Over the past two weeks there have been many events held that have recognised and celebrated many of our senior students who have now left and are preparing for their NCEA examinations. From sports to music awards, to functions celebrating our graduating Māori and Pacific students, all events have been a wonderful acknowledgement of the contribution so many of our young women have made during their year, and time at Carmel College.

We began this week with our academic prize giving on Tuesday evening, where seniors students were recognised and celebrated for their academic success in 2024, followed by our Thanksgiving mass on Thursday.  This was a lovely Mass which included our leaving Year 13 students performing the school haka, with the morning ending with the school forming a guard of honour from the school gym to the school gates that our leavers walked through.  As we near the end of the week tomorrow the focus will move to welcoming our new Carmel students and their whānau who will join our College community in 2025.

I wish to acknowledge and thank the huge team at the College who have worked to ensure that all of these events were successful in not only celebrating and recognising our students, but in that they allowed us to bring together and acknowledge our wider community of parents, families and friends who have supported our young woman.  So to the team at the College, who there really are too many to name individually, thank you for all of your time and support; it was noticed and appreciated.

With our senior students on study leave and now only coming into the College to sit exams or attend tutorials, although the school may feel quieter, there is a lot left in the year for our students in Years 7-10, with Year 10 camp preparations well underway and activity week planning for students in Years 7-9. 

A further community event I would like to highlight that is only weeks away, is the PTFA Carmel College Christmas Market on Saturday 23 November.  This will be the third year the PTFA has run the market, with each year seeing more and more people attending and enjoying the many stalls that will be on offer.  Please keep an eye out for information regarding requests for support, including baking, jolly jars, donating goods for raffles and many other opportunities to support this fantastic event, that we hope to see many of you at.

To finish this ‘From the Principal’ message, below is the speech I gave at the senior academic prize giving.  To those leaving the College, I am confident that during your time at the College you have been equipped with the knowledge and skills to ensure that you are empowered to pursue your own personal excellence and are prepared to challenge and shape your future.  You are a young woman of Mercy who acts justly, loves tenderly and walks humbly with our God, and we all wish you the very best for your future.

Senior Academic Prize Giving Speech

Tena koutou katoa. Nga mihi nui atawhai.

Good evening and welcome to you all as we gather here this evening for our 2024 academic prize giving.  A special welcome to our guests, parents, members of our proprietor board and board of trustees, PTFA members, representatives from the University of Auckland, Auckland University of Technology, University of Otago and Massey University, our school chaplain, Fr Mark Napa, our school staff and at this point a thanks to our MC this evening, Monica Moore, who I know will keep this evening running smoothly, and finally, a welcome to our young women.

Tonight is an evening where we will be celebrating success and the outcome of a lot of hard work by students, staff and families in the classroom.  Whilst not every senior student is present this evening, all of our young women are worthy of acknowledgement and celebration. 

At Carmel our students are presented and have the opportunity to be involved in a range of experiences and our young women have worked extremely hard, not just in the classroom but also across the sporting and music arenas, each endeavouring to reach their personal excellence, and all should be very proud of what they have accomplished.

2024 has been an exciting year filled with numerous activities and events, and it has been wonderful to enjoy a full calendar.  The House competition thrived, with points earned through athletics, swimming sports, and various other House activities, including staff sports.  Additionally, our student leadership team introduced new initiatives like Book Week, which was wholeheartedly embraced by both students and staff.

Each year there are new opportunities and challenges for all involved in education.  This year has seen challenges presented with initiatives around attendance, cellphone bans, the implementation of new standards for NCEA Level 1, and ongoing changes to the NZ curriculum to name a few. 

Whilst some changes can be easily adapted into what we already do, others have been more difficult and it is during these more challenging times the negative reporting about NZ’s education system in the media can have the effect of creating uncertainty and unsettlement for those who are at the centre of our education system, our learners. 

However, at Carmel our College’s core business of learning and teaching, whilst ensuring that the faith and wellbeing of those in our College and our community, continues to be at the forefront of all decisions made and at the heart of everything we do.  And so tonight we acknowledge and celebrate the academic achievements of our young woman across the 2024 academic year.

Ehara taku toa i te toa taki tahi, engari he toa taki tini.

Success is not the work of an individual, but the work of many.  So as we join here tonight to celebrate our student’s academic success, it is also important to acknowledge those who have played a part in making this happen.

Firstly, thank you to you, our parents and whānau. You have entrusted your daughter’s education to Carmel College, whilst supporting her through the challenges and opportunities that young women encounter as they navigate their secondary school years.  I know that parents always have a desire for their children to have more opportunities and success than they have had, and this evening you can all be very proud of what your daughter has achieved.

To our directors of Carmel College Auckland Ltd, our proprietor board, thank you.  This year has seen the setting of what is to come for our college as the Board table is full, with work being completed to establish governance structures and processes.  Everyone around the table has a clear focus and desire to ensure all decisions are focused on providing the best for our young women here today, and in the future. 

To our Board of Trustees, thank you for your time and your commitment in the governance role you have at the College.  The skills that you all bring to the Board are valuable, and it has been exciting to work with you all as we continue to build on our foundations, to ensure that our young women leave Carmel College as an empowered woman of Mercy who will challenge and shape their future.

To our wonderful PTFA and the members here this evening.  Thank you.  The time and effort you put into organising events for our community to participate in, whilst raising funds for the college, and tonight awarding the Sister Mary Justine award to our students, is greatly appreciated.  Thank you for your support. 

I would also like to thank the senior leadership team; Karen Mitchell, Graham Atkinson, Rosanna Fouhy, Anna O’Farrell, Toni Ferens and Liz Walker, along with Jane Meurant and Claudia Officer – thank you for your continued support, guidance and dedication to the leadership and management of our school.

To the teaching and support staff at the College, thank you.  To our support staff you keep the school humming.  Behind the scenes we have a wonderful team assisting with things from finance to admin, from property and assisting students with learning needs to supporting our international students, and those students who require emotional, wellbeing and mental support.  Thank you for your time and commitment supporting our teachers and students so they can focus on their core roles of learning and teaching.

And to our teachers who are there working directly with our students, helping them to not only learn content and be prepared for assessments, it is you, walking alongside them, helping them to navigate their day to day lives. 

Whilst our day to day focus is on the learning and teaching and we know our students won’t remember what big ideas and key concepts were taught each lesson, they will remember that it was you who taught them and you who worked with them, supported and guided them, to ensure that they achieved their personal academic best.  Thank you for all your efforts this year.

It can be a little dangerous to name individual staff members in a speech at a prize giving, however, this year we will be farewelling from full time teaching, Mrs Sandy Ashenden.  Sandy, thank you.  Your service and commitment to Carmel that spans 37 years is truly phenomenal.  I have had many people asking how we will say farewell to you, and I feel a little relieved in knowing that ‘once a Carmel girl, always a Carmel girl’ is something you subscribed to long ago and that we will not be losing you completely from our community.  But, tonight it is important for all of us here to acknowledge and thank you for the positive impact you have had on the 100s, if not 1000s of young women’s lives during your career at Carmel. 

And, to our students who we are acknowledging and celebrating this evening.  Congratulations for making the most of your 2024 academic year.  Thank you for striving for your personal academic excellence, for being a part of and contributing to our school community.  To those leaving, during your time at Carmel, you have become a young woman of Mercy who is empowered to act justly, love tenderly and walk humbly with our God.  May you continue to always pursue your personal excellence in all you do, with the confidence to challenge and shape your future.

Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou katoa