The Lion – August 2018 by MAGS Communications

Mount Albert Grammar School Alberton Avenue Mount Albert Auckland 1025 Ph 09 846 2044

www.mags.school.nz The Lion is the official magazine of Mount Albert Grammar School Editorial and advertising inquiries to editor Graham Hepburn ghepburn@mags.school.nz ph 09 846 2044, x 8236 Cover photo: Year 9s (from left to right) Josh Li, Lucy Taylor, Edgar Dorsemaine, Sharnia Dahya Taine Wilson and Emalata Puafisi (photo: Martin Sykes)

Designed & printed by ICG

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From the Headmaster School News Academic News

Community

Performing Arts Sport

MAGS Foundation Corridors â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Albertian News Key dates

THE LION

Welcome to the first edition of The Lion for 2018. Joining a school like MAGS for the first time is special for every student. Our ‘new’ Year 9 students have been with us now for two terms and are becoming fully fledged Albertians in their own right. It can take up to a year of induction to truly understand the significance of being part of Mount Albert Grammar School. Our MAGS Way values, our school motto ‘Per Angusta Ad Augusta’, our unparalleled ‘tradition of personal excellence’ – the essence of MAGS must be lived and experienced to be fully appreciated. As students grow in their identities as Albertians, so too does their understanding of the importance of our 97-year heritage. The legacy of those MAGS students, staff and parents who have gone before us 4

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provides the strongest of foundations for today. Most importantly for students, our past provides them with certainty and helps to shape the future, to improve and redefine excellence! And so to the Year 9 students of 2018. Our cover acknowledges our newest Albertians, who, along with their cohort will lead Mount Albert Grammar School into its Centennial Celebrations in 2022. What a fantastic time to be part of our community! When looking at this cohort, the question begs as to what MAGS will look like in five years’ time. We are undoubtedly destined to be the largest school in New Zealand well before 2022 – and we want to remain the best. How do we plan for that? There are many moving parts to a MAGS education.

FROM THE HEADMASTER How can we ensure that our culture stays strong and our many centres of excellence remain just that? 2018 has seen the Board of Trustees launch our new, five-year MAGS Strategic Plan. Wide-ranging consultation with our community late last year allowed us to draw together five strategic priorities – key themes that will guide us through to our Centenary. Our Strategic Plan will ensure that nothing is left to chance and that the pathway to excellence is clear and accessible for every MAGS student. The Education Review Office visit in Term One not only endorsed the strategic direction of MAGS but affirmed the highest quality of teaching and learning in our school. While we will never claim to be perfect, the review process reinforced that it will always be people that

make the ultimate difference in a school – and we have great people! We are proud that MAGS as a Coeducational State Secondary School provides a learning experience second to none. If you have not done so already, I encourage you to access both our Strategic Plan and Education Review Office Report through our website. We can move forward with real confidence, knowing that we do have the best people at MAGS. From our current student leaders to those destined to lead us through to our 100th Birthday – it is a great time to be a young person... a great time to be at MAGS! Thank you to all who make this a reality. PER ANGUSTA AD AUGUSTA. Patrick Drumm THE LION

NEW SENIOR LEADERSHIP TEAM The 2018 school year began with new additions to and new roles in the Senior Leadership Team, as well as some new heads of departments. Acting Associate Principal Ms Jo Williams was appointed to the position permanently, and former Deputy Principal Ms Fiona Barker was also appointed an Associate Principal. The school also welcomed two new Deputy Principals: Mr Tom Murdoch and Mr John Stradwick. Mr Murdoch and Mr Stradwick joined current Deputy Principals Ms Shameen Hayat, Ms Sarah Hayes and Mr Mark Rivalland. Headmaster Mr Patrick Drumm said the new appointments complete a strong and passionate Senior Leadership Team that will help lead MAGS to even greater heights in the years to come.

“What I love most about MAGS is observing and being able to share in the experience of student success – in all its various forms,” said Ms Williams. “We have a great team of staff and students who work in sync towards a common goal, contributing to what we call MAGS Pride – this is what makes us special.” Ms Williams’ special responsibilities are creating a culture of excellence, improving school systems, leadership and academic tracking of Junior students.

