Read the latest news from Rutherford College

Kia ora te whanau ō te Kōtuku

It has been a positive week starting with the new to Rutherford BBQ. It was fantastic to see so many families attending so that we can welcome them into the Rutherford Community.  On Wednesday we held Swimming Sports which was a smaller event, but allowed our swimmers to shine and be successful.

Athletics Day was a day of colour, school spirit and a chance for our Year 9's to feel part of the school as they joined in with the rest of the school on the fields to compete in track and field.

I look forward to Scholars' Assembly on Monday 24 when we will acknowledge the top scholars from 2024 in each year level.

Preparation for Polyfest is in full swing and we have 7 groups in total, 5 of which will compete at Polyfest later this term; Te Kotuku Kapa Haka, Samoan, Indian Dance, Chinese Dance, Pilipino Group. The Cook Island and Tuvaluan groups will be part of our fiafia night celebration on March 28 at 6pm.

I am extremely pleased to see so many young people involved in these groups including students not from those cultures wanting to learn more about them.

I continue to remind our students of the the importance of living by our values in a community of 1600 students, 160 staff and numerous stakeholders. It’s important to have a shared understanding of what works for the benefit of all and for those new to Rutherford College.

I have shared at assemblies this week the analogy of flying in a V formation.

THE SENSE OF A GOOSE

When you see geese flying along in ‘V’ formation, you might consider what science has discovered about why they fly that way.  As each bird flaps its wings, it creates an uplift for the bird immediately following.  By flying in ‘V’ formation, the whole flock adds at least 71% greater flying range than if each bird flew on its own.

People who share a common direction and sense of community can get where they are going more quickly and easily because they are travelling on the thrust of one another.

When a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying to go it alone and quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird in front.  If we had as much sense as a goose, we will stay in formation with those people who are headed the same way we are.

When the head goose gets tired, it rotates back in the wing and another goose flies point.

It is sensible to take turns doing demanding jobs, whether with people or with geese flying south.  Geese honk from behind to encourage those up front and to keep up their speed.  What messages do we give when we honk from behind?

Finally, and this is important – when a goose gets sick or is wounded by gunshot and falls out of formation, two other geese fallout with that goose and follow it down to lend help and protection.  They stay with the fallen goose until it is able to fly or until it dies, and only then do they launch out on their own, or with another formation to catch up with their group.

If we have the sense of a goose, we will stand by each other like that.

Sports and Cultural Leaders

I would like to congratulate the following students for the appointment to leadership positions in the school.

Absences and Picking Up Students During the Day

It is important to let us know if your son or daughter cannot attend school. Please log into the School Portal/SchoolBridge and click on Report an Absence. Follow the prompts. To request an early exit from school to attend an appointment, please follow the same process but choose "Exit Pass" and complete the details. This is important as otherwise you will experience a delay while we try to get students out of class. We do not have a PA system and rely on sending runners to classes which could take 15 minutes or longer. If you are planning to take your son or daughter out of school for a holiday during term time, please record the absence the same way, but choose "Other" and record the details there. Holidays during term time are recorded as unjustified. You can view the codes here which the Ministry of Education provide.

What's coming up?

24 February - Scholars Assembly. Normal day for everyone except our senior students (Y12, 13) who attend the ceremony at 1pm.
18 March - NCEA evening in the Hall
28 March - Fiafia Night
02 April to 05 April - Polyfest
11 April - End of Term 1

Have a good weekend
Gary Moore