It has been another busy week at Dio. Thank you to all staff for their dedication to the school and their hard work this week. It is also Volunteer Week, so I would like to take the opportunity to thank all of our dedicated volunteers (members of the School Association, volunteer coaches and managers, and parent camp helpers) - we so appreciate you.

A highlight of this week was the news that our Bel Suono choir is going to be represented at the Big Sing Finale in Christchurch from 25 –27 August 2022.  Bel Suono has been selected as one of the top 24 secondary choirs in New Zealand from a pool of around 250.  Our Cantiamo choir has also been selected for the next level Cadenza competition in Rotorua (which is the next 12 choirs in the lineup). Congratulations to our Director of Music, Mrs Colvin, and her amazing team. We are so proud.

We also had a week of successes on the sporting front with six of our Netball teams competing in the Hamilton City Secondary School tournament on Sunday 19 June. Our 9A team won the Year 9A grade and our 10A won the Year 10B grade.  Junior Prem were runners-up in Year 10 A Grade and our Premier Reserve were runners-up in the Senior Grade. A special mention to Senior A and 9B teams for competing and displaying true Dio spirit throughout the day. Congratulations to all involved.

It has been another successful term so far for courses and Gateway for many of our Years 11 to 13 students. This week another 10 students completed their Barista course through Industry Training Solutions. This was a fun, practical day for the students to work on the barista machines and complete final assessments. In addition, 19 students completed their Countdown training course, and 16 started their work experience in a store local to their home. Two students are also working at Farmers one day per weekend.

By the end of the July holidays, 22 students will have completed 5-10 days of work experience at either Countdown, Farmers or McDonald's and will gain between 17-23 credits towards NCEA. Many of these students will also complete First Aid and Health and Safety certificates as part of the programme.

This week we held the Senior Speech Competition.  Congratulations to the three students who gained placings in the Senior Speech Competition: Emilee Mehrten's winning speech was on The importance of self-confidence; Catherine Hardie placed second withher speech on Transgender in women’s sport, and Kezia Schuitemaker placed third with her speech on Bullying.  Mr Kuluz (HOD English) and Ms Wolfe (Assistant HOD English) were the judges. We hope to present awards for the place-getters in the upcoming Assembly.

Another small group challenged themselves to gain credits for the Level 2 Speech Achievement Standard. It is really impressive that these students have been working hard, beyond normal coursework, to gain these extra credits. Most students achieved this Achievement Standard with Excellence.

Other News:

Future Student Leaders - Deputy Principal, Mrs Miller and I continue to have morning tea with small groups of Year 12 students each Tuesday and Thursday this term, to gather their student voice and to get ideas of how they would like to lead the school next year. It has been time well spent.

Field Trips - This week we have been pleased to be able to continue with school trips under the current traffic light, with Geography, Classic and Sports and Exercise Science (SES) trips all taking place.

Police Talk - On Thursday 23 June the Police visited the School to talk to the Year 11 cohort about cyberbullying. We started this initiative last year, with the Police also talking to our Year 9 students at the start of the year. The relationship between the Police and the students/staff has proved an invaluable resource.

Kapa Haka - From 4 pm on Friday 24 June to 6 pm on Saturday 25 June we are having a wananga for our Kapa Haka students to work on their waiata and actions. As part of this wananga, students will be watching the film 'Whina'.

Epro8 Engineering Competition - A large group of students has been competing in the Epro8 Engineering Competition at St Paul's Collegiate throughout the week.

Check out our latest DioNews for more celebrations and information or follow us on Facebook or Instagram: @waikatodiocesanschoolforgirls

As we prepare to celebrate our first Matariki (start of the Māori New Year) holiday tomorrow, we reflect on the past year, celebrate the present, and plan for the year ahead.  We celebrated the start of Matariki at an assembly on Monday, led by our Amokura and her Mana Wahine, and our kapa haka group. The boarding house also held a Matariki celebration on Wednesday. A lot of time and preparation went into ensuring that this was a memorable event for boarders, so my thanks to the boarding staff for making this happen.  Matariki runs from 17 June – 17 July 2022 and refers to “Ngā Mata o te Ariki Tāwhirimātea” (The eyes of the God Tāwhirimātea).

And finally, this Sunday, we are looking forward to welcoming boarders back with a Boarders' Chapel service. This will create an opportunity to gather in prayer, and reflect on Matariki and God’s amazing creation, as well as remember our loved ones who have passed.

Wishing all of you and your whanau a blessed Matariki and a safe and restful weekend.

Nāku iti noa, nā

Mary Curran

Principal