Fiona Barker ASSOCIATE PRINCIPAL

Jo Williams ASSOCIATE PRINCIPAL

Jo Williams has worked in education for more than 20 years and has been at MAGS since 2002. She is a teacher of English. Ms Williams’ other roles at MAGS have included Deputy Principal, Assistant Head of English and Dean; at a previous school she was a Dean, Teacher in Charge of the Library, and the staff representative on the Board of Trustees. She has three children – Amber, Gareth and Jarrod, who all attended MAGS. 6

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Fiona Barker has worked in education for 20 years, and joined MAGS in 2016 from a role at the Ministry of Education. Before that Ms Barker was at another Auckland high school where she was Deputy Principal and Head of Music. She began her career teaching Music and Health, and this year is teaching a Year 9 Health class. “MAGS has a very special connection with its community,” said Ms Barker. “It is amazing coming down on the weekend and seeing so many people here to watch sport – just one example of how our families are involved in their children’s school experience.” Ms Barker’s special responsibilities are Curriculum, Vocational Pathways, and the ASB MAGS Farm development.

Tom Murdoch DEPUTY PRINCIPAL

Tom Murdoch joined MAGS this year from Macleans College, where he was head of one of its Whanau Houses, overseeing the academic and pastoral wellbeing of 330 students. He has taught English to Scholarship Level and also has a background as a teacher of History. He is working towards his Masters in Secondary School Leadership run through Victoria University. He has previously taught in the UK, and was Master of English at Auckland Grammar. He has coached school rugby and cricket teams. Tom and his wife have two children. Mr Murdoch’s special responsibilities are oversight of all Junior boys, Junior leadership programmes, Sport, Alternative Education, and Student Systems.

John Stradwick DEPUTY PRINCIPAL

John Stradwick was MAGS’ Head Boy in 1993. He returned to MAGS this year from Ormiston Junior College, where he was Deputy Principal. In 2016, Mr Stradwick returned to

New Zealand after five years in India where he co-led an international school, seeing it through to international accreditation. He has also taught in the UK and Asia in public, private, co-ed and single sex schools, and has been HoF of e-Learning and Humanities at St Peter’s College in Auckland. He has a Bachelor’s degree in History and a Masters in Educational Leadership. He has coached football and cricket and been involved in student leadership activities. Mr Stradwick and his wife Anna live in Mt Albert with their three sons, currently attending Gladstone School on their way to MAGS. Mr Stradwick’s special responsibilities are Pastoral Care and Student Wellbeing, Prefects, and leading the Year 11 academic programme.

Sarah Hayes DEPUTY PRINCIPAL

Sarah Hayes has worked in secondary education for 20 years, starting at MAGS in 2011 as Head of Faculty Commerce, and was later appointed as the school’s HR Manager and then Deputy Principal in 2017. She also served a term as Staff Representative on the Board of Trustees. Prior to this she worked at another Auckland secondary school as a Dean and Academic Dean. Over the years, Ms Hayes has been involved in moderation for NZQA, marked NCEA exams and was a member of the writing panel for Agribusiness Achievement Standards and assessment. Ms Hayes’ responsibilities lie in HR, leadership and academic tracking of Year 9 and 10 girls, and Pasifika.

Tanya Rose HEAD OF MATHEMATICS

Tanya Rose has worked in education for 19 years and has been at MAGS since January of this year. She started her career as a primary teacher, having trained in New Zealand, and then moved to London where she spent 17 years working in secondary schools. During her time in London she progressed from a Mathematics teacher to take on roles such as Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5 co-ordinator and then completed five years as a Head of Maths in a large central London School. From Head of Maths, she moved into Senior Leadership and was an Assistant Headteacher at Ursuline High School for three years prior to returning to New Zealand. Since joining MAGS, Ms Rose has taken on the responsibility of Exams Co-ordination for the whole school.

Tanya Montgomery HEAD OF COUNSELLING

Tanya Montgomery has worked as a counsellor in schools for over 10 years and has been Head of Department for 8 of those years. She has been at MAGS since the beginning of Term 4 last year. Ms Montgomery has a Bachelor in Psychology and a Masters in Counselling and moved to Auckland two years ago with her partner and two children.

