Our vision for our graduates is to ‘serve and lead with distinction’, to understand how acts of service, no matter how small, lay the cornerstones for ethical reasoning and compassion for the human experience.
Lives of Service
Service takes various forms, and it's not always about grand gestures. Little acts of kindness, consideration, and compassion that occur in classrooms, sports fields, or at home have as much impact on personal growth as on those being served. Our emphasis on service learning empowers our students to discover their best selves and cultivate lifelong values.
As students journey through the College, service opportunities unfold at school and community levels. They actively engage in projects like World Vision's 40-Hour Famine and contribute to food, clothing, and stationery banks that aid the underserved in the broader community. They learn the purpose and results of Chapel offerings, fostering a sense of responsibility and empathy.
Middle School students, working together as tutor groups, visit local primary schools regularly and actively participate in service projects during the Year 9 Challenge Week. Additionally, Year 10 students venture to Cambodia as part of their service journey.
For our senior students, service often leads them into uncharted territory, where their willingness to offer help sets them apart. Senior students spend their July holidays building homes in Fiji or Vanuatu for the less fortunate each year. They also contribute to primary schools and get involved in community projects like reforestation on Motutapu Island, assistance at low decile schools, breakfast clubs, and spending quality time with older people.
Their service experiences, while sometimes uncertain at the outset, end with an invaluable sense of emotional satisfaction and enriching life lessons. Upholding our vision, we will continue providing opportunities for our pupils to put service into action, aiming to make it an intrinsic part of every Saint Kentigern student's life.
Student Well-being
The well-being of our students is of paramount importance. We have various initiatives and programmes to ensure your child receives the finest care and support.
In Year 7, students have form teachers as their tutors, while pastoral care for Years 8-13 centers around our tutor groups, each averaging 154 students. From Year 9, tutor groups align with the student's House and meet every morning for roll call and notices. Weekly extended tutor time activities, which incorporate and precede lunch three days a week, provide students with opportunities for connection and enrichment.
Where possible, students maintain the same tutor from Year 9 to Year 13, ensuring a lasting connection and consistent guidance over five years. This approach reinforces the importance of a 'significant adult' in each student's college life.
Students engage in activities like guest speaker sessions, discussions on relevant issues, and academic progress assessments during these half-hour slots. The 'Navigate' programme enhances student well-being and character development, building resilience and positive life management skills. Students also discuss their academic journey, co-curricular and service activities, time management, and other well-being matters. Our Student Futures experts help students navigate their life beyond Saint Kentigern.
We value the constant of relationships, of connections, and of the support that creates. Every teacher at the College is a tutor, maintaining solid relationships with their tutor group and parents. These connections can be sustained through various communication channels such as email, text, phone, and face-to-face interactions.
At College, we create families within families, with the smallest family being the tutor group. Each tutor group belongs to one of our six houses, with two adult Heads of House who are passionate about pastoral care. Chapel services are held weekly in house groups, and family house services are conducted once a term on Sunday evenings.
Pastoral Care
The Pastoral Care team consists of the Middle and Senior College Deputy Principals, Heads of House, Head of International Students, Guidance Counsellors, Chaplain, Nurse, Head of Student Futures (Careers), Head of Student Academic Development Maori and Pasifika Director, and Director of Boarding.
Guidance Department
We understand that well-being and learning are linked. Our Guidance team supports students' journey towards improved achievement and greater life satisfaction. Comprised of experts like the Head of Guidance, counselling psychologists, and clinical psychologists, are available to students during school hours. When necessary, we also adopt a family approach and involve parents.