Under a Wide Sky Gala Concert 125 House Party | Market Day

Rangi NewsDECEMBER 2014

Cover info: Left to Right: Clementine Rose, Jenny Park, Anna Bruce and Eugene In playing at ‘Under a Wide Sky’ - the Gala Concert celebrating 125 years of Rangi Ruru. See page 27 for details.

3 Leadership

3 Principal’s Prize Giving Address

6 Board Chair Prize Giving Address

8 Gold Braid Awards

9 Chaplain’s Column

10 Staff News

10 Project Blue Sky

11 Around Rangi

11 Boarding House News

11 GATE Coordinator’s Desk

14 125 House Party

18 Market Day

24 From the Director of Theatre Arts

26 From the Director of Music

28 Sport

28 Equestrian

29 Tennis 30 Touch

30 Volleyball

31 Waterpolo

31 Zonta Sports Awards

33 Community

33 From the Community Relations

Coordinator

34 Celebrating Our Community

36 Rangi Ruru Old Girls’ Association

CONTENTS

18 24

3126

Under a Wide Sky Gala Concert 125 House Party | Market Day

Rangi NewsDECEMBER 2014

www.rangiruru.school.nz

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www.rangiruru.school.nz Rangi. For Life.®

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a safe and

happy holiday break

3www.rangiruru.school.nz

I te Po Nei, Kia mihi. Kia mau ma hara, Kia poroake tatouTonight we celebrate, we remember and we farewell.

We celebrate a year. We remember a year

and we farewell a year group.

There have been a lot of speeches

this year. A lot of words. And when I

sat down to write this speech I really

wondered what was left to say that

wouldn’t sound repetitious, even clichéd.

But that was a fleeting thought, because

tonight is different from all those other

occasions. Tonight is always special.

While it is certainly the finale of this

125th year, it is a finale of 2014 and we

celebrate this year. We celebrate every

girl here now. We celebrate your year.

I like the fact that we are here, in

a building speaking eloquently of the

past but which is here only because of

the people of the present, the people

who have enabled it to be rebuilt. It’s a

building that, like our school- although

not quite as old - is very much part of

Christchurch and Canterbury, past and

future.

It is an understatement to say it’s

been a busy year. There have been times

when I have pondered the wisdom

and indeed the naive enthusiasm of

celebrating a significant anniversary

for a whole year, from February until

December. But there was so much to

celebrate and the range of events has

meant that a significant number of the

school community has been involved in

something, from the fun day to market

day, the gala concert and the House

Party, from Cats to Founders Day and A

Midsummer’s Night’s Dream. It also made

sense to incorporate into the celebrations

two history making events – the opening

of The Gibson and Science Centres and

the opening on Mana Wāhine. And it is

on Mana Wāhine that I want to pause

and reflect.

There are times when we make

decisions that seem good at the time but

which, as events unfold, take on a greater

depth of meaning, a feeling of much

greater significance. This is something

that comes not just from the head but

from the heart, of being totally right and

in more ways than were ever envisaged.

This was the case in the naming of

what was variously known as Academic

South or Stage C or Stage 1D, none

of which would have earned us any

brownie points from the future or even

the present generation. As is the way

with good things, the name evolved

through discussion, moving through a

myriad of good, bad and silly ideas. And

somewhere along the way Mana Wāhine

arrived. Complete and beautiful. We

checked it out with the local Ngai Tahu

iwi and the whanau of Paora Taki, who

named the school, and the name of Mana

Wāhine has been gifted to us.

Mana Wāhine has become not just

the name of building, a name that slips

so naturally off our tongues and those of

our Australian Architects. It has become

symbolic of our past, of the women who

founded the school, and the generations

of staff and students who are part of the

nEWS fRom thE PRInCIPAL

Principal’s Prize Giving AddressDelivered Wednesday 3 December 2014, Isaac Theatre Royal

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story, and it says so simply what we want

for our students. Mana Wāhine. Strong

women, women of Strength.

As the building evolved the name

grew and embraced so many aspects of

it. It embraces the wall hanging by that

most remarkable of strong women, Peg

Moorhouse. It embraces the carving,

depicting not only our founders but

our links to our New Zealand ancestors

and our more recently acquired Celtic

association. The names of the rooms

speak of strong women - Hildegard, Rosa

Parks, Mother Theresa, Kate Sheppard,

Malala and the others.

The Fergusson Doors remind us not

just of a defining moment in our lives,

but of the strength shown by every girl

whose name is recorded on them. And

recorded on one door are the names of

the Year 10 girls of 2011, and here they

are now, behind me, wonderful young

women, young women of strength who

can all feel proud of their achievements,

many and varied that they are.

And the functions of Mana Wāhine,

the social science Faculty and Student

Services, echo the name, based as they

are on the humanities, on community

and on supporting and developing the

individual.

And so this year we have celebrated

strength and we have found strength.

And at no time was this more obvious

than when we grieved for two students

we lost - Courtney and Abi. Such loss

is unspeakable but in both cases we

learnt the strength of love, of hope,

of family and of friends. We cried, we

hugged, we looked for ways to do the

right thing, to find words, to help. And

in so many instances it was the you, the

girls, who showed us, the adults, the way,

with your openness, your wonderful,

caring and sometimes wacky ideas,

your compassion and your strength. We

remember Courtenay and Abi and send

our thoughts tonight to their families.

Abi’s family have presented a cup for

a Year 8 girl who has shown courage.

The Bravery Award celebrates inner

strength and I will present it tonight in

the next set of presentations.

Strength is about persisting.

Persisting with the something you

find hard. It’s about purpose; it’s

about supporting friends in need,

standing up for what is right, speaking

out about what is not. It’s also about

acknowledging vulnerability, doubt, and

accepting and working on the fragilities

that are part of being human.

Because strength isn’t about being

perfect or about noise or muscle. It’s not

loud. It’s about we not me. It is about

determination, integrity, generosity of

spirit. It is about believing in yourself.

These are the things we hope every

girl can achieve, and every one of you

here tonight there will have special

achievements to celebrate. Personal

bests, you know they are really important

to me, small triumphs, big challenges.

If you don’t push yourself, feel

discomfort, if everything falls your way,

there is no growth. You never know what

you are capable of, you never develop

the grit that is part of inner strength.

And so many of you have pushed

yourselves. On Spirit Trophy, Duke of

Edinburgh, World Challenge - and all

the best to the 29 girls and 4 staff off to

Costa Rica and Nicaragua next week.

You’ve pushed yourselves on the Samoa

experience, exchanges, including the

two new ones this year to Seattle and

India, abseiling on Year ten camp,

kayaking on the year 9 camp. Strength

of purpose and ability certainly shone

through in Cantamaths and particularly

with the year ten winners, in some of

the great science achievements, ICAS,

NCEA, music competitions, Future

Problem Solving. You have played with

determination on the sports fields – or

courts or pools and we have certainly

celebrated some great results.

Each of you sitting out there will

have your highlights, whether it was

Cats, a Midsummers Night’s Dream,

Crave, Regional and National chamber

music, jazz quest, tournament weeks,

Model UN, Debating, medals at Maadi,

or something in the classroom. The list

goes on, magic moments to saviour and

remember. Magic moments that form the

foundations of confidence, strength and

growth.

I’d like you to think, what was your

favourite moment this year? When did

you feel really good, confident, proud or

moved? This is not like a level assembly

where Reverend Kirstie and I will come

around and collect your answers, but

it is something to ponder. Mine? I think

it was opening of Mana Wāhine as

we moved across the quad, the dawn

sky silhouetting the building and the

Karanga echoing. It was a time when the

collective strength of all the staff and

girls who have gone before seemed to be

part of the present.

Academic and cocurricular results

are to be celebrated, but these happen

only because of certain attributes and

most of all that rather old fashioned thing

called strength of character. Someone

said to me some years ago that Rangi

Ruru produces feisty girls. It was said

as a compliment and I certainly took

it as such. It implied girls who were

confident (but not over confident). Girls

who could stand up for themselves,

young women who had opinions and

would voice them. There are times when

probably parents could do with a little

less feistiness. There’s been the odd time

when staff too might have preferred the

unquestioning dutiful obedience that

reigned in the Misses Gibsons’ days. But

such times are fleeting and probably on a

Friday afternoon. We want girls who are

confident enough to voice an opinion,

to stand up for right, to debate, to get

involved, but at the same time manners

always matter and we want girls to

do this with respect, with considered

thought and a sense of others.

Sometimes it takes a few experiments

and some guidance to get that balance

but that is what learning is about.

People judge a school on its overtly

and easily measurable successes –

academic, musical, sporting. While

these are to a degree valid, it is only to

a degree. It is only part of the picture.

The real picture is about everyone. It

is about the sum of all a school offers,

and at the core has to be every student

and her wellbeing so that she can leave

us with strength of purpose and the

ability to make the most of her skills

and abilities. It’s all about every girl

being known and cared for. Personal

development, self belief and learning to

deal with the myriad of issues that face

our teenagers, must be centre stage if

girls are to achieve their potential, their

personal best.

We know that these can be

challenging times for all of us in

Christchurch, nearly four years on.

Building on the 2013 Wellbeing Survey,

next year we will be increasing our

focus on developing inner strength,

putting wellbeing and personal

development even more at the heart

of all we do by incorporating existing

programmes with new ones to create

with a cohesive and coordinated

programme from Years 7 to 13.

We all need things to aspire to, role

models and tonight we will certainly

nEWS fRom thE PRInCIPAL

5www.rangiruru.school.nz

acknowledge our top academic students

and we will celebrate a wide range of

achievement through those who perform

on stage. We do this together, as a

community.

A lot of people have worked so hard in

supporting us and in particular I’d like to

mention two special women of enormous

strength who contributed much to two

of our community events. Firstly Leeann

Marriott, who lead the Market Day team.

All of those who were associated with this

know what a huge task it was. This was

great event which raised over $33,000

for courts but without the work that

Leanne put into it, it simply wouldn’t

have happened. When we first mooted

another market day (in the times of naïve

enthusiasm) we knew we could only do it

with the right person leading it.

The other woman is Director of Music,

Janet Kingsbury, who had the vision

of a gala concert and who drove that

vision to its spectacular and memorable

outcome, despite the constant obstacles.

The vision included having the concert in

this theatre but that proved to be beyond

even Janet’s extraordinary powers. If I

had to choose second most memorable

moment it would be that concert in its

entirety, as the most wonderful example

of a community coming together, of

excellence and of joy.

A school is only as good as the

people in it and our staff are wonderful.

We have people who really do care,

who are passionate about what they

do and who make a difference every

day. And I like to make special mention

of the Management team, who over

the past few years have taken on so

much more than usual as we have

moved through recovery, restoration,

redesign, reshaping, rebuilding, removal,

renovation I could go on….

Strong women have shaped the

school’s story and this year marks the

final in what has been a remarkable

success story -the Early Childhood

College. Formed 30 years ago as the

Rangi Nanny School it has produced

hundreds of well trained early childhood

teachers. Its demise has nothing to do

with quality and everything to do with

bureaucracy, changing rules and a sector

moving more and more towards mass

production and away from niche quality.

As always at the end of the year we

farewell not just our Year 13s but also staff

and this year in particular we lose a very

central part of our Boarding Community,

a woman of quiet strength, Director of

Boarding Jude Connochie. Jude has run

the House very calmly and efficiently for

years and will be missed. We also farewell

Ms Foulkes, Mrs McKenzie, Mrs Ryan, Mrs

Buchanan. You have all contributed so

much.

And of course we farewell our student

leavers. It’s time for one of those daring

leaps. To new places, new people, new

learning. You have laughed and cried

together, had misunderstandings. Got

cross with each other and moved on. You

have grown, you have supported each

other, encouraged each other, reached

out to each other. You are more than

ready for the next stage. You have shown

that you have the inner strength to deal

with change and challenges and that you

can move from here with confidence.

There will always be moments when you

don’t feel all that confident, when the

familiar seems preferable to the new, but

you can deal with that. Know that you

can shape your futures.

You have been part of a very

significant chapter in the school’s history.

We have shared this time together. Thank

you for all that you have contributed, for

your hard work, for sharing your talents,

your enthusiasm, your great sense of fun,

your generosity and your strength. You

have each lived your legacy. You have

passed on the spirit of Rangi.

And it has to be Dr Seuss to end with.

You can’t have too much of a good thing.

I do, however disagree with one part of it

– you are not on your own. You are never

on your own.

So with that amendment,

“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose. You are not on your own and you know what you know. You are the one who’ll decide where to go. “

Kia Kaha, Mana Wāhine. Strong

women, women of strength behind me

LEADERSHIP

Julie MoorPrincipal

While the Isaac Theatre Royal was a

magnificent venue for Prize Giving, it

did present some seating problems

for guests and parents. We were

overwhelmed by the more than

expected numbers attending. As a

consequence there were some seating

issues and we most sincerely apologise

for this. Our staff did their very best

to seat people on time but I know it

was difficult for any who arrived after

the suggested time of around 6.15pm

(traffic allowing). Indeed some of the

problems occurred before that as there

was a miscommunication between

the theatre staff and ours about the

opening of the doors. We are pleased

that in the end we had everyone seated

and most staff who had vacated seats

were able to rejoin the celebration.