Ms Montgomery is passionate about working with adolescents in supporting them to reduce issues that get in the way of them becoming the best person they can be. “I really enjoy this age group,” she said. “I admire their resilience, their willingness to make change, to do well and make things better for themselves and their future.” What she loves about MAGS is the great pastoral team and the value the whole school places on student well-being. “In this period of time students are facing increasing pressures and rapidly advancing technology so we are seeing a huge increase in the support students need to negotiate the many challenges and pressures they face in their daily lives.”

Kathy Henwood HEAD OF LEARNER SUPPORT

Kathy Henwood is Head of Learner Support, starting in Term 3. She has worked in this area in New Zealand and overseas, at both primary and secondary levels. Ms Henwood recently returned from Asia, where in Thailand she worked at an international school with students who had diverse learning needs – those who found it difficult to learn and also those who were academically gifted. She then moved to Taiwan and became a Professional Learning Coach at another international school as well as leading the High School team there. After 9 years in Asia, Ms Henwood and her husband, Graham, returned to New Zealand in June and she looks forward to becoming part of the MAGS community.

SCHOOL NEWS

NEW FACULTY HEADS

Peter Brice, left, with Mark Heer, the chair of the ASB MAGS Farm Advisory Group.

EXPERIENCE CENTRE DEVELOPMENT MANAGER

PETER BRICE In May, Peter Brice was appointed Experience Centre Development Manager for the ASB MAGS Farm.

Mr Brice will be working with supporters and stakeholders to shape and fund the $12 million Experience Centre, which will be the centrepiece of the 8.1ha farm and give students and visitors a world-class experience and educational environment with classrooms, an exhibition space and a seminar area. The experience centre will take up to 500 students a year and also demonstrate the innovation, science and environmental best-practice used on farms across New Zealand to other Auckland school students. It will be a driver to sustainably increase the number of students studying agriculture, horticulture and forestry and attract young people to work in the Agri-food and Fibre sectors. One of its stated objectives is to bridge the rural-urban divide and showcase the exciting and diverse opportunities available in the Agri-food and Fibre industries. The Experience Centre will also have shearing and milking facilities and machinery bays. It will have a hydroponics building and overlook neighbouring horticulture and viticulture blocks. Mr Brice has an established track record and strong connections in the Agri-food and Fibre industries, having held positions such as Business Development Manager with Autogrow and Key Account Manager with Ravensdown. His family has dairy farming roots in Taranaki, and Mr Brice’s work in the sector has taken him to Australia and Canada. As well as driving the development of the centre, he will be forging commercial partnerships to help make it a world-class facility. Mr Brice’s appointment was made possible by a $250,000 grant from agribusiness sector investor the Agricultural and Marketing Research and Development Trust (AGMARDT). It is one of many industry supporters of the redevelopment of the farm, which currently has about 150 students studying agriculture and horticulture in old classrooms set in the middle of paddocks with sheep and dairy and beef cattle. The farm was established in 1932 and is owned by ASB, who have leased it to MAGS for 99 years for a token amount on the proviso that is used to deliver Agri-food and Fibre education programmes for the wider benefit of the sector.

THE LION

LEADERSHIP ASSEMBLY This year’s Prefects, Arts Leaders and Sports Leaders were presented with their badges at a special assembly. The school’s Prefects, Arts Leaders and Sports Leaders for 2018 were recognised at the Senior Leadership Assembly on February 12, but they were also issued a challenge by Headmaster Mr Patrick Drumm. He told them that wearing a leadership badge for the first time is recognition of their talents but also the start of a leadership journey. School leaders are selected on potential – and are issued the challenge to realise that potential in the year ahead. During the ceremony, Head Boy Isaac Munro read the school prayer, and Head Girl Hannah Houghton made the concluding remarks. There was also an entertaining James Brown medley performed by a student band, most of whom are in The Wonder Cats. The proceedings were closed out with a haka by Te Puna o Wairaka. 8

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SCHOOL NEWS Headmaster Mr Patrick Drumm with the Prefect Leaders of 2018, from left, Deputy Head Girl Rosarina Pillissi, Head Girl Hannah Houghton, Head Boy Isaac Munro and Deputy Head Boy Billy McColl.

