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Principal's Blog: Term 2 Week 4
Friday, 12 May 2023
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Kia ora whānau Only a few sleeps now until the curtain lifts on our school production, BROADerWAY, and the excitement is palpable! Final rehearsals, costume adjustments, script edits, lighting equipment glitches and an excited cast and crew combine to create high-octane anticipation. Our original production is set to provide performance opportunities to a wide, multi-talented cast and we can’t wait to showcase their exceptional talent. Broaderway is a celebration of musical theatre, performance, and a light-hearted look at the modern challenges faced by those in the show-biz industry. Be sure to secure your tickets today! Our Open Day last Sunday was hugely successful, with full houses in the Upper School, Primary School, and Preschool. Our intention was to provide an authentic snapshot of the life of a Marsden learner, and visitors were treated to a keynote welcoming address, personalised tours with our incredible student tour guides that included subject-specific interactive activities and concluded with some wonderfully quintessential Marsden hospitality. Enrolments for 2024 are now well underway, with Year 6, 7 and 9 scholarships remaining open until Friday 19 May. Please be reminded that scholarships are open to both existing and new students, and applications are encouraged and welcome. To learn more about our wide-ranging scholarships, visit our website here. The media has widely reported the ongoing strike action from PPTA members, with their collective agreement remaining as yet unsettled, following almost a full year of collective bargaining. Please be reminded that the recent strike action by secondary and area school teachers, including a full day strike this week and subsequent planned rolling strikes, does not apply to Marsden. We will continue to send reminders to ensure families have up-to-date information as it applies to our school, which remains open for the important business of teaching and learning. One of our finest has been promoted to the Principal’s position at Chilton Saint James, and it has been our pleasure to announce and celebrate Caroline Robertson’s wonderful news this week. Our current Head of Senior School, Caroline attributes the personal growth opportunities and experiences, across 27 remarkable years of service at Marsden as providing her with the grounding that has successfully prepared her for this next step in her career. There has been a huge outpouring of support and aroha for ‘Frau’ across the Marsden community throughout the week, which is thoroughly well-deserved. Succession planning is currently well afoot, and updated information will be communicated with families in the very near future. Meanwhile, we retain Mrs Robertson’s services throughout the remainder of Term 2. We extend our heartfelt sympathy and aroha for all affected by the tragic passing of the Year 11 student from Whangārei Boys High School, who tragically lost his life in the Abbey Caves disaster. It is difficult to imagine the trauma being experienced by all those impacted, most especially the whānau of the deceased. We keep them in our prayers. Arohanui. |