Some of those backstage missed quite

a lot and we are hoping to have the

unedited recording of Prize Giving

available for anyone to access next

week. Instructions for this will be on

Ultranet.

Again, my apologies and thanks to

those who were affected by this and

were patient and understanding. It was

appreciated! We love the venue, but I’m

not sure we will use it again.

With best wishes to you all for the

festive season,

Julie

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BoARD ChAIR PRIZE GIVInG ADDRESS

Board Chair Prize Giving AddressDelivered Wednesday 3 December 2014, Isaac Theatre Royal

Parents, grandparents, friends of the

school, students, faculty and staff, fellow

Board members; welcome to the 2014

Prize Giving. In addition I would like to

extend a welcome to all those of you who

have accepted our open invitation to join

us. The school is very proud of this day

in our annual calendar. Once again I am

sure it will be fantastic showcase of the

girls many talents.

This is the event where we celebrate

the achievements and success of our

Girls. These celebrations cross all aspects

of school life academic, endeavour,

consideration to others, and the arts. It is

also the celebration of the graduation of

the class of 2014.

As outlined at last year’s prize giving,

Project Blue Sky is a redevelopment

rather than a rebuild or reinstatement

of the school campus. It is a major

commitment that the school has made

to reinvigorating itself. The school now

has new teaching spaces designed to

deal with the increased flexibility of

modern learning. The girls are now

enjoying the sizeable communal areas.

This is the modern day phrase for some

very spacious corridors and locker bays.

Those of you that have been through the

new buildings will also be aware of the

large variety of small free spaces.

Art and Technology is to be reopened

this month. It has been resurrected from

the grip of the earthquakes. We expect

the last of the buildings of the current

redevelopment program, Music and

Drama, to be completed in April 2015.

Once these two have been completed

the school has exhausted its current

financial resources.

As stated last year, beyond the

five stages completed the school will

be looking toward finding the further

necessary funds to build an Auditorium,

new sports complex, all weather sports

surfaces and to replace the English block.

Once again it is acknowledged by the

current board that it is committing the

next generation to the task of completing

the project. I remind you all that this is

the nature of institutions such as Rangi.

They take significant commitment, time

and effort.

The Christchurch Cathedral was

built between 1864 and 1904, a 40 year

period. Over this period the building

(mostly the spire) was damaged by

earthquakes in 1881, 1888, and 1901. In

today’s society of instant gratification it is

often a temptation to settle for short term

solutions at the expense of the best long

term plan. The Rangi Ruru board is very

confident that its approach of building

a campus that deals with the challenges

of unknown future education building

functionality is the correct approach. A

campus that is sympathetic to its two

buildings of significant heritage, Te

Koroha and the Church of Saint Andrew is

a responsibility this board takes seriously.

As I have stated in my past speeches

at this forum, we have stage planned

Blue Sky such that it can be completed

over an extended period. Currently the

board has committed to resourcing the

pursuit of donations and dedications

from people predisposed to what Rangi

Ruru has stood for over the past 125

years, an outstanding Girls’ school.

This year this outstanding Girls’

7www.rangiruru.school.nz

school turned 125 years of age. There

were a number of activities that allowed

past pupils, staff and board members to

celebrate this significant milestone.

From the boards perspective

we believe that at the end of these

celebrations we have been able to

achieve a deeper connection with past

students and the wider community of

Rangi Ruru.

It is through this reinvigoration of

the Rangi connection and spirit that we

hope will lead to strong support for the

completion of Blue Sky.

This year the board has had a

governance theme of “Putting Process

into Practice”. As you probably all

appreciate the school has many policies

in place to ensure the staff and students

are in a safe nurturing environment. In

some cases there is a natural tension

between free spirited behaviour and

policy guidelines. We feel that at Rangi

we have achieved this balance.

Now to the Rangi people I wish to

make mention of.

This year will see the retirement

of Alison Stevenson after 10 years of

employment at Rangi. Alison has been

the head of Rangi Ruru Early Childhood

College and in that role, by my

reckoning, has presided over in excess

of 1200 graduates. The Early Childhood

College started as the Rangi Ruru School

of Home Management in 1985.

Alison and her team have garnered

a very well respected reputation for

the quality of their programme and the

Rangi Nanny has always been well sort

after. The board would be remiss if it did

not record its heartfelt gratitude to all

that she has done for past and present

Rangi girls. We wish her well in her new

endeavours.

It would also be remised for me to

not acknowledge Alison’s partner in

education, Jenny Walker. Jenny started

at Rangi on 1 February 1982 as a Home

Economics teacher, and has fulfilled

many and varied roles for the past 32

years.

To Julie and her very capable staff,

thank you very much for another

industrious and creditable year.

I once again wish to thank my fellow

Governors. They often have to balance

their day job commitments, to assist and

support the school. Our focus remains

the personal safety of your daughters;

their individualised education and the

good name of Rangi Ruru.

Again I would like to thank Stewart

Barnett; he is an honorary board

member. Stewart acts in the capacity

of an executive director overseeing the

campus redevelopment. In addition

the school would like to acknowledge

Grant Close. He has volunteered his

time to Chair the Blue Sky fund raising

committee. Indeed, I would like to thank

all of you who have volunteered your

time over the past year to Rangi Ruru

pursuits. The fact that so many of you

have volunteered is a strong affirmation

that Rangi Ruru is important to you.

So from me, in closing and on behalf

of the school, I would like to bid farewell

to another very special group of Rangi

girls; the class of 2014. May I wish you all

the very best for your future.

Thank you

StuartNattrassBoard Chair

LEADERSHIP

Board and Foundation PositionsAt the Board and Foundation AGMs in 2015, some positions will become available

by retirement. We welcome expressions of interest from members of the school

community. If you are interested in contributing to the governance and support

of the school, please submit a brief curriculum vitae to the Secretary to the Board,

Neil Templeton, by 30 January 2015, email n.templeton@rangiruru.school.nz

8

GoLD BRAID AWARDS

Dux: Hanseul Nam

Proxime Accessit: Maria Walker

The Faletoese Cup and the PTA Prize for the Best All Round Girl in the School: Madeleine Long

Co-winners The Dorothy Bates Trophy awarded to a pupil who shows outstanding potential during her years at school (‘reaching for the stars’): Amy Ga Hee Lee & Hanseul Nam

The Samantha Perkins Memorial Prize for the Head of the School: Georgie Staples

The Ethel Gibson Memorial Prize for the Head of the House and The McKenzie Cup for Service in the House: Kristy Havill

PTA Prize for Associate Head of the School: Head of Environmental Activities: Millicent

Gledhill

PTA Prize for Associate Head of the School: Head of Sport: Lucy Hutchinson

PTA Prize for Associate Head of the School: Head of Cultural Activities: Amy Ga Hee Lee

PTA Prize for Associate Head of the School: Head of Form Activities: Maria Walker

PTA Prize for Associate Head of the School: Head of Health: Alice Rountree

The Dawson Prize for the Associate Head of the School with Responsibility for Community Service: Holly Smith

Ian Stephenson Prize for Passion for the Environment: Millicent Gledhill

The Principal’s Award (for Generosity of Spirit): Madeline Newman

The Prize for Outstanding Performing Arts Student: Sylvia Barnett

The Sophie Savill Cup for Outstanding Sportswoman: Jacquelyn Ruth

The Special Award for Perseverance: Eloise McIntyre

Prize Giving 2014 Gold Braid Awards Presented by the Dean of Year 13, Dr Margy Gilpin

hanseul nam maria Walker

madeleine Long Amy Ga hee Lee

Georgie Staples Kristy havill

millicent Gledhill Lucy hutchinson

Alice Rountree holly Smith madeline newman Sylvia Barnett Jacquelyn Ruth Eloise mcIntyre

Heads and Associates 2015 Head of School: Jess Wood

Head of House: Becky Wilson

Deputy Head of House: Rebekah Hill

Community Service: Ellie Crawford

Culture: Claire McSweeney

Environment: Phoebe Robinson

Form Activities: Libby Vincent

Health: Priyanka Nathu

Sport: Lottie Eglinton

Clan Leaders 2014Balmoral: Evie Burdon, Geeny Moon

Braemar: Maddy Berquist, Phoebe Murray

Doune: Lucy Abbot, Cilla Penny

Dunvegan: Tess McKean, Livvy Thomson

Glamis: Jemima Allison, Millie Mannering

Stirling: Grace Buchan, Mackenzie Webb

9www.rangiruru.school.nz

24th December Joy Cowley

The machines shudder into silence.The last sheep slides down the chuteAnd staggers out of the shed,Giddy with sudden weight loss.The shearers, glossed with sweat, Straighten their backs and nudge open The lid of the chilly bin. They sitWith hands wrapped around cans,Sweet coolness against cracked

fingers,While outside a Tui gargles the heatand spits it out in two long clear notes.The shed hand rolls a can across his

brow,And says, “It’s beginning to feel like

Christmas.”On the back lawn, near the potato

patch,The woman creaks the revolving lineAs she unpegs clothes stiff with

sunlight.The smell of summer is mixed with

noise,pungent cicadas, loud brass marigolds,and grass beneath her bare feetis as warm as cats’ fur. She looksover her shoulder and reminds herselfto dig some potatoes for tomorrow,and she thinks with sudden pleasure,It’s beginning to feel like Christmas.The children and the dog have been in

the poolbut the dog in the excitement, bit the

plasticand now the pool is collapsing,pouring water over hot concrete.The children run through the floodmaking footprints that dry in seconds.“Happy Birthday to you,” they sing“Happy Birthday, dear Jesus.”Their grandad at the kitchen window,Remembers his own childhood.He thinks of all the small footprints,that have stamped the earthsince that little fellow in the stable, and he smiles and dries the dishesIt sure feels like Christmas.

Kirstie McDonald (Rev)Chaplain

Peace at ChristmasSomething is in the air, that hint of

perfume, the warm air that penetrates

right through to your bones chasing away

the Winter aches and pains… Spring

is here in all its profuse beauty, birds

tweeting far too early in the morning

showing no restraint at all; the array of

colours to behold in the garden fills my

heart with joy, and already we are waiting

expectantly for the arrival of the Christ

child, Christmas is just around the corner.

The year has flown by and I wonder

how it could have happened so swiftly,

where have the days gone?

As a community, we have achieved

so much and yet, before the year closes,

there is still so much more to be done.

This year we have experienced sadness

and we have learnt how to comfort, to

offer solace to others in their time of

grief and suffering; we have grown in

confidence and knowledge of ourselves,

we have played hard and studied hard

and we have achieved amazing results.

As a gathered community we are alive

and vibrant, and we are learning about

being faithful and committed to our

global world. We have shown servant

leadership and have raised funds for so

many causes… We should take a moment

now to pause and reflect on all that we

as a community have managed to share

with others, and reflect on what we in

turn have learned.

The Christmas season is a time of

refreshment and relaxation, a time when

we are able to put aside the demands of

a pressured world to be with family and

friends (at least for a time.) We celebrate

the journey of Christ the Prince of Peace

into our world, but more importantly, we

reconnect with Christ as sister, brother,

mother, father, cousin, grandparent,

extended whanau, and we share our

love with all as we bathe in the warmth

of our New Zealand summer. Trite as

it is, the saying ‘Christ is the reason for

the season’ is so true. The oppressive

consumerism that surrounds us isn’t

helpful and confuses what the celebration

is really about… It’s time to bring our

young ones back to what is true and

real and reasonable, and to give them

an understanding that there is beauty

just like the newness of spring in the

simplicity of giving something small that

comes with love; the love as of the Prince

of Peace born in a manger.

May the blessings of the Christ child the Prince of Peace be with you all this

Christmas tide.

ChAPLAIn’S CoLUmn

10

The major focus now is the completion

of the Music and Theatre Arts building.

For those travelling along Merivale Lane

the profile of the building is clearly

visible with the Theatre closest to the

road.

This building will be fully enclosed

by Christmas allowing for fit out work

to start.

The Art and Technology building

has also undergone some refurbishing

with the external finishes due to be

completed mid December.

Stewart BarnettProject Manager

Project Blue Sky

Staff NewsFarewell and Thank You!Jude Connochie

The Boarding Community is a special

one and it is with sadness that they

learnt of the resignation of Director of

Boarding, Jude Connochie. Jude has

watched over the running of the House

since 2004 when she was appointed

Director after being the administrator.

Although Jude is looking forward to

following other interests and spending

more time with family and friends after

the heavy, 24/7 demands of the Director’s

position, she says she will miss the girls

and the staff very much. Jude has always

had time for the girls. She is a calm and

non-judgmental ear, a reflective listener

and one who would always see the best

in people. Girls knew she did not leap to

quick assumptions and that she was at

all times fair and reasonable.

In her time in the House Jude has

initiated some excellent processes and

procedures, all designed to ensure a safe

and happy house, an aim she was totally

committed to. She always endeavoured,

through staff changes, earthquakes,

sickness and all the other issues that are

part of boarding life, to keep a calm and

positive environment for the girls. She

knows all her girls and continues to take

an interest in them after they leave.