THE LION

SCHOOL FAREWELLS

Catherine Horne Emotional tributes flowed when staff farewelled Deputy Principal Catherine Horne after 15 years of dedicated service to MAGS.

The influence of Ms Horne has been felt right across the school as evidenced by the passionate speeches from representatives of Te Puna o Wairaka, Pasifika Liaison, senior teachers and the Senior Leadership Team at a special morning tea held in her honour in the school hall on April 11. They all thanked her for her unwavering support for colleagues and her desire to do the best by students, believing none were beyond help. Headmaster Patrick Drumm said Ms Horne would be difficult to replace as she covered so many duties across the school, and had a huge influence and impact on thousands of students, including being a great supporter of the mentoring programme. Colleagues also remarked on her dedication to helping out at and attending extra-curricular activities – barely leaving enough time in her week to attend pub quizzes. Ms Horne was a strong supporter of the Arts at MAGS, and was always lending a hand at school functions. Ms Horne joined the school in 2003 as a Maths teacher – arriving from England after a phone interview for the job. In her time with MAGS she has served as Dean at various year levels, and has been appointed Assistant HOF Mathematics, Assistant Principal and Deputy Principal – and taken charge of everything from educational stats to school traffic cones. Ms Horne, who left at the end of Term 1, said she was taking time out from the education system to consider her future. She said she was humbled by the tributes but had always considered she was just doing her job. Ms Horne added, “The staff and the students are the heart of this school and I honestly do not believe I will find a family in NZ like the one I have had here.”

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SCHOOL NEWS

PRIME MINISTER’S HISTORY LESSON Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern dropped in on a history class to see how students were using a Ministry of Education resource.

In April, four Year 10 History students made presentations to Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern using a specially developed resource to study World War I. Ms Ardern sat in with Social Sciences teacher Toby Powell’s class as Matthew Batcheler, Matthew Somerville, Cole Hickey and Angus Edwards (pictured left to right, with Mr Powell) gave PowerPoint presentations using a resource pack produced by the Ministry of Education that ties in with the commemoration of 100 years since Armistice.

The Walking with an Anzac project provides students with a box containing relics that is a clue to a soldier’s story that students must then research and investigate. All of the students in Mr Powell’s class chose an item from the box that would instigate and inspire a research project. The starting point for Angus Edwards was a piece of telephone wire used to string a violin, for Matthew Batcheler it was a soldier’s dental records, for Matthew Somerville it was a headmaster’s letter, and for

Cole Hickey an Egyptian souvenir. As part of the research project, students are encouraged to find personal or local connections to those that fought in World War I. Ms Ardern told the students that Social Studies was one of her favourite subjects at school - along with Metalwork - and it was a great subject for cultivating an inquiring mind. She emphasised that following subjects you loved, no matter how impractical they might seem, was the key to success.

THE LION

ANZAC SERVICE

Speeches by three Year 13 History students provided a poignant note to Mount Albert Grammar School’s Anzac Service. Liam Milbank and Vena-Rose Lennane spoke of their great-grandfathers’ experiences in World War I and World War II respectively. Liam’s great-grandfather Private Alexander Lamb died in 1917 from wounds that he sustained at the Battle of Passchendaele, while Vena-Rose’s great-grandfather was an army driver who survived campaigns in North Africa, Italy and Palestine. Another Year 13 History student, Elijah Manu, spoke eloquently about how those sacrifices are still relevant today. The service was attended by Year 9 students, Headmaster Mr Patrick Drumm, Chairman of the Board of Trustees Mr Greg Moyle, Major John Liddell, and Albertians Association representatives Mr Ben Stallworthy and Ms Lisa Oakden. Albertian bagpiper Mr Andrew Wilkie piped dignitaries and Air Training Corps cadets into and from the hall. Attending on behalf of returned 12

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servicemen was Mr Bill Ashdown, President of the Pt Chevalier Memorial RSA. Te Puna o Wairaka performed a welcome haka to dignitaries and sung a waiata following a speech in te reo by student Niua Pomare-Khanna. As at every ANZAC Service, the