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ISNZ Awards to staff
DIO STAFF HONOURED WITH INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS AWARDS
Dio staff received two of this year’s nine national honours awards given by Independent Schools New Zealand (ISNZ) in recognition of staff who go above and beyond the call of duty.
Angie Winstanley-Smith and Rev’d Sandy Robertson were presented with their awards by the Minister of Education Hon Chris Hipkins at the ISNZ Annual Conference in Wellington in August.
Angie Winstanley-Smith
Dio’s Director of Sport and a former Great Britain Olympian, Angie WinstanleySmith received an Honours Award for her Service to Sports Administration and Water Polo.
The judges’ citation described Angie as: “Not simply a water polo coach, she is a leader, a mentor, and an inspiration for everyone to work towards their full potential. She inspires a hunger for students to learn about their sport.”
Angie has created a significant legacy of success with Diocesan, with her club and with the national Women’s Water Polo team. During her first season with the School, the Premier team ranked ninth nationally, the Junior team eleventh and the Intermediate team fifth. By the end of 2018, they had won all those national titles and also picked up the Premier Auckland, North Island and national titles over the past four years.
A driving force in the development of women’s water polo in New Zealand, Angie has been an outstanding role model for young athletes over many years.
On the international stage, Angie has coached at a range of levels, including World Youth and Junior, World University, World Cup, World League and World Championships. Angie and her team have launched the ‘Raising a Young Athlete’ series to ensure athletes, parents, and coaches, help our young women realise the importance of recovery, life balance, and fuelling your body in the right way.
Angie perfects the fine balance of providing coaches with the resources, knowledge and history, but allows them to find their own approach and philosophy.
Laura Whitley, a former student and fellow coach said: “I had the privilege of playing for Angie for all seven years of high school. Under her guidance my team and I have never been so motivated, challenged and driven to succeed. As a coach, Angie has unmatched skills and technical knowledge of water polo and is passionate to share that knowledge with all ages. As a player, she creates safe, positive environments in which to learn for young water polo players, and a competitive and motivational environment for the senior players, attracting players from across the country who all aim to be coached by her.”
The Reverend Sandy Robertson
Dio’s Chaplain, Rev’d Sandy Robertson, received an Honours Award for her Service to Chaplaincy, Religious Studies, and the Spiritual Life of the School.
According to the judges’ citation: “Her work has encompassed a model of support and well-being for girls and staff. She ensures that young people can resolve issues that they face in life. She doesn’t give answers but empowers people to explore their own solutions”. In 2008, Sandy completed a significant theological research dissertation into how the Anglican faith is reflected in the School.
Since then, she has ensured that the findings of her theological research into faith-based education have underpinned the Diocesan curriculum. She set about re-writing the curriculum and introduced NCEA subjects so that Religious Studies could be studied as a continuous pathway, something that was not offered before.
Through Sandy’s vision, excellent results have been achieved in Religious Studies Level 1 and Level 3 and also Scholarship. Apart from her vision for Religious Studies, she has a great sense of humour, and enjoys witty interactions with others. The chapels she leads are always interesting and engaging with Sandy’s broad and extensive intellectual capability ensuring her homilies are on point, empathetic and relevant. They are often humorous personal stories that make her so ‘real’ to the girls.
The kindness and care she has extended to so many Diocesan students, staff, families, and alumnae are simply immeasurable. She is a taonga, a gift. She is a highly respected member of the team when it comes to discussing complex topics such as diversity, gender fluidity, racism, and cross-cultural understanding. Rev’d Bryan Haggitt, Dio’s Assistant Chaplain and Religious Studies teacher, has worked alongside Sandy for the past five-and-half years.
“Her ministry and teaching has had a profound impact on my own development as a school chaplain and teacher,” he said.
“Sandy’s sense of the school values and Religious Studies curriculum is unparalleled. She holds the teaching of students to a high standard, and this is seen in the way her students express their learning, not only in her classes at any given time, but in their future year levels too. Students who have left Diocesan School have spoken of the way in which chapel enriched their lives in ways that they didn’t necessarily understand while they were at school,” he said.
Deborah James, Executive Director of ISNZ.