At the same time she has been very

mindful of the need to have very open

lines of communication with parents,

who can often feel the separation

acutely.

Running a Boarding House is a

special job for a special person and Jude

will be missed by girls, parents and staff.

We all wish her well as she discovers life

after boarding.

STAFF NEWS

Long Service Awards 2014Name Position YearsJean Brouwer Head of Student Services 30

Rex Farrelly Property Manager 30

Ursula Van Herp Kitchen Staff 30

Angela Hirst Support Staff 25

Colleen Weston Kitchen Staff 20

Linda Brettell Science Teacher 20

Name Position YearsJulie Moor Principal 15

Neil Templeton Business Manager 15

Juliet Collins Curriculum Manager 15

Mary-Lou Keay Maths Teacher 15

Joanna West English Teacher 15

11www.rangiruru.school.nz

Around Rangi

Boarding House News As usual, Term 4 has gone by in a blur in

the Boarding House. The girls returned

at the start of October knowing full well

that there was so much to fit in to the

seven and a half weeks. The senior girls

of course were off on study/exam leave in

only Week Four.

Having postponed our Boarders’

Concert until this term, we had much

fun and laughter as the girls and staff

practised their items during the first

week, before the wonder of the show on

23 October. How lovely once again to see

the wide range of talents on display in

such a friendly, family-like atmosphere,

where boarders know they are supported

so well. Many of our girls also performed

admirably in the 125th Gala Concert at

the end of that week too.

The following week we hosted

a small group of children from

Cholmondeley Home at our annual

Halloween Dinner. The children were

happy to be here and to go home with

full tummies, ghoulish painted faces and

gift bags, after enjoying a treasure hunt

and playing games with our girls.

With many of the seniors away for

study, the junior girls made the most of

another of Jason’s international themed

dinners, and as the term wound down,

the much looked forward to fish and chip

picnic at Sumner Beach.

The final House event was a

Christmas Dinner shared with many

invited guests from the wider Rangi

community and farewells to Year 13 girls.

After 11 very happy years in the

Boarding House, I have decided that

now is the time for me to put my focus

on other parts of my life so this will be

my last contribution to this publication.

I have thoroughly enjoyed my time here

and have met so many wonderful girls

and their families. I will certainly miss the

contact with so many of you.

The Boarding House team and I wish

all the Rangi family happy holidays and a

restful break.

Jude ConnochieDirector of

Boarding

Across the GATE Coordinator’s DeskTerm 4 is the time when I have to say

goodbye to the Year 13 GATE students,

many of whom I have come to know

well during their time at Rangi. These

girls have been a great delight to work

with and I am grateful for the help

they have given me in delivering some

of the opportunities within the GATE

service. Recently when I took a group

of students to Canterbury Model UN

European Union, I was impressed

with the way Emma Humphrey,

Madison Hughes, Saskia Graham-

Bone and Eleanor Hurton took over

the responsibility of looking after the

younger girls in the group, giving them

advice, keeping an eye on where they

were, and ensuring everyone knew

where to go and what to do. The Rangi

values were strongly in evidence and I

felt very proud of them.

In an earlier newsletter, I mentioned

that this year Rangi had entered two

teams in the Youth Online Diplomacy

competition. The senior team, named

The Tech Angels, were awarded 1st

prize in the competition. This team

included Amy Huang, Francesca Logan

and Harmony Zhou. This is a great

achievement, considering the time

commitment involved.

A group of GATE girls worked hard

on a project to enter the Fair Go Ad

competition for 2014 and were selected

for the finals. This year the students had

to create a 30 second ad for an online

video channel which people would not

want to skip in the first five seconds.

The Media Club run by Jude Morgan,

planned, filmed and edited the ad,

demonstrating a high level of creativity

and project/time management. You can

see the entry in the Latest News section

of our website, www.rangiruru.school.

nz/rangi-in-the-news

The students involved were Emma

Humphrey, Megan Liddell, Kirsten

Liddell, Francesca Logan, Amy Huang

and Bea Pallett.

We now have a Robotics Club

at Rangi, as well as a Programming

Club. The girls are really enjoying new

technical skills, and are very much

taking on the leadership of these two

clubs themselves. It’s great to see the

self-directed learning happening and

the development of creativity which

goes along with it. Saskia Graham-Bone

has been head of Robotics this year, and

will hand over the reins to Abby Croot

as head next year.

Petra DyerGate Coordinator

AROUND RANGI

12

Chess Club

On Thursday 11 September, the Chess

Club had an interschool competition

with Christ’s College. This was well

organised by Madison Hughes, the

Head of Chess. The boys beat us

overall, but they were very generous

with their teaching tips and showed

impeccable manners. It was an

enjoyable event, the girls making the

most of the opportunity of having

some new competition. Hopefully we

will make this an annual event.

The Chess Club’s interschool competition with Christ’s College

Canterbury Model European Union

On 4 and 5 September, a group of 14 Rangi Ruru girls attended

an event called Model European Union. It was held at the

University of Canterbury in the central lecture theatres and in

Kirkwood Village. Each girl represented both a country and a

party in the European Parliament, and was required to present

the views of their country on different issues. Along with many

other students from other schools around New Zealand, we

were split into five different committees to debate the Russia-

Ukraine crisis, and the duties the European Union would provide

in order to produce stability for Europe as a whole. Being most

of the girls’ first event, they were all very nervous and unsure of

what to expect, but the buzz of over 90 delegates, all as excited

as us, was very comforting.

The first day was all about getting to know each other. After

having an introductory lecture on the European Parliament, what

its duties are, and an overview of the situation in Ukraine, we

split into our separate sessions. There are a total of seven political

parties in the European Parliament, ranging from Europhiles to

Eurosceptics. Every delegate was assigned to a party, a country,

and a committee session. For example, I was assigned to Group of

the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats, or “S&D” as

my party, Slovakia for my country, and the Military Committee for

debate. Our separate sessions provided a chance for us to meet

the other delegates in our parties, who shared the same views,

and discuss the resolution we were to debate the next day.

Day two brought a whole new experience for all of us. This

was the day we would present our parties’ changes to our

committees. All delegates were debating one of five sections

of the resolution concerning Ukraine. These were Trade and

Finances, Human Rights, Military, Energy and Ukraine EU

Membership. During the course of some very intense debate

lasting three and a half hours, several changes were made to the

different sections of the resolution. Some very strong speakers

and great teamwork between parties were a privilege to witness

by all involved. After a quick lunch break, and a talk about the

importance of the EU from guest speaker John Hopkins, all

committees reassembled for the plenary session. This session

would debate the resolution as a whole, present some last minute

changes, and whether the Parliament would pass the resolution

in its entirety. But in the end, all the hard work was entirely worth

it. Despite objection from two parties in particular, the resolution

passed with a clear majority, and celebration was entirely in order.

As well as learning a lot more about the European Union

as a whole, we each developed a better understanding of how

to debate effectively. Whether experienced or not, we all took

something away from this unique experience, whether it was

gaining more confidence in public speaking, or learning about

the European Union. We all had a fantastic time and I would

definitely recommend this event to anyone interested in politics

or the European Union. A special congratulations to Emma

Humphrey in Year 13, who was representing the delegate of EFD

Spain, for winning a Best Speaker in the Military committee.

Left to right, front to back: Yang Kun Xiang, Clementine Rose,

Jing Jing Huang, Saskia Graham-Bone, Jocelyn Bradley, Isabella

Gregory, Karen Hu, Komal Singh, Amy Huang, Harmony Zhou,

Madison Hughes, Emma Humphrey, Eleanor Hurton, Suyoun Jung.

Saskia Graham-Bone Year 13

model European Union held at the University of Canterbury

AROUND RANGI

13www.rangiruru.school.nz

Future Problem Solving

Our Year 9 FPS team of Eugene In, Suzanna Davis, Abby

Croot and Ruby Blake-Manson, made it through to the

National Competition held in Auckland, Friday 31 October –

Sunday 2 November. Following on from Megan Blackwood’s

success in 2012, this was the first time we have had a Rangi

team in the finals, so this was a fabulous achievement for

these future focused creative thinkers!

Eugene In, Ruby Blake-manson, Abby Croot and Suzanna Davis

Creative Writing

Reflections on the experiences of Year 9 students:

Impressions of a First YearLost amongst a sea of blueSlowly it wraps around meLike a warm blanketWelcoming me homeAbby Croot Year 9

Impressions of a First YearPeople walk the maze,confidence evident,talking to friends,they know where they’ve been sent.I tag along,After my class,silently watching,a world without grass.Slowly but surely,I begin to explore,make some new friends,they open the door.The road stretches on,I see through the disguise,travelling on it,time truly flies.Suzanna Davis Year 9

First Impressions of a First YearThe bag drags along the ground as the new uniform hangs off me in its freshnessThe endless maze stretches before me while I stumble along in this whirlwind of mayhem called school.Lunch is too short to even consider a breath asI’m dragged back into the whirlwind of mayhem.But as the day goes on, calmness seeps inWhat was big and imposing turns into a place where there’s laughter and friendship within. Isabella Solomons Year 9

Tall Poppies Writing Competition

The following paragraph was written by Clementine Rose who

went on to win the Tall Poppies writing competition. The Tall

Poppies (a magazine for gifted students and educators) asked

for students to write a paragraph about their passion, whatever

that may be. The judges felt that Clementine’s writing was

especially good and the subject matter well handled.I crouch low as the ball escapes the swarms and rushes

toward my stick, and in return, I rush to it. We meet in the middle, and from there we are fire together. Whipping and rushing past the bees, the ball bouncing and skidding from side to side, until the last line of defence advances. But we never stop, the fire burns too bright for the opposing team, and before they know it the ball is pushed cleanly into the goal, bouncing off the nets like spider webs. The whistle sounds and my teammates cheer. The grin of elation returns once again and the passion of hockey flows as fire through my veins. Clementine Rose Year 9

Speech and Drama

Emma Strack and Sylvia Barnett have

gained their ATCL (Performing Speech

and Drama). Both achieved high

marks with Sylvia gaining Distinction.

Victoria Helms is nominated

for a Speech New Zealand Grade 6

scholarship, having achieved Honours

Plus in all three modules, and Sujin

Jung is nominated for a Grade 7

scholarship, having also achieved

Honours Plus in all three modules.

Lynn WilliamsSpeech and Drama

Years 7 and 8 ICAS Results 2014

MathsKate Edwards Distinction

Lucy Anderson Distinction

Aisha Bedggood Distinction

ScienceKate Edwards Distinction

Miriam Shipley Distinction

ComputingKate Edwards Distinction

Jemima Porter Distinction

Ruby Lee Distinction

EnglishAlisha Bedggood High

Distinction

Lucy Anderson Distinction

Georgina Jolly Distinction

WritingAlice Nixon Distinction

Lucy Bryden Distinction

Emily Heald Distinction

Ruby Secker Distinction

AROUND RANGI

14

AROUND RANGI

Rangi 125 House Party

The evening of Saturday 22 November

was a magical one. The long awaited

Rangi 125 House Party kicked off in style

just as the skies opened up and rain

started pouring down on the Gibson

Centre, where guests mixed and mingled

over celebratory gin and tonics and

glasses of champagne.

Throughout the evening, Old Girls’,

their partners, ex and present Rangi

Ruru school staff, sponsors, supporters

and special guests were entertained by

musical act The Hit Men, who showed off

their vocal skills, impressive dance moves,

and their amazing ability to transform

from Elvis impersonators, to crooners,

pop stars and even disco dancers. The

night was full of fun and excitement, with

every corner of Te Koraha kitted out in

decorations from the decades: 1920s,

1940s, 1960s and the future. Te Koraha

had never looked better.

The wine and champagne were

kindly donated by Rangi families: No1.

Estate, Charles Wiffen, Astrolabe, Giesen

Wines and Black Estate. Their support for

the event has truly been amazing.

Rangi Old Girl, Katherine Free, was

the winner of the Rangi 125 Singapore

Airlines competition, and made the trip

all the way from the United Kingdom for

the special event.

The best part of the evening were the

friend reunions as school mates explored

their old Boarding House and reminisced

about their days at Rangi Ruru Girls’

School. No doubt a night to remember

for all.

Jo Blair, Brown Bread

15www.rangiruru.school.nz

AROUND RANGI

End note: The auction which took place

in the old Te Koraha ballroom raised

$16,750 towards a brand new scholarship:

the Rangi 125 Scholarship. We are still

taking donations so please contact Rachel

Vavasour to see how you can contribute to

this special scholarship fund: r.vavasour@

rangiruru.school.nz

16

AROUND RANGI

Museum and Gallery Opening

The Rangi Ruru Museum and Gallery

was officially opened on Friday 24

October 2014. The wind howled but the

rain was held at bay and the sun shone.

While the new Rangi Ruru Museum

and Gallery is the smallest building on

campus, it is one of the more significant

buildings steeped with history.

