squad. Gemma was also named in the NZ Women’s Maori team as a non-travelling reserve. This is a great achievement as there were several Black Sticks present at the tournament. Congratulations Gemma.
CYCLING - Congratulations to Emma Hutchings and Rachel Gerrand who were selected for the West Coast NI team at the NZ Road Nationals.
Unfortunately Rachel had an injury and did not ride. Emma finished 8th in the time trial and then broke her bike in the road race.
Also congratulations to Barry Marnoch who finished 7th in his road race – 110km.
IN-LINE HOCKEY - At the Inter-Regional Inline Hockey Championships held in Wanganui over Labour Weekend, the Central Region Women‘s team won GOLD! Girls’ High members were Brooke Kemsley, Anna Carrington, Stacey Pine and Tracy Turner and ex GHS Kelly Turner. This team beat the north team which is basically the NZ team 3-1. Congratulations!
Congratulations to Kathryn Helms who was one of 16 finalists at the New Zealand Young Performer of the Year Competition held in Tauranga over Labour Weekend.
TARANAKI HOSPICE FOUNDATION INC have been donated a large variety of goods for a Monster Christmas Raffle, valued at $4000, and are grateful for the support of the community. Tickets will be $1 each and are made up in books of five. These will be available from the Hospice Reception between 9amn and 3.30pm Monday to Friday from 28 October.
Please support the Hospice Foundation.
MONSTER AUCTION AT NEW PLYMOUTH BOYS HIGH SCHOOL on Sunday 11 November at 2pm in Ryder Hall. A wide range of items will be available. Some have no reserve. A Bargain is guaranteed! View the items from 12.30 on the Sunday.
Cash or cheque sales will be expected on the day for smaller items. Larger items can be purchased for the approved bid at the contributing stores the following week.
Check with Boys’ High school for a list of items up for Auction.
FITZROY SCHOOL GALA - The Fitzroy School PTA invite you to their yearly
GALA DAY to be held SUNDAY 18 NOVEMBER 2001 FROM 11AM UNTIL 2.00PM
Join the School for lunch, buy some crafts, play some games and have heaps of fun. See you there!
A letter from an ex student in Wellington to Mrs Hall
Dear Claire
"It’s been four years, but I know that your memory for ex-students is really good. I figured that seeing as it was through being in your third form form-class that I first got interested in art history, it was somehow fitting that I should send you a copy of this catalogue, my first published piece of work. It’s for an exhibition that was the major piece of assessment for one of my honours papers this year, which looked at the history of prints. We worked with the prints collection at Te Papa and were involved in every aspect of the show, from measuring the works up to deciding how they’d be hung in the show. The exhibition is at the Adam Art Gallery, the gallery on campus, which has very strong ties to the art history department. The gallery relies on volunteer staff, so if you have any bright-eyed art history enthusiasts who are considering coming to Victoria, tell them to come in at the beginning of the year and volunteer if they have an interest in possibly working in a gallery one day. It’s a fantastic opportunity, because experience like this is really had to get. I started as a volunteer last year, and now work here part time, as well as assisting the Collection Manager who looks after the University collection of art works and being the student representative on the Art Gallery Board (for some reason, I still have the knack of being chosen for the token representative positions, but it’s all experience).
Wellington has been really good to me since I moved here at the start of last year. I finished my BA in art history and psychology, and at the moment I’m counting down until the end of my honours year. I’m coming back next year to do my Masters, which I’m really looking forward to – sadly, I think part of my enthusiasm stems from a reluctance to get a real world job and stop studying. With a little luck I’ll have a tutoring position next year, and I already have another part-time job in the art history department. I’m in real danger of becoming a career academic, I think. I’m giving my first paper at a conference at the end of November, a prospect which, between you, me and the garden post, scares me absolutely silly. I had a nightmare last week in which I got to the end of my presentation and someone in the audience stood up and said ‘You are the weakest link. Goodbye!’ I’m sure it’s not really going to be quite that bad, but I’m busy thinking of graceful ways to back down from questions that I’m completely unable to answer. All in all, I’ve been really lucky here, mostly because the lecturers in the art history department are so friendly.
I still credit most of my good academic fortune to the teachers that I had at Girls’ High, particularly you, Judy Medlicott, Beth Hill and Kirstin Egan. I got to know a lot of expensively education private school people while I was in Otago, but I never heard any of them eulogise their teachers the way the Kat, Jane, Becks and I did. People still laugh at me because I come from New Plymouth, but I wouldn’t change my home town for the world. In fact, if I could land a job at the Govett-Brewster, I’d be back in a flash.
Anyway, I just wanted to thank you for getting me interested in art history while I was at high school, and for all your support at the same time. I still look back on seventh form as one of the best years of my life. I hope that everything is good and happy with you and Geoff and the girls.
Love, Courtney"
S J Gaudin, Principal