Important Dates
Term 4
- Wednesday 20 November: PPTA meeting – school will finish at 12.20pm (see below)
- Friday 29 November: Year 11 Final Assembly; NCEA exams end
- Monday 2 December: Year 13 celebration evening
- Monday 9 December: Board meeting 6.00pm
- Friday 13 December: Year 9 and 10 Final Assemblies
- Friday 13 December: Term 4 ends
Important Information
Principal Address
Dominic’s Principal’s message for mid term 4 is now online.
Hīkoi mō te Tiriti – information about absences and NZQA exams
Earlier this week Dominic sent an email to all parents and caregivers regarding Hīkoi mō te Tiriti which reaches Wellington on Tuesday 19 November. In Wellington those taking part will gather in Waitangi Park at 9am for the Hīkoi to Paremata (Parliament Grounds) for arrival by 12pm. Following Kotahitanga mō te Tiriti (collective action), the Hīkoi will leave Paremata at approximately 2.30pm to return to Waitangi Park by 4pm. At 4pm, there will be a concert, a farewell and karakia and we encourage those students who wish to take action, to attend the afternoon event at Waitangi Park.
It is possible that students will want to attend for the full day, part of the day or just the afternoon events in Waitangi Park. You will know that students who do attend for any part of the day will be doing this unaccompanied, although I am sure that they will naturally combine with others to attend.
If your young person wants to support this action during the school day, please notify us as soon as possible. Either email absences@whs.school.nz with your child’s name and Hīkoi in the subject line or phone the school on the absence line – 04 802 7673. Please specify the length of the absence in your communication eg whole day, from 12.00pm, etc. Students will be marked E for periods absent on 19 November which means it is an explained but unjustified absence. It is important to note that this is not a school event and there will be no supervision from school.
NZQA have informed us that students who have exams on that day should be prepared that it could take longer to get to school that day. Allowing extra time to get to school would be wise. In addition, students who join the hīkoi instead of attending an exam will not be eligible to receive a derived grade as derived grades are only available for situations beyond the student’s control (for example, a natural disaster).
Note: Please check with Metlink as there will likely be delays and disruptions to some school services.
What’s Happening?
Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) meeting announcement 
The Post Primary Teachers’ Association has directed members to attend a round of branch-based union meetings held under the provisions of Section 26 of the Employment Relations Act 2000.
The meeting for Wellington City PPTA members will be held at 1pm on Wednesday 20 November in the Wellington High School library. To enable Wellington High School teaching staff to attend the meeting, school will finish at 12.20pm. This means that periods 1 to 3 will run as normal. Please note that the times for school buses cannot be changed.
Supervision is available for students during the afternoon if required. Please email admin@whs.school.nz if your student requires supervision.
For students in He Kākano supervision is available and SESTA taxis will run at 3.20pm as usual.
Programming Challenge for Girls
On Wednesday 13th of November, Nandini Bhatt, Lorna Clarke, Olivia Michel and Anastasiya Suvorova-Prior (all from the junior school) took part in the Programming Challenge for Girls at Victoria University. This event saw them tackle twelve problems in combination with five other teams in Wellington and fifty other teams at five universities around the country. It was a great day, everyone learned a lot and had some fun.
Sport
Sports Awards 2024
Congratulations to Maddy Murdoch and Lucy Thomas who were awarded the Thomas Stace Award for Highest Sporting Achievement. Well done to all students who received awards during this exciting event. Click here for a full outline of all award recipients.
Careers
Empowering Youth with free, confidential advice from Citizens Advice Wellington.
Citizens Advice Bureau Wellington offer free, confidential and independent information and advice to anyone who may be unsure about their rights or options in a given situation. The goal is to empower people by providing them with the information they need to make informed decisions and access the services that support them.
On their national website, they have a comprehensive “Your Rights” database, as well as an up-to-date Community Directory featuring over 35,000 organisations across the country. Recently, they launched their Youth Tool Kete website (https://www.youth.cab.org.nz/) designed to help young people navigate those “firsts” in adult life by offering relevant, accessible information on topics that matter to them, like flatting, getting ID, traffic offences, starting a job, buying a car, wellbeing, problems at work, money and starting study.
Get Your License (GYL) Program for Learners
At Get Your Licence (GYL), we are passionate about equipping young drivers with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to be safe and responsible on the road. With road safety being a significant concern for our communities, we’ve designed a program specifically focused on young people learning to drive and ensuring they develop safe driving habits from the very beginning.
The GYL Learners Program will come to the Wellington Region this December, with sessions in five convenient locations:
5th & 6th December – Miramar
9th & 10th December – Porirua
11th & 18th December – Karori
16th & 17th December – Paraparaumu
19th & 20th December – Lower Hutt
For more information or to register, families can visit: https://getyourlicence.co.nz/gyl2024/