It was built in 1946 as a state-of-

the-art science building complete with

Bunsen burners, litmus paper and

high-rise science tables. Up until 1946,

there had not been any science taught

although there were teachers with a

BSc. Mrs Phyllis Lush taught elementary

science and Miss Ethel Gibson taught

physiology (down, only, as far as the

waist). The new Science block went

on to offer General Science as a new

subject for School Certificate.

Since 1946, Rangi Ruru Girls’ School

has promoted science as an important

component in its learning programme

with many of its students going on

to carve successful scientific careers.

The new Science centre which opened

this year continues this commitment.

Like all Christchurch buildings, the

1946 Science building rocked and rolled

during the Canterbury earthquakes

but it stood firm and, with Te Koraha,

it remains a visual reminder of the

school’s past as it stands proud at the

main gates on Hewitts Road.

It is hoped that during 2015 the

archival collections, which remain

safely boxed, will be unpacked, stored

and available for research purposes and

exhibitions. This process will require

meticulous help from our extended

Rangi Family. Keep an eye on later

school publications for an invitation

to become a Rangi Ruru Museum and

Gallery volunteer.Rachel Vavasour

Rangi old Girl, past parent and past RRoGA president, Deborah Errington (nee teale).

History Celebrated with Museum and Gallery Openi  ng

17www.rangiruru.school.nz

AROUND RANGI

Helen Gibson Exhibition

It was wonderful to be able to mark the

opening of the Museum and Gallery with

an exhibition of Helen Gibson’s paintings

from the Rangi Ruru collection.

Due to the generosity of school

families and Old Girls, Rangi Ruru has

amassed a collection of around 15 Helen

Gibson landscapes in watercolour and

oil.

Miss Helen Gibson (1868 – 1938) was

a respected artist in the early Canterbury

art scene. In 1887, at the age of 18 years,

she began studying part time at the

Canterbury College School of Art and on

qualifying in 1897, she was appointed

to the staff of the school, a position she

held for nine years. She was the first

qualified art teacher at Christchurch

Girls’ High School and she taught

drawing and painting at Rangi Ruru for

49 years. Significantly, a number of her

pupils went on to become respected

artists.

Helen Gibson’s paintings are in the

collections of so many descendants of

Old Girl’s as she and her sisters gave her

paintings to family and friends as gifts.

The school is delighted to welcome

these back, from time to time, in the

form of bequests.

The opening of the Museum and

Gallery provided an opportunity for

the collection to be displayed together

for the first time. Freshly painted white

walls and exhibition lighting allowed the

delicacy and mastery of Helen Gibson’s

works to be seen and appreciated

properly.

Juliet Collins, with thanks to Heulwen

Roberts for the background research

18

Rangi Ruru Market Day held on 2

November, was a tremendous and

fun event. Without the assistance and

support of the following people and/or

organisations, this event would not have

been the success that it was. We would

like to acknowledge the huge contribution

of the organiser, Leeann Marriott, and

thank the following:

• Steph Barnett

• Neil Templeton

• Bev Milligan

• Nicki Tipa

• Amelia Davis

• Fleur Kelso

• Leanne O’Sullivan

• Kate Hutchinson

• Susie Tait

• Symone Bruhns

• Judith Brouwer

• Jean Brouwer

• Tuula Rapley

• Aly Maclean

• Jennifer Leahy

• Felicity

Studholme

• Sue Allison

• Richard and

Carolyn Newbold

• Rangi Ruru Parent

Community

• Rangi Ruru Old

Girls’ Association

• Rangi Ruru PTA

• Rangi Ruru Board

of Governors

• Christchurch

Symphony

Orchestra

• Arion Farm

Education Park

• Garden City Big

Band

• Nanako Sato

• Staff of Rangi

Ruru Girls’ School

• Students of Rangi

Ruru Girls’ School

• Beth Bradley

• Jill Grierson

• Lynne Duncan

• Lynley Judd

• Geoffrey Dann

• Jane O’Callaghan

• Janette

Borthwick

• Dorothy Brown

• John Milligan

• Erin Wood

• Deborah Watson

• Jacqui

Macgregor-Pahl

• Duncan

Macgregor-

Muckart

• Tina Goh

• Tom Studholme

• Chris and Juliet

Flanagan

• Rosa and Margo

Flanagan

• Andrew Vincent

• Annie, Libby and

Tom Vincent

• John and Emma

Luxton

• Alice Luxton

• Kristen and Milly

Macfarlane

• Trudy Boyd

• Ian Penny

• India Alexander

• Victoria Green

• Sue Allison

• Kate Judd

• Jo Edwards

• Jeremy de Gouw

(Raeward Fresh

Marshland Rd)

• Jason Burrows

• Quality Bakers

• View Hill Pony

Club, Mike

Pritchard

• Sue from Tiki

Wines

• Belinda Murray

• Christchurch

Casino

• Hanmer Springs

Thermal Pools

• Café Express

• Lichfield Shirts

• Beth Jolly

• Giesen Wines

• Paddy Borthwick

• Claire and Mike

Allen

• Tim and Mandy

Macfarlane

• Tiffany and

George Cross

• Ferg and Bellinda

Murray

• Jenny Partridge

• Pip Rose

and Lindsay

Parkinson

• Bala Deom

Delegates Wines

• Mudhouse Wines

• Couplands

• Baker Boys

• Moffatts Flowers

• Artisan (Rangiora

Bakery)

• Maxim Print

• John Boyle -

Rainbow Print

• J. Ballantynes &

Company

• Michael Mayell -

Cookie Time

• Cadburys

Chocolates

• Southern Wines

• James Turner

– owner from

Fendalton New

World

AROUND RANGI

Market Day Thank youThank you for your support. We have raised $33,200!

19www.rangiruru.school.nz

AROUND RANGI

• Tony Robinson –

All Books NZ

• Allied Pickfords

• Clearwater/

Peppers Resort

• Scenic Circle

Hotels NZ

• Royal New

Zealand Ballet

• Canterbury Tactix

• Gill Hay

• Peg Woodhouse

• Joe Jandals

• Robyn Matheson

• Merivale Mall

• Jacqui

Chamberlain

• Jenny and John

Gillies

• McPherson

Family

• Westende

Jewellers

• Rob and Kate

Clark

• Team Hutchinson

Ford

• Avon City Ford

• ANZ Bank

20

AROUND RANGI

Rangi Ruru Girls’ School was

tremendously proud to have hosted, for

the first time, a joint morning tea for the

Gibson Girls and Transition Girls. The

Boarding House dining room was the

backdrop and Rangi Fudge was on the

menu. Our guests were asked to stand

and to sing heartily the School Song

with the Years 7 and 8 girls – it became

apparent that our guests needed neither

the words nor the encouragement.

Julie Moor updated the guests on

the Rangi 125 celebrations and the

School’s achievements. She spoke of

the importance and prominence of her

guests and their role within the Rangi

family, and proposed the term Whaea ora

(pronounced ‘fire…or..a’) as the name for

which our future eldest old girls would

be known as. ‘Whaea’ translates as the

female head of the family, the matriarch,

the keeper of the knowledge, the guardian

and mentor, while ‘ora’ translates as

inspirational. Julie emphasised that our

eldest old girls are considered the School’s

living treasures who have earned the

respect and status they deserve and that

this timeless term would sit alongside the

name ‘Gibson Girls’ indicating that future

morning teas would be called ‘The Gibson

Girls’ and Whaea ora Morning Tea’. As an

aside, the Gibson Girls’ Luncheon, held

on Sports’ Day, would remain as a Gibson

Girls event.

After Julie’s departure, Neil Templeton,

Business Manager, spoke enthusiastically

about Rangi Ruru’s Capital Campaign

which focusses on providing inspiration

and cutting-edge spaces which will

provide our current and future students

with exceptional learning experiences

and opportunities. With formalities over,

the guests continued catching up with

chit-chat and laughter.

Please contact Rachel Vavasour,

RROGA Administrator, on 03 983 3782 if

you would like to continue discussions

relating to ‘Whaea ora’.Rachel Vavasour

Gibson and Transition Girls’ Morning Tea

Yokohama Jogakuin ExchangeThe Yokohama Jogakuin Exchange is

something eagerly anticipated by both

the students of Rangi Ruru and those

from Yokohama Jogakuin. Even though

the three day experience may have

been short, it was a valuable experience

for everyone involved. This year’s

visit, following tradition, commenced

with a powhiri performed by the Kapa

Haka group. The girls then met their

buddies where they merged western

and Japanese culture with a hand shake

and a bow. After attending classes with

their partners, the Japanese buddies

were immersed in our Maori culture as

they spent the afternoon participating

in cultural activities with Matua. This

experience was a highlight for many

of the Japanese girls as they got to see

the two very diverse and interesting

cultures in New Zealand. Although

language was sometimes a frustrating

barrier, communicating became

increasingly easier as the exchange flew

by. By Friday, when the girls had spent

three days getting to know each other,

it was very hard to say goodbye. The

farewell lunch was full of hugs, laughs

and the not-so-occasional tear, but in

the end, all of the girls involved in the

exchange, whether they be from Rangi

or Yokohama Jogakuin, left with a new

found knowledge of each others’ cultures

and life-long friends too.

Ebony Williams Year 10

Rangi girls with their Yokohama Jogakuin peers during the exchange

Lesley Wyles nee mcCrostie and Valerie Poynter nee Kear

margaret Deans nee Cregoe with Desley Armstrong

21www.rangiruru.school.nz

AROUND RANGI

“She’s an amazing speaker and has a

great ability to leave questions in people’s

minds”

This is one of the issues that was

explored with students on 12 November

as part of seminars led by the University

of Otago’s Dr. Deborah Stevens.

The seminars were framed within an

exploration of contemporary bioethical

issues and designed to explore a number

of questions including, To whom are

we responsible? What is the nature and

degree of personal responsibility? and

What are my responsibilities to other

people?

In two sessions, Dr Stevens worked

alongside Years 9 and 10 and then Years

7 and 8 girls on an underlying theme of

Responsibility.

For the Years 9 and 10 session, Dr

Stevens used developments in human

reproductive technology and how these

are changing the face of the family, and

consumer/business ethics as the anchor

issues. The session with Years 7 and

8 were more generally themed with a

couple of specific case studies used to

explore the concept of responsibility.

In both sessions, the exploration of

these broader issues can then be used to

progressively focus on more immediately

relevant situations to the students

including for example, responsible use of

technology (bullying).

Year 8 student, Aspen Berry, said she

enjoyed the seminars held by Dr Stevens.

“She’s an amazing speaker and has

a great ability to leave questions in

people’s minds,” she said.

Courtney Webb, also in Year 8,

said she was grateful to have had the

opportunity to listen to her speak.

“Dr Stevens brought up points that no

one would have thought about on a day

to day basis,” she said.

The seminars were an extension of

the 2013 Year 7-10’s Global Day where

students were introduced to a range

of global issues. This year, the focus

is on global thinking as it relates to

bioethics and personal responsibility.

The learnings will help the Global Project

student committee formulate a focus for

next year’s project.

Lucy howden and Claudia o’Shannessey discussing the heinz Dilemma with Dr Stevens

Bioethics Seminars: To Whom Are We Responsible?

22

Canterbury Astronomical Society Observatory Visit On Thursday 25 September, 14 Year

9 girls, Mr Machin, and nine parents,

wrapped up warm and jumped into

a shuttle to head to the Canterbury

Astronomical Society Observatory at

West Melton where we would enjoy an

experience of a lifetime. We began in a

small room lit with red lights so our eyes

could adjust to the dark and we would

be able to see more with our naked eyes.

When we walked in, we could only see the

odd bright star sprinkled in the sky. But

when I went back outside, I was shocked.

I could see the whole Milky Way perfectly,

like you see it in the photographs. I

couldn’t believe it.

The first thing I looked at through

one of their high-powered telescopes

was Saturn. I was rather far back in the

queue, and every single person before

me gasped when they looked at it. By the

time I reached the telescope, I had set my

expectations high. It did not disappoint. I

was looking at Saturn. The Saturn. In the

flesh. Well, sort of. I could see a big yellow

ball with yellow rings running vertically

over the top. I was so in awe that I even

came back to look at it again afterwards.

I then moved to look through the

telescope that is on loan from Rangi

Ruru. It was aimed at a globular cluster,

which is a cluster of stars that have been

drawn in around a black hole. The first

one we looked at was a very loose one

with only a handful of stars. It looked like

a dewy spider web with diamonds set in

the corners. Then we focused on a much

bigger cluster with millions of stars. It

looked like a bucketful of gems.

At the beginning of the evening, we

were told that we’d be able to see meteors

streaking across the sky, and it very

quickly became a competition between

us. We lay on the grass, huddled together

for warmth and looked up at the beautiful

night sky counting the meteors we saw. I

had a grand total of five.

It was an exciting and fun experience

that I would recommend to absolutely

everyone. I’ll never forget it.

Hannah Davies Year 9

AROUND RANGI

Creative New Outfit for Camouflage CrabA camouflage crab at the New Zealand

Marine Studies Centre surprised

students with its new choice of outfit.

