School news

Otamatea High School Parent By- Election Notice

Nominations are open for the election of one parent representative to the school board.

All eligible voters will receive a nomination form. Use this form to nominate yourself or someone in your community. You will also receive a nomination cover letter calling for
nominations. If you need more nomination forms, contact the school office.
Nominations close at noon on Friday 3rd May 2024. You may provide a signed candidate statement and photograph with your nomination.
The electoral roll is held at the school and can be viewed during normal school hours. As nominations are received, there will be a list of candidates’ names kept at the school up until election day, which you can view.
Should an election be required, voting closes at 4pm on Friday 7th June 2024.

Signed Eileen Parsons
Returning Officer

Relay for Life

This past Saturday, our school community embarked on an extraordinary journey at Trigg Stadium in Whangarei for the annual Relay for Life event. With 30 Year 13 students and dedicated staff, we made our mark on the track, embodying the spirit of our 'He Waka Eke Noa' values.

Throughout the night, our students displayed remarkable perseverance, collectively completing an astonishing 2,325 laps around the 400m track.
We extend our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who supported our team, whether through generous donations or lending a helping hand. A special thank you goes to New World Mangawhai and Four Square Maungaturoto for their invaluable contributions. Additionally, we are immensely grateful to Bunnings Mangawhai for graciously allowing us to utilize their BBQ for sausage sizzles.

We are overwhelmed by the outpouring of support from our local community, whose donations propelled our students to achieve remarkable success. With your help, we managed to gain second place overall in Northland—a testament to the collective effort and generosity of all involved - with one of our students, Max Cotching, coming second overall individually. 

L1 PE trip to Mangawhai waka ama

Last Friday we took 60 Year 11 students to the Mangawhai waka ama club for their practical assessment. This unit of work is about kotahitanga or unity. Working as a team to accomplish something outside their comfort zone. The students were awesome and I was really proud of how they conducted themselves. Members of the public camping nearby came and saw me telling me they thought our students were very well behaved. A huge thank you to the Mangawhai Waka Ama club for supporting this event.

Bruce Alison

BP IRB NZ Championships

We headed down to Waikouaiti just outside of Dunedin for the BP IRB NZ Championships.
Saturday 23rd day 1 of racing. The water temp was around 9 degrees and racing started at 8am with the Tube rescue.  Unfortunately we placed 5th in the heats. Next we had the Assembly race which we cruised through the heats and the semi's to make the finals placing 3rd earning a bronze medal. Super stoked with Day 1. Day 2 saw another early start and the water temp again a cold 9 degrees. Our first race was the mass rescue again. We cruised through the heats and semi's to the finals, unfortunately we got smashed by some big waves coming 5th. Last race was the single rescue. Again we cruised into the finals which was such a close race we had to wait to see where we came 3rd or 4th, to our surprise we came 3rd, gaining another bronze medal. This was Leayah and her team's first year racing and first nationals with an unbelievable result. They competed in the U23 Women's division. Leayah's brother Jakob Buxton also went down as a patient in the Mass. Leayah competed on the last day with hyperthermia so in between her races she was being warmed up to keep going. Super proud of all 3 girls Emily Stolwick, Leayah Buxton, Ava  Pullman (Bream Bay College) and Jakob Buxton.

Leayah Buxton

 

Construction Academy

This term the Level 2 Construction Academy are continuing to lay concrete as a part of their course.
Every part of the job from digging to pouring the concrete. Cheers to Atlas Quarries, who’s great
community support enable us to provide this content.
Photo Alex Amesbury, Tait Winter and Leon Varty remove soil from the new pad site.

Biology trip

On Monday 25th, 36 Level 2 Biologists ventured to Waipu Cove to gather data on the rocky shore. They observed the abiotic and biotic factors across the zones of the rocky shore.
This data will then be applied to their assessment. They also went on a forest walk with ranger Steve, talking about the bush restoration and pest control in the Brynderwyns.
The learners worked hard and got to enjoy the sunshine. It was nice to act like ecologists in the field for once!

AIMS Rugby 7's

This year we have a 7-aside rugby team hoping to get to the 2024 Zespri AIMS Games.  This is Australasia’s largest junior sporting event, held annually in Tauranga for year 7 & 8 students.  Last year the Games had 11,733 competitors which was more athletes than at the Tokyo Olympics, representing 373 schools and 25 sporting codes, so it will be an amazing event to be a part of.

Last week we had the Northland Rugby Development Officer run two trial sessions for the students who were keen to play.  It was great to see so much enthusiasm from all those who attended.  From this the following students were selected for the team:

Jack Brown
Ollie Clark
Cameron Davies
Blake Fergus
Tama Freer-Aperehama
Reef Gardner-Baker
Lachlan Hill
Sam Hoddle
Kahu Kite Kingi
Iosefa Tovine
Bakarereua Ulisala
Van Walker
 Non-Travelling Reserve: Hunter Gardner

Over the next 5 months we will be having several fundraising events to make this trip possible, please keep a look out for these events and support them when you can.

Student ID cards

If you require an ID card for your child these can be ordered through the school office at a cost of $13. 

Photolife - School Photos

Parents/caregivers have been emailed their child’s unique Key Code to go online to view and purchase 2024 School Photos.      
Please check your spam folder if you haven't received an email.
***FREE DELIVERY EXPIRES Midnight Sunday 7th APRIL *** 

Parent Queries – Please contact Photolife on:  enquiries@photolife.co.nz

Otamatea Netball Club

Fees for the 2024 season are: Yr 7-8 $110 and Yr 9-13 $135. Fees need to be paid by the 9th of April (cash or direct credit to bank account 12-3095-0017174-00 ref child's name).
Players will not be able to take the court until their fees are paid or payment arrangement is made with the club. 
If you are unable to make full payment by the 9th April please contact the club (otamateanetball@gmail.com) by the 27th of March to make a payment plan.