Camouflage crabs usually stick

pieces of seaweed onto their backs

and legs to disguise themselves from

predators. Students from Rangi Ruru

Girls’ School in Christchurch, ran an

overnight experiment at the New

Zealand Marine Studies Centre to see

what kind of seaweeds the crabs would

prefer to use. Crabs were placed in

separate tanks with red, brown and

green seaweeds, and another tank with

pieces of fabric. Students were amazed

to find that the best-dressed crab was

the one in the tank with the fabric!

“Camouflage crabs will use

whatever they can find to blend in

with their environment, but they really

went over the top with the fabric!” said

Educator, Dr Jean McKinnon. It may be

that the fibres stick more readily to the

hairs on their backs.

The Year 8 students were in

Dunedin for a three-day science

programme at the New Zealand Marine

Studies Centre. This experiment was

to find the camouflage preference of

camouflage crabs. The students also

ran experiments looking at oxygen

production in seaweeds under different

conditions and behaviour of crabs

under altered environmental factors.Article supplied by Tessa Mills, New Zealand Marine Studies Centre

miriam Shipley (holding fabric-dressed camouflage crab) and millie macalister holding a crab that was in a tank with red seaweed.

Grace mathews (wearing hat and holding the fabric-dressed camouflage crab,) and olivia noonan holding a crab that was in a tank with red seaweed.

2 World of Alpacas

Proud sponsors of the Rangi Ruru polo team

23www.rangiruru.school.nz

Young Enterprise 2014Review of the Year

AROUND RANGI

RITZY Hands OnHappy Hippies

working with the Hippy Kids Foundation

Product: Dry Hair ShampooCEOs: Rachel Chon, Clare Lin

Product: Device for checking effectiveness of hand washingCEO: Olivia HumphreyReceived award for Innovation

Product: Garden plot kitsets for underprivileged familiesCEOs: Megan Rains, Lillian Elliott

IgniteESC

Media recognition for their product and marketing efforts

Can It!

Product: Designer soy candlesCEO: Devanshi Gandhi

Product: Promotional wristbandsCEO: Aimee McMaster

Product: Re-cycled can storage containersCEO: Becky Wilson

Fudge It! Kakano Soaps Cookie Doe

Product: Designer fudgeDirector: Kiera Horton-King

Product: Designer soapsCEO: Abby Pedersen

Product: Cookie CupsCEO: Hanseul Nam

2014 has seen our biggest ever number

of enthusiastic Years 12 and 13 young

entrepreneurs keen to try their hand

at establishing and running a business

venture of their own creation – 60 girls

in all! Fourteen teams entered the fray

in February and proceeded to attack the

programme of various challenges, hold

team meetings and conduct extensive

research into potential products.

The first competition up for grabs was

the design of a business card and one of

our teams – Ignite – producing designer

candles, were delighted to win this! Their

reward was to have a complimentary run

of their colour business card.

And then came the Dragon’s Den…

The CEOs had the responsibility of

co-ordinating their teams and passing

on communications. They succeeded in

doing the job exceptionally well and were

rewarded at the Dragon’s Den, where

two of the major awards were received

by ‘Hands On’ for their innovation

in designing a device to check the

cleanliness of hands when washed, and

by Cookie Doe for their robust marketing

of their designer cookie cups.

All of the nine teams participating

set an exemplary standard in their

presentations.

Below are the teams who participated

in Dragon’s Den.

Also worthy of a mention was the

team “Line of Best Fit,” who set out to

attempt to sell the “F” Block now that it

has ended its time of use. Unfortunately,

they ran into all sorts of insuperable

snags with the issue of acting as real

estate agents, and so had to abandon the

idea – disappointing for them after the

work they had put into the research.

All teams continued to develop and

market their products throughout the year,

with varying degrees of success, and we

can be very proud of the mettle of the girls

involved in their respective teams – they

were totally committed, keen to work

effectively on their particular jobs, were

confident in their endeavours and were

appreciative of any help given.

The teams presented their wares at

the product launch at school, and as

well, set up stalls at the Market Day in the

Restart Mall, with considerable selling

success.

Their Annual Reports were the final

challenge for the teams in September,

and the results of these went towards

determining the overall South Island

results.

We were all delighted when six of the

teams received eight of the awards at the

South Island awards ceremony, ranging

from Excellence in Business Practice, to

awards for Innovation, Perseverance,

Marketing and Sustainability.

Young Enterprise is certainly alive and

well here at Rangi Ruru, and is proving

immensely rewarding for the large

number of girls who take the plunge for

the year’s journey!

Jacqui Griffith

Teacher-in-charge of Young Enterprise

“Can It” at market Day in the Restart mall

24

Dance and Drama came together in

new and integral ways this year. The

early J-Rock (Stage Challenge) entry

by the Years 7 and 8 seems so long ago

now, but that outstanding presentation

of ‘Dreams and Nightmares’ will be

fondly remembered by the girls who

participated. Kirsty Bell choreographed

what was a large group of dedicated

students, who went on to win excellence

awards for costuming, choreography and

dramatic staging.

The SGCNZ University of Otago

Sheilah Winn Shakespeare Festival saw

two stunning pieces produced by our

school. ‘Coriolanus’ utilised dance-like

swordfights in a unique and exhilarating

way, whilst the student directed ‘Hamlet’

embraced modern dance by interpreting

Ophelia’s decline into madness. Directed

by Alice Norton and choreographed by

Laura Marriott, with original music by

Rebekah Boyce, ‘Hamlet’ was a highlight

of fearless student creativity.

Earlier this year we were fortunate

enough to have star of the musical stage,

Ali Harper, as Artist-in-Residence. Ali’s

mentoring of our girls leading up to

auditions and through the rehearsals of

‘Cats’ was inspirational. Her knowledge

and professionalism, shared with the

students, was second-to-none, and the

confidence they gained from her input

was demonstrated as they took to the

stage.

Thanks to Hannah Clarkson’s

wonderful choreography, dance was very

much to the fore in ‘Cats’ as the seniors

pawed, purred, and preened their way

through what was a glittering showcase

of extraordinary talent. Who will

forget the sublime dancing from Laura

Marriott and Ellie Crawford; Pauline

Ward’s dexterity as Jennyanydots;

Cassie Henderson as the mischievous

Rumpleteaser; Sylvia Barnett’s bell-like

vocals as Jellylorum; and of course, the

unforgettable Alice Norton, who moved

us all with her powerful and touching

rendition of ‘Memory’ as Grizabella.

The drama trip to London meant

that the students were able to take in

three productions at the Globe including

the New Zealand Young Shakespeare’s

production of ‘Julius Caesar’. Other

highlights included ‘Henry IV part 2’

at The Royal Shakespeare Company,

‘Medea’ at The National Theatre,

‘Skylight’ (starring Carey Mulligan and

Bill Nighy), ‘Les Misérables’, ‘Miss Saigon’,

and ‘Matilda’. Fourteen productions in

total, plus drama workshops at Royal

Shakespeare Company, Globe, National,

and Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts,

ensured a rich learning experience for

students and staff.

Celebrated British playwright, Sarah

Kane’s dark and poetic play ‘Crave’,

offered a completely new way of working

and presenting theatre. With no stage

directions or character indications within

the text, a large amount of rehearsal time

was spent exploring the text and bringing

pace, rhythm and life to the complex and

disturbing play. With choreography by

Hannah Clarkson, the Year 13 students

presented ‘Crave’ at The Brisbane

Arts Theatre Festival in September.

Competing against 12 adult theatre

groups from around Queensland, this

production came away with awards for

Best Design, Best Director and 1st Place

– Best Play; a brilliant achievement by

these girls who also won Best Production

in Norfolk Island last year.

Dance was also integrated into our

junior production. Choreographed

by Kirsty Bell, the Years 9 and 10 girls

danced as gumboot wearing fairies

in ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’. An

outdoor production on the lawn next to

the chapel, the production was nearly

thwarted by a spring blast of hail and rain

in the days leading up to opening night.

Hardy audiences braved the chilly nights

as dance and Shakespeare came to life

with the aid of giant puppets and a live

orchestra, inspirationally led by Nanako

Sato. This was yet another showcase of

our girls’ talent, as ‘A Midsummer Night’s

Dream’ was an exciting, visual feast.

Integrating the theatre arts in

different and exciting ways has been our

challenge this year, and one embraced

by the staff and students alike. How

gratifying it is to be able to work in

such a thrilling, creative and supportive

school.

Robert GilbertDirector of Theatre Arts

AROUND RANGI

From the Director of Theatre Arts

25www.rangiruru.school.nz

AROUND RANGI

A Midsummer Night’s Dream was an

opportunity to learn Shakespeare, begin

new friendships and discover drama

techniques. Our director, Mr Gilbert, is a

very experienced and talented teacher.

Somehow he was able to make us feel

completely immersed in the world of

Shakespeare, giving us the chance to

gain an understanding of the originality

of the English language. We, the cast

of Midsummer Night’s Dream, were

surprised by the amount of rehearsals

that took place, however, we came to

love every minute of them as we were

spending time with friends we had come

to know.

Having to work so closely with

a bunch of kids at a variety of ages,

was really entertaining, and I can now

confidently walk past older girls in the

school and give them a hug or smile.

Midsummer Night’s Dream exceeded my

expectations, as the time and effort put

into it by the teachers was astounding,

and meant a lot to the cast. From the

eight foot puppets to the glittering

costumes, I can honestly say this was

a highlight of my year and I know I

will always remember it. To have an

opportunity to become a character from

a magical forest is amazing. Fairies,

mechanicals, puppeteers and everyone

part of Midsummer Night’s Dream, made

those three nights magical and full of

laughter. I can’t wait to continue with

productions at Rangi Ruru.

Lily Barnett Year 9

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

26

AROUND RANGI

From the Director of MusicTerm 4 is a short and intense term,

with this year being no exception.

Once the Gala Concert was over,

the focus for senior students was on

external examinations. Final NCEA and

Scholarship performances were held,

compositions completed and tutorials

held for individual and small groups of

students.

Years 9 and 10 musicians were kept

very busy with preparations for the

delightful production of ‘A Midsummer

Night’s Dream’. The magical setting on

the Merivale Lawn was just perfect, and

the girls really enjoyed the opportunity

to be a part of this special production. It

was wonderful to have original incidental

music composed by teacher Nanako Sato

and performed by girls from the Years 9

and 10 performance music classes – an

excellent example of blending curricular

and co-curricular programmes. Years

7 and 8 girls enjoyed the opportunity

to participate once again in the

Christchurch Primary Schools’ Music

Festival at the end of October – now in its

75th year.

Wednesday morning Chapel

performances continued through until

the end of the year. Thank you and

congratulations to all girls who have

performed. It is a privilege to hear you

and we are certainly in awe of your

wide variety of musical talents. A special

thanks to Head of Music, Siyu Sun,

who took on the task of organising the

performances.

As I write, there are girls preparing for

practical music examinations with either

Trinity College or the Royal Schools’ of

Music, some at Grade 8 level and above.

Congratulations to those girls who have

already sat these examinations and

achieved results that they are proud

of. We look forward to hearing further

results in the New Year.

Resolutions provided poignant and

reflective moments during the Leavers’

Communion Service. Both Carol Services

feature performances by the Bellbirds,

Junior Chorale, Recorder Ensemble

and Resolutions, and Prize Giving again

featured Resolutions, Rangi Sinfonia and

the Jazz Band.

My ongoing thanks to the dedicated

and professional Music Department staff

and team of Itinerant Music tutors, who

work so hard with our students. Without

your help and support we would not

be able to offer such an extensive and

enriching music programme to our girls.

At the end of this year, we will sadly

farewell Ms Buchanan – affectionately

known as Ms B to the girls. Marg has

worked with girls in Years 7 and 8 for

many years now and has instilled into

them a love of music and widened their

horizons with many wonderful stories

of her extensive travels and musical and

cultural experiences. Thank you Marg for

all the wonderful work you have done

with the girls, for your wisdom, guidance

and delightful sense of humour. We will

miss you and wish you well for the future.

Thank you too girls for all the

amazing music and fun times – this has

certainly been a year to remember! To

the leavers; you have left your legacy

through your enormous contribution to

the music department. I hope that you

have enjoyed your time at Rangi and that

music continues to enrich your life in

some way.

Seasons greetings to you all and I

look forward to another exciting year of

music making in 2015.

Janet KingsburyDirector of Music

Resolutions

Grace Leehan, Amy Lee, Julie Kim

27www.rangiruru.school.nz

AROUND RANGI

Under a Wide Sky The Gala Concert Celebrating 125 Years of Rangi Ruru

This was a much-anticipated event and

one of the many highlights of Rangi’s

125th year. Through music and dance,

125 years were celebrated, with each

item linked through strategically placed

comperes who placed the music into the

context of the history of Rangi Ruru, New

Zealand and even global events. Groups

performing included Rangi Sinfonia,

Resolutions, Jazz Band, Percussion

Ensemble, Kapa Haka, Dance Companies

plus soloists and smaller ensembles.

Involving over 150 girls, they worked

hard over many months towards this

event and in true Rangi style, rose to the

occasion magnificently through some

stellar and memorable performances.

The finale of the concert was Wide

Sky Shelter, commissioned by Rangi

Ruru from Christchurch composer,

Dr Philip Norman. This work was for

combined student, staff and old girls’

choir, orchestra, Kapa Haka, dancers

and speakers. It set a variety of texts

associated with the school, including a

setting of the school Haka with orchestra,

a section featuring clan rivalry, and a

beautiful setting of the school prayer at

the end. Philip writes: “Wide Sky Shelter

is my response to the warmth, humour,

and positivity I have experienced at

Rangi Ruru during my association with

the school over the past seven years. It is

a composite musical portrait celebrating

the school’s history and spirit. I have

dedicated it to the students of Rangi

Ruru, past, present and future.”

This was a very exciting work to

perform, so beautifully capturing the

essence of Rangi Ruru. There is another

chance to hear it at this year’s Prize Giving.

Thanks and congratulations must go

to performers, backstage crew, and staff

who all so generously gave of their time

and expertise, to enable this event to be

the success that it was.

Janet KingsburyDirector of Music

Rangi Sinfonia and combined choirs

Dance companies Percussion ensemble

28

I say it every year: how did we get to

this point in the year so quickly? And I

also muse over how we packed so much

in during such a short sporting term. It

never ceases to amaze me how much

our girls can be involved in over just six

weeks (to date) of sporting possibilities.

Any wonder they are tired?

Just having completed our Annual

Sports Census, the spread of numbers

across more than 30 sports continues

to be impressive. Whilst dropping

slightly from previous years, at 90% we

are still one of, if not the top school in

Canterbury for participation in Sport

outside of schools where attendance

in sport is compulsory. Of those girls

participating, many are involved in

more than one sport, and of the 57 not

involved in anything through school, at

least a third are dancers or are involved

in something externally. We continue to

buck the current trend which says that

young people are becoming less active

or involved in sport. Go Rangi!

I hope you enjoy reading about some of

the latest things happening in sport at

Rangi Ruru.

Sport

Jo FogartyDirector of Sport

AthleticsResults of Independent Schools’ Athletics ChampionshipsTwenty Years 7 and 8 girls competed in

these sports on Tuesday 11 November at

St Andrew’s College. The conditions were

perfect and it was a very successful day

for the girls.

Results:1st: 11 years relay (Abby Kneebone, Brigit

Moston, Macy Neale, Amelie Spinks)

1st: 12 years relay (Lauren Stapylton-

Smith, Ella Gardiner, Sophia Harrison,

Isabel Newman)

2nd: 13 years relay (Holly Lewis, Emily

Philip, Millie Macalister, Alisha Bedggood)

11 year olds: Macy Neale: 1st High jump, 3rd long

jump, 3rd discus

Brigit Moston: 1st long jump

Abby McBreen: 2nd shot put

Amelie Spinks: 2nd Long jump

Abby Kneebone: 3rd shot put

12 year olds: Lauren Stapylton-Smith: 1st long Jump;

1st 100m, 3rd high Jump

Ella Gardiner: 2nd 100m, 3rd high jump,

3rd shot put

Sophie Martin: 3rd 60m

13 year olds:Millie Macalister: 2nd high jump, 2nd long

jump

Holly Lewis: 3rd 60m, 3rd long jump

The 11 and 12 year old relay teams,

and girls who placed 1st or 2nd, will

compete at the Canterbury Primary

Athletics Championships on Wednesday

3 December at Ashburton, and we wish

the girls well.

EquestrianRangi Reins This year has been a great start to

our Equestrian Programme involving

the experienced riders through to the

novices, and everyone with equine

interests in-between!

Congratulations go to our Equestrian Trophy winners this year:Grant Showjumping Trophy

Christy HarrisRankin Family Cup for Eventing

Christy HarrisField-Dodgson Salver for Dressage

Belinda Field-DodgsonAbbott Family Trophy for Polo

Contribution

Alice ButterickYoung Trophy for Contribution to

Equestrian

Christy HarrisEquestrian Colours Awards have been

gained by Christy Harris and Anna Robertson and Re-Awarded to Belinda Field-Dodgson

Pockets have been awarded to Maddie Beulink and Florence Tapley.

Horse of the Year Saddle Hunter Pony

Champion, and other prestigious awards

to Belinda Field-Dodgson, and her

beautiful grey pony, Beechcroft Playboy,

in Hastings.

Interschool CompetitionDRESSAGE The gold team of Belinda Field-Dodgson,

Grace Tripe, Anna Robertson and Maddy

Tait was second, with the Dressage Salver

for the best combined score on the day,

at the highest level, going to Belinda.

The Blue Team of Florence Tapley,

Brianna Bailey, Christy Harris and

Jemima Seddon-Smith also went well.

SHOW-JUMPING We were proud of all our jumpers with

Christy Harris , Florence Tapley, Phillippa

Fleming and Hazel Honey riding for the

Gold Team, and Anna Robertson, Maddy

Tait, Satori Mayell and India Borrelli riding

for Blue.

EVENTINGGOLD – 4th placing went to Christy

Harris, Maddy Tait, Florence Tapley and

Brianna Bailey

EQUESTRIAN DAY – Combined Schools’ Classes and TrophiesEventing, Open 1.05cm

Christy Harris 2ndEventing, Training 95cm

Maddy Tait, 3rdEventing 85cm

Florence Tapley 1st Eventing 65cm

Imogen Morrison 4th Senior Unity [Denham Family Trophy]

No Rangi Competitors

Junior Unity [Hotel Ibis Trophy]

Grace Tripe 1st, Sally McPherson 5th, Emily Heald 6th

PoloWe were treated to some exciting

polo during the year, where the riders

demonstrated their developing skills,

competitive spirits and sound sense

of Fairplay. Next year, we anticipate

matches against riders from Pakistan

and Singapore, which will be as exciting

as our previous competition against

Australia and the USA.

Training February“B” Alice Butterick

“C” Emma Strack, Zoe Reader, Mollie

Carruthers , Claudia Roxburgh

29www.rangiruru.school.nz

SPORT

“D” Eliza Acton-Adams, Brianna Bailey,

Poppy Prentice, Rose Lewis

“E” Felicity Prendergast, Maddi Halliday

March Tournament“B” Alice Butterick, Emma Strack, Zoe

Reader

“C” Mollie Carruthers, Hannah Maloney,

Claudia Roxburgh, Georgia Woodley

“D” Felicity Prendergast, Rose Lewis

Most Valued Players for grade – Alice “B”,

Felicity “C”.

November TournamentThese girls will be joined by Felicity Grant

and Maddie Beulink, with Mollie, Florence

and Sally unavailable for selection.

Riding ProgrammeDuring the year, about 15 riders have

been having fun developing their riding

skills each week at Arion Riding School. It

has been a delight to see the increasing

skill, confidence and positive attitudes of

these girls, not to mention some lovely

photographs!

Equine Studies Un-mounted, we have

had a class of senior Year 13 girls doing

Equine Studies units most successfully.

They have learnt so much about

anatomy and physiology of different

parts of the horse, effective stable design,

poisonous plants and bringing a horse

into work. Associated with this, we have

had fascinating seminars on equine

physiotherapy from Nicolet Gelderman

and the dissection of the leg from Dr

Corin Murfitt. We are grateful to these

experts for their time and skills. As other

riders reach NCEA year levels, they will be

able to enrol for Equine Studies as well,

whether for individual units or a whole

course.

Bring Your Horse To SchoolThe riders who have had their

horses here have been riding regularly

throughout the year, and have shown

great improvement in their riding

through their regular weekly lessons,

thanks to their instructor and their hard

work. Their families have also provided

excellent support for the girls, particularly

when the riders have been out and about

competing.

Thanks to our equestrian captains for this year

Alice Butterick, Anna Robertson,

Belinda Field-Dodgson and Christy

Harris have been great role models;

enthusiastic, supportive and competitive

– we thank these girls for all they have

done to support the riders at our school!

Best wishes for the future both in the

horse world and elsewhere.

Canterbury A & P Show Successes, November 2014 Congratulations, riders and mounts!

florence tapley and Go Go Girl, receiving their ribbon for the Ballantyne’s Canterbury Cup Pony Jumping, [6th]

Belinda field-Dodgson and Astek Godiva, winners of the Senior nydfa Cup for Unity

Grace tripe and Beechcroft Playboy, winners of the Champion Saddle hunter Pony and their many other awards

Western Trail BonanzaCongratulations to Sally McPherson and

Zippabingo, who took 1st youth division

and 2nd overall at the Western Trail

Bonanza.

Pippa Young

Tennis Term 4 heralded the return of tennis for

the summer. We were fortunate to be

able to welcome our new tennis coach,

Remi Feneon. Remi is a very experienced

player himself, hails from France and

coaches also at Waimairi Tennis Club.

This term he has been busy coaching

the Premier A team on Monday and

Tuesday mornings before school, a

beginners group Thursday before school

and a development squad on Thursday

lunchtime.

This term, the A team girls played

in the Canterbury Schools’ Senior and

Intermediate Tennis Championships at

Cashmere Tennis Club. Although we had

no girls contesting the main draw finals,

Sally mcPherson and Zippabingo

30

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Lucy Allison won the Open Plate Final

with Gabriella Hearn runner-up.

Maria Milkina was runner-up in the

Special Plate round for Intermediate Girls’

and Georgie Andrews and Maria are in

the finals of the Senior Doubles Plate

round (yet to be played).

The rest of the girls who signed

up for tennis this term played in the

regular inter-school competition. We

had enough girls for six teams in various

grades and, although the season was

short with two rainy Wednesdays, it

didn’t dampen their enthusiasm. At the

time of writing, the Year 9A team and the

Junior A team were unbeaten.

Congratulations to our Year 9 and 10

girls who competed in the Canterbury

Schools’ Junior Tennis championships at

Wilding Park on 26 and 27 November.

Vera Goesmann lost a hard fought

finals (to St Andrew’s College) in the Year

9 singles to finish 2nd. Siena Rapley and

Amelia Bryden got through to the finals

of the Year 10 doubles plate competition

and will play off for 3rd/4th. Olivia

Mander finished up 5th in the Year 10

singles.I am looking forward to seeing all

the girls and others who are interested in

playing, signing up for tennis, Term One

next year.

Congratulations to our Years 9 and 10

girls who competed in the Junior Tennis

championships this week.

Vera Goesmann lost a hard fought

finals (to St Andrew’s College) in the

Year 9 singles to finish 2nd. Siena Rapley

and Amelia Bryden got through to

the finals of the Year 10 doubles plate

competition and will play off for 3rd/4th.

Olivia Mander finished 5th in the Year 10

singles.

Ms McQueen

TouchThere have been some positive

developments in Rangi Ruru touch this

term, with the appointment of a new

Supertouch coach signalling a change

for touch at Rangi. Talented New

Zealand and Canterbury Men’s player,

Hapimana Lines-Tohiariki, has taken

over the reins and, working alongside

the girls in training, he is bringing out

the best in each player. This season the

Supertouch team are also playing in the

Belfast module on a Wednesday night,

growing their experience and knowledge

with every game. With semi-final games

cancelled due to bad weather, the girls

play off for 3rd/4th in the final game of

the term and will be aiming for 3rd spot.

There is certainly some talent to

watch in the Junior teams, and with Hapi

also involved in coaching at this level, the

girls are getting great development. The

Junior Gold team, coached by Hapi and

Pete Westrupp, played off for 3rd/4th in

the Junior Div 1 grade while the Junior

Blue team, coached by Supertouch

players Rebecca Skurr, Henrietta Murray

and Jess Gunn, played off for 5th/ 6th in

the Junior Div 3 competition. Well done

to all the girls and thank you to the Year

12 players who coached this term. A

quick shout out should also go to the Year

12 social team who organised themselves

each week and turned up without fail for

their games – nice job girls!

Congratulations to the following girls

who were selected for Canterbury age-

group teams this season:

Tayla Thompson – U17 Girls

Gabi Newman – U17 Mixed

Sarita de Gouw, Emilie Aitken – U15 Girls

We wish these girls the best for their

representative touch season. It is great to

see Rangi Ruru girls building their touch

knowledge and experience through

playing for Canterbury.

VolleyballTerm 4 is a short competition for

Volleyball, however, it has been a

successful one for Rangi Ruru.

This term, we formed two large

squads of junior teams, both coached

by our Senior A coaches, Paul Foster and

Gina Dymand. In the senior competition

we had three social teams and a Senior A

team.

At the Junior Canterbury

Championships, the team that competed

was made up of a combination of Years

9 and 10 students. This team was only

formed at the start of the term and had

only a few short weeks to prepare for

the tournament. Their final placing was

9th, however, there were a number of

very close games which didn’t go their

way and which would have resulted in

a different overall placing if they had.

More impressive than the result was the

growth over the tournament, and the

experience gained bodes well for the

Term 1 competition in 2015.

The Senior A team placed 2nd in

Premier Division Two. They played

five games over this short competition

and convincingly won four with their

only loss being the last game of the

competition. With a number of junior

players playing in this team, it is exciting

to see what the team can achieve in 2015.

Term 4 also saw the introduction of a

Beach Volleyball Wednesday competition.

Rangi Ruru were well represented with

three senior teams and three junior

Vera Goesman, Amelia Bryden, olivia mander and Siena Rapley at the tennis Champs

Junior Volleyball

31www.rangiruru.school.nz

SPORT

teams. Players competed in teams of

two and all thoroughly enjoyed this new

experience. It was clear to see an increase

in skill over the competition thanks to

Beach coach, Gina Dymand. Again, all

players are looking forward to the next

round of competition in Term 1, 2015.

Paula Rule

WaterpoloDue to the lack of pool space in

Christchurch, the Secondary Schools’

Waterpolo competition in Canterbury

is split, with the Senior Competition

run during Term 1 and the Junior

Competition run during Term 4. Each

‘season’ ends with a respective South

Island tournament, and it is with great

excitement that we look forward to

the Junior South Island tournament in

Christchurch during the last weekend

in November. This is the first time

Canterbury has hosted a Waterpolo

tournament since the earthquakes.

To date this term, the Rangi team

has performed extremely well in the

weekly competition, coming out on top

of a couple of very close games and only

going down to a very strong Burnside

team. As we go to print, the team is set to

meet Burnside again in the competition

final.

There are eight teams registered for

the South Island tournament and we wish

the girls well as they train to be one of the

top Junior teams in the South Island.

Note: The Rangi pool is a godsend for

trainings and we are so thankful to have

it back!

Jo Fogarty

School Sport Canterbury Winter Sports AwardsAt these annual awards, held at the end

of September, Rangi had three teams

that won the Senior Girls’ section in the

Canterbury competitions:

Senior Cross Country Team: Tayla Reid, Lucy Hutchinson, Libby

Vincent, Lucy Allison

Senior Duathlon Team: Tessa Jenkins, Lucy Allison

Senior Ski Team: Millie Mannering, Ana

Morrison, Prue Lange

Zonta Sports AwardsEach year all Canterbury Secondary

Schools’ have the opportunity to

nominate girls for the Zonta Secondary

Schools’ Sports Awards. There are seven

categories that make up the awards for

both boys and girls, in both Individual

and Team categories.

Rangi was once again represented at

this event, with one of our sportswomen

coming home with a Highly Commended

award.

In the Category of Sportswoman with

a Disability, Jacquie Ruth was Highly

Commended from the five finalists.

Jacquie’s swimming accomplishments

this year set her apart from most of

the others and she was thoroughly

deserving of her Highly Commended. In

the Category of Contribution to Sports

Administration, Madison Richards was

extremely unlucky not to have won. Her

role as an umpire for both Rangi and

Christchurch Centre Netball has been

significant this season, and she has a

real future in this sport. There were

six finalists in this section. Our other

sportswoman named as a finalist was

Kristy Havill in the largest section at the

awards – Most Outstanding Achievement

in One Sport. Kristy was named a finalist

for her Clay Target Shooting successes.

Incredibly, over half of the 19 finalists in

this category had competed at a World

championship level event. It was mind-

blowing to hear the citations for each

finalist, outlining their accomplishments.

Congratulations to all of our finalists.

With over 130 students nominated for the

different categories, it is an outstanding

achievement to be named as a finalist.

The room was full of champions!

Senior Cross Country Team: tayla Reid, Lucy hutchinson, Libby Vincent, Lucy Allison

Senior Duathlon Team: tessa Jenkins, Lucy Allison

Senior Ski Team: millie mannering, Ana morrison, Prue Lange

life & disability

School Sport Canterbury Winter Sports Awards

32

SPORT

Congratulations to the followingClay Target Shooting – Kristy Havill

won the New Zealand Girls’ overall

champion title at the New Zealand Fish

and Game South Island and New Zealand

Secondary Schools’ Clay Target Champi-

onships. Kristy also won Gold in the New

Zealand Girls’ Points Score, and Silver

in the New Zealand Girls’ Single Barrel

competition. The young shooter was the

only girl to qualify for the North or South

Island Open team (one team of five from

each island.)

As a member of the winning South

Island team that beat the North Island,

Kristy had the last shot to win it for the

South Island. She was equal top scorer

from both teams, won silver in the New

Zealand Girl’s Skeet competition, silver

in the South Island Girls’ Skeet, and

is a member of the North Canterbury

regional team that won silver in the

Triples, a first for North Canterbury.

Kristy was one of two girls in the five

person team and was equal top scorer,

being awarded High Overall (winner) of

the Girls’ Triples.

Football – Congratulations to Molly

Senior who captained the Canterbury

U14 Girls’ Football team.

Hockey –Congratulations to

Charlotte Arthur for her inclusion in the

New Zealand U18 Hockey team to play in

Australia later in the year.

Kung Fu – On 27 September, Amy Chen

attended the 2014 National/Oceania

Kung-Fu Wushu Invitational Champion-

ships at Avondale College, organised by

the New Zealand Kung-Fu Wushu Federa-

tion. She won 2nd place (silver medal)

with the sword in the class of the Short

Weapon U49 years.

Orienteering – Marisol Hunter had

a great time in Perth at the Australian

Championships and performed out-

standingly well. She competed in seven

events and here are her results:

Australian Championships – middle

distance W14 – 1st , Sprint W14 – 1st,

Long distance W14 -2nd

Australia Schools’ Long – 8th (New

Zealand runners were 4th, 5th, 6th and

8th) and won the Southern Cross Shield.

Western Australian Long Orienteering

Championships W14, 15th

In the relay, Marisol ran the second

leg in a New Zealand team, unfortunately

the first leg runner mispunched and the

team was disqualified but they achieved

the 3rd fastest time.

Still to ComeGood luck to our athletes who are

heading away to represent the school at

the National Secondary Schools’ Athletics

Championships, and the National

Secondary Schools’ Cricket tournament.

We wish them well and know that they

will give their best efforts and represent

themselves and the school with pride.

To Lucy Allison, Hannah Maloney,

Lauren Beckett (athletics) and Kristy Havill,

Kate Willis, Anna Robertson (cricket): you

have contributed so much to Rangi sport

during your time at school, and your skills

and talents will be remembered.

News on Old GirlsRosa Flanagan and Gabby Gray have

both been selected to run in the New

Zealand team at the Chiba Ekiden

International Relay in Japan next

month. The mixed-team relay is run

over the marathon distance, split into

six legs. New Zealand finished 6th last

year, just behind the United States but

ahead of Germany, France, Australia

and Canada. Rosa will be running in the

race with New Zealand internationals,

Zane Robertson and Nikki Hamblin, with

Gabby reserve for this team but also

racing for New Zealand. Congratulations

to these two outstanding athletes.

Kristy havill molly Senior, the captain, scoring the winning penalty to get the team into the final.

Amy Chen at the the 2014 national/oceania Kung-fu Wushu Invitational Championship

marisol hunter (right) at the Australian orienteering Championships

33www.rangiruru.school.nz

Community Relations Coordinator

I do hope you agree with me that

the 125th Anniversary year has been

absolutely marvellous! As I write, the

very last function is starting to ramp up.

The event organisers and caterers for

the 125th House Party have been doing

last minute checks around Te Koraha,

and issuing instructions to staff about

cleaning their offices. It will be a fitting

end to a very busy 125th year.

Since the last Rangi News, I had the

privilege of being part of the 125th Gala

Concert, both behind the scenes and

onstage performing in Under a Wide Sky,

composed by Dr Philip Norman. Especially

written for the Rangi anniversary, it

encompasses orchestra, kapa haka, dance

and singing – and I am very glad that

it will be getting another airing at Prize

Giving. The photo of the choir was taken

by Juliet Nicholas with her daughter Josie

Nicholas-McAnergney (centre). The choir

consisted of Resolutions, Bellbirds, Junior

Chorale, Concordia and any staff and

old girls who were keen to sing and able

to make the rehearsals; altogether there

were six staff and eight old girls involved.

It really was such a pleasure to be learning

with, and from, all the girls – and to be

accompanied by an orchestra!

October and November have been

especially busy months. I hosted a stall at

the Ashburton A & P Show, the first time

we have been there – and a really good

show to be involved with. My motel

for the night was also accommodating

some of the dog trialists; the dogs

were very well behaved! Following on

from that I travelled to Blenheim, and

alongside Belinda Murray (pictured,

parent of Phoebe Murray, Year 12) and Sue

Hurd, (parent of Amelia and Annabelle

Wilson, Year 10), we represented Rangi

at the Marlborough A & P Show. The

Marlborough Show was smaller than

the Ashburton Show but both had good

numbers of horses and riders, and girls

interested in our equestrian programme.

We then attended the Canterbury

A & P Show, where we greeted many

past students and families, and some

prospective students too. The Shows

are an important part of our on-going

enrolment and community activities. If

you’d like to see us at your local A & P

Show, and you would love to help at the

stall, please do get in touch.

Another community outreach, and

125th celebration, was Market Day. Most

admirably organised by Leeann Marriott,

the day was a huge success, both in raising

money for the sports turfs and courts,

but also in engaging with our Rangi

community, and neighbourhood. Pictured

is a selection of photos, including old

girl Alexandra Stewart and her daughter,

Allegra, who came to the fair and had fun

at the Facepainting stall, created by 13GN.

Amelia DavisCommunity

Relations

Coordinator

Josie nicholas-mcAnergney in the 125th Gala Concert. Photo taken by Juliet nicholas Alexandra Stewart with her daughter Allegra Stewart-mcGowan

Belinda murray and Amelia at the marlborough A & P Show

masses of market goers

COmmUNITy RELATIONS COORDINATOR

34

CELEbRATING OUR COmmUNITy

Celebrating Our CommunityLucy tyndall Rangi Ruru (2000 – 2004)

Lucy is working as a volunteer in war-

torn Kurdistan, helping children and

families whose lives have been shattered

by Da’ash (Islamic State) militant attacks.

She is based in Erbil, the capital of

Kurdistan Iraq, working as a volunteer for

a local Non-Government Organisation

called the Rise Foundation.

Lucy, who was Head of the

Environment Committee at Rangi and

won the Faletoese Cup for the Best

All-Round Girl in the School, is working

towards a career in climate-change and

renewable energy. But this year she

decided to follow her dreams. “I wanted

to paint more, start a novel and do

humanitarian work.”

Lucy manages a variety of projects in

Erbil, but her favourite is Castle Art.

This started in a Syrian refugee camp

in Akre where a Rise employee had the

youth in the camp brighten the drab

walls with murals.

“I have a huge passion for art as

a medium for personal exploration,

expression and fun,” says Lucy. “The art

department at Rangi were fantastic, and

much of what I learnt there, particularly

from Libby Sheehy in 7th form painting,

I’ve brought to the camp.”

Lucy, who is the daughter of Rangi

principal Julie Moor, has a double

Honours degree in French and Political

Science from Otago University, her

thesis explores the politics of climate

change. She also has a Masters from

Victoria University, this time looking at

energy policy in New Zealand.

Lucy applied for a job at the Ministry

of Economic Development, hoping to

work in the field of renewable electricity

and alternatives. When they offered

her a position in resources (oil, gas and

coal), she reluctantly accepted. “But

the ministry was good for me. It was

an excellent environment to learn in,

particularly from those with opposing

views.”

Two years later, she headed for

London and found the job market

painfully familiar. “I applied for a role

in renewable energy but was offered

a place in oil and gas,” she says. “I was

interested in humanitarian work, so

when a friend from Otago posted an

Instagram photo of her volunteer work in

Kurdistan, I emailed her asking what she

was doing, and how I could get there.”

Her friend was teaching at an

international school in Erbil, and working

on the side as a volunteer for the Rise

Foundation. Lucy applied and was

offered a three-month position at the

school.

“Within a week I was flying to

Erbil, and four days later was thrown

in front of a class of 30 five-year-olds

from Baghdad, Syria and Kurdistan.”

In her spare time, she worked as a Rise

volunteer.

At the time, last March, Kurdistan was

the safest region of Iraq and sheltering

thousands of Syrian refugees. Now it is

a bit different. In June, Da’ash attacked

Mosul, just over 100km from Erbil,

sending the Iraqi army fleeing.

“The talk of the town was that the

Peshmerga (Kurdish fighters) would keep

Kurdistan safe, but US involvement was

much needed. It’s funny how pro-US-

involvement my pacifist friends and I

have become. Da’ash has raised great

anger in all of us, driven by seeing so

much of the suffering they have caused.”

Lucy was back in England when

Erbil was attacked in August. “I emailed

the (Rise Foundation) director, Tom

Robinson, asking if he needed volunteers.

He asked if I could come immediately

and work as a project manager. I booked

my flights the same morning.”

The people in Kurdistan are

exhausted by war, she says. “You would

be hard-pressed to find someone who

hasn’t lost family or friends or homes. My

friend, Selav’s mum has been through

three different revolutions in Kurdistan.

She has had nine children born in seven

the girl in the green t-shirt is Alia (back of group photo with Lucy in foreground)

one of the Castle Art crew, Diane, with her painting. Depicting Kurdish fighters defending a family against the terrorists Da’ash

35www.rangiruru.school.nz

felicity Price Rangi Ruru (1960 – 1964)

Felicity recently published her eighth novel, ‘A Jolt to the

Heart’. The dramatic plot is based on a factual bureaucratic

scandal uncovered during Royal Commission hearings into the

collapse of the CTV and other Christchurch buildings during

the February 2011 quake.

‘A Jolt to the Heart’ raises the question of why so many

buildings were allowed to remain occupied when they were

unsafe.

“I was astounded when I read in a report from Royal

Commission hearings that there were instances where deadly

information about unsafe buildings was withheld from the

public to protect privacy and property prices,” Felicity says.

The novel gives a realistic account of what it was like in

post-quake Christchurch as people tried to rebuild their lives,

and shows the tenacity of people under pressure and the

power of love to overcome the odds.

Felicity says she has been a writer all her life – from

doodling in notebooks at the back of science class, to the

demanding world of daily television, radio, print and magazine

journalism. Her other works include historical fiction, family

sagas and love stories. She also wrote John Britten’s biography,

‘Dare to Dream’.

Felicity says she seems to be settling into the romance

writing genre. “There’s been a bit of ‘chick lit’ there too – or

‘chook lit’ as they call it for us older women.” She says ‘A Jolt to

the Heart’ is a story that shows love never dies.

Felicity has a MA(Hons) in English Literature. She was a

journalist at The Press, North and South magazine, TVNZ

and Radio New Zealand before establishing an award-winning

public relations company in partnership with her husband,

Chris Rennie.

After her children (including Amelia Rennie, Rangi Ruru

1994-2000) left home, Felicity took a year off to attend Victoria

University’s prestigious writing course, where she graduated

with a MA in Creative Writing.

In 2009, Felicity was awarded ONZM (Officer of the

New Zealand Order of Merit) in recognition of her services

to business and the arts.

different places, because of fleeing

enemy forces or having their villages

destroyed.”

Lucy recently visited Khanke camp,

which was full of 820,000 mainly Yazidis

who had managed to get off Sinjar

mountain. Lucy interviewed some of the

girls about their experiences, including

teenage girls who had had their friends

kidnapped and raped by ISIS fighters.

“It was heartbreaking but also

inspiring. Alia, 12, was quiet but clearly

intelligent. She missed her books that

she had to leave behind for the three-

day walk to Sinjar mountain. Before ISIS

attacked she wanted to be a teacher, but

afterwards she decided she would rather

be a doctor. After all the suffering she had

seen, she wanted to be able to treat them.

“Hadir, 17, also desperately wanted

to complete her studies. Before ISIS

struck, she also wanted to be a teacher.

Now she wants to be an engineer so she

can construct buildings for her people,

or a paediatrician so she can help the

children.

“How lucky Rangi girls are, that their

lives and dreams aren’t so horrifically

interrupted!”

Since that visit, the Rise Foundation

has launched a Buy a Blanket campaign.

“It is getting bitterly cold here, and

conditions in the camps will deteriorate,”

says Lucy. Anyone wishing to donate to

the campaign or other Rise Foundation

projects can do so via the website:

www.rise-foundation.org

felicity Price

Please contact Amelia Davis a.davisrangiruru.school.nz if you know of a past student success that needs celebrating.

36

What an amazing Reunion Weekend.

The weather held out, the new buildings

looked spectacular, and old friendships

were rekindled while new ones

flourished. Much hilarity and squawking

echoed through the School turning the

heads of the current students. While

the School’s campus has changed

significantly, many old girls commented

on the vast and varied opportunities the

current girls have available to them.

An enormous thank you to our

Reunion year group organisers; we

appreciate the time and work that goes in

to organising these events. If anyone has

any feedback or ideas for Reunions in the

future, please contact Rachel Vavasour

on 03 983 3782 or email r.vavasour@

rangiruru.school.nz. We are committed

to continuously improving what we do

and offer.

Save the Date 2015 REUNION: 6 – 7 November 2015. It

is your School Reunion next year if you

were in Form IV/Form 3 in 1945, 1955,

1965, 1975, 1985, 1995. For the weekend

of celebrations to be a success, we need

year-group coordinators. If you and your

friends would like to be involved, please

contact Rachel Vavasour on 03 983 3782

or email r.vavasour@rangiruru.school.nz

As part of this year’s Reunion

weekend celebrations, many alumni

CELEbRATING OUR COmmUNITy

RROGA

Key Dates 20156 – 7 November Old Girls’ Reunions

attended the opening of the Rangi Ruru

Museum and Gallery, made possible

with the financial support of the Rangi

Ruru Old Girls’ Association. While much

of Rangi Ruru’s archival collections are

still in boxes, the Gallery showcased an

exhibition of artworks by Helen Gibson.

The Museum and Gallery will be available

for business in the near future. Jenelle

Hooson, Head of History and RROGA

Committee member, is excited by the

connections and historical research her

students can undertake as a result of

having a dedicated, on-site archival and

exhibition facility. A heart-felt thank you

to our Auckland Branch of the Rangi Ruru

Old Girls’ Association, for the generous

contribution to the Baird Lawn; this

allows the Museum and Gallery to sit

naturally in the School’s campus.

It is that time of year where there is

much chatter and excitement about the

Leavers’ Ball. It is being held at Wigram

Air Force Museum Friday 5 December.

It will be a spectacular night where we

congratulate our Year 13 Leavers on their

school successes and wish them all the

very best for their future endeavours.

2015 looks to be another fabulous

year with the opening of the Music and

Theatre Arts building, and the reopening

of the Art and Technology building.

Make sure you keep in touch and visit

www.rangiruru.school.nz/rangi-ruru-old-

girls-association-rroga for 2015 calendar

of events. Please note that early in the

year is a series of friendly, albeit slightly

competitive, sporting competitions:

Tennis, Bowls, Bridge and Golf. If you

would like to be part of the team which

brings home the silver, please contact

Rachel Vavasour on 03 983 3782 or email

r.vavasour@rangiruru.school.nz

Get InvolvedThe Rangi Ruru Old Girls’ Association

(RROGA) needs you. If you would like to

get more involved in RROGA, be a Friend

of the RROGA Committee, or have a skill

which you think would be valuable to the

Committee, please phone Jo Dodgshun

03 355 5308 or email dodgshun@ihug.

co.nz

On behalf of the RROGA, please have

a safe and happy Christmas and we look

forward to seeing you sometime during

2015

Jo DodgshunSecretary – RROGA

30 years on group 20 years on group

37www.rangiruru.school.nz

Take 125 years homeSupport Rangi Ruru’s Project Blue Sky by purchasing our 125th Anniversary merchandise online at www.rangi125.co.nz/shop

Limited edition. Sold only in 2014.

125th Anniversary Limited Edition Print Edition of 500

125th Anniversary Tote Bag Edition of 400

125th Anniversary Tea Towel

125th Anniversary

Mug

Te Koraha Replica Charm

Te Koraha Post Card 5 Pack

$15

$20

$25

$45

Rangi Ruru Girls’ School

1889 –– 2014

$85

125th Anniversary

Pin

$15

$15

Rangi Ruru Pin

$10

Occasional Card - 5 pack

or contact the school office Phone 03 983 3700Limited edition. Sold only in 2014.

Prints, bags, pins and tea towels NOWON

SALE!

$10

$10

$10$15

CELEbRATING OUR COmmUNITy

70 Years on…

Joan haines (nee Wood), Pam hutchinson, helen Kitson (nee Robilliard) and Barbara Gray (nee newton)

A photo of the 1945 big snow gifted by Barbara Gray (nee newton)

the 70 years on group reminisce about the 1945 big snow with Year 12 students Libby Vincent and Jessica Wood and past RRoGA President Deborah Errington.

38

This year has been one of steady and

settled rolls, with the enrolment of

children across the age range, including

some larger groupings of four year old

children. It has been another busy year,

with many of our children who have

been with us since they were two years

old, turning five and continuing their

learning journey at school in 2015.

The teachers have enhanced the

already well-established curriculum,

and, in following an interest based

programme, children and teachers

engage in enquiry learning, with many

projects undertaken during the year. A

highlight has been an interest of children

in the visual arts area, and in particular,

pottery. During Term 4, this interest was

extended through visits to, and lessons

from, a teacher at the Canterbury Pottery

Association. We are enjoying seeing

all the amazing works of art that are

returned to the centre after they have

been fired.

A specialist music teacher also visits

weekly, and the children can start to read

music in a fun and interactive way, and

also learn to play a musical instrument

of their own choice. Playball sessions

have continued during the year, with

specialist coaches taking the children for

these very popular sessions. We are very

fortunate that being on the school site

enables us to have access to the wider

school environment; weekly gym and

library visits are a highlight of the week

for the children.

Interested parents met once a term

for a coffee morning which provided

an opportunity for an informal social

‘get together’ in conjunction with an

invited guest speaker. The staff, too,

have undertaken several professional

development opportunities and involved

interested parents in sessions on the

use of i-pads with children. Parents can

suggest topics and speakers of interest,

which are arranged by the teachers.

Staffing changed in Term 4, with

Senior Teacher, Vanessa Pauley leaving

and Keri Granger being appointed as her

replacement. Kelly McCracken joined the

team as Technician in February. With the

closure of the Early Childhood College,

a new Centre Manager commences in

January 2015.

We wish all our families a very Merry

Christmas and we look forward to

beginning a new year full of exploration,

discovery and learning in 2015.

Due to a number of children

leaving for school, the centre has

some vacancies for 2015. Enrolment

information and a Parent Information

booklet are available on request from

preschool@rangiruru.ac.nz

The staff Rangi Ruru Preschool

PreschoolNews

Children playing with their coach in the pavilion

PRESCHOOL NEWS

39www.rangiruru.school.nz

EARLy CHILDHOOD COLLEGE

With the College closing in December,

we mark the end of an era for early

childhood nanny education, initial

teacher education and specialist infant

and toddler programmes at Rangi Ruru.

Last year, in the December edition of

Rangi News, we shared some history of

the College’s offering of tertiary study

programmes in early childhood. Back

in 1985, new ground was broken with

the inception, development and advent

of the nanny education qualification,

driven by Jill Bromley and Jenny Walker,

in response to a recognised need for

qualified in-home caregivers that

stemmed from the demise of the Karitane

nursing training.

With foresight, Jill and her team

developed subsequent programmes that

grew with the demand for higher level

qualifications for early childhood services

through the 1980’s: a teaching pathways

programme and the three year teaching

qualification which commenced in 1999.

The more recent specialist Certificate

in Infant and Toddler Mental Health

for qualified teachers was an initiative

of Norah Fryer’s, in conjunction with

health professionals who have had a key

role linking the education and health

sectors in programme delivery. Alongside

the development of tertiary study

programmes, the Rangi Ruru Preschool,

established in 1989, provided students

with on-site opportunities for ‘hands-on’

learning. The opportunity to work with

children, alongside qualified teachers,

has always been a unique feature of the

College’s study programmes.

The following message, prepared

by Jill Bromley, was shared at our

community closure event in late October:

“Thirty years ago when I was given the

job of starting the College, I had no

inkling of how it would grow. It was

a great success from the start, with

our amazing Rangi nannies making a

huge name for themselves around the

globe; and they were soon followed

by our Rangi teachers, also carrying on

our good name.

It was an absolute pleasure to be the

director for 20 years, and to work

with a team of wonderfully dedicated

tutors, our Pre-school teachers,

placement families and associate

teachers. And of course, the students,

who were the key to everything. Along

the way, the students and staff all

learned together, and thousands of

children benefitted, perhaps for life, as

a result of our graduates’ expertise.”

This community event, held in

Te Koraha, was attended by many

graduates, current staff and students, ex

staff, professional colleagues, advisory

committee members and other persons

associated with the College over the three

decades of operation.

Jenny Walker, as Placement

Coordinator and Deputy Director, also

acknowledged the community; “From

the beginning, the College had a very

strong emphasis on experiential learning,

and student achievement has been

enhanced by the opportunities that have

been possible, thanks to the wonderful

practical placement experiences that

home placement families and associate

teachers have offered so generously. All

of you have been wonderful role models

for students; as without you, students’

achievements would have been quite a

different matter.”

The tertiary landscape has changed,

quite significantly so, particularly in

recent times, and for our institution, a

dream to develop a degree programme

was not to be, particularly being

such a small tertiary provider. Much

as there is a real sadness around our

closure, we acknowledge the important

connections with our immediate and

wider community; people who have all

contributed in some way to the memory

fabric of Rangi Ruru Early Childhood

College.

We have always believed this tertiary

institution is about the wider community

of connections, as without these it would

have been a meaningless journey. We

may be packing up 30 years of teaching

and learning, but the legacy will remain.

Alison Stevenson and staff Rangi Ruru Early Childhood College

Early Childhood College News

the changing faces of the ECC over the last 30 years

Gala Concert

59 Hewitts Road, Christchurch 8014Phone +64 3 983 3700

office@rangiruru.school.nzwww.rangiruru.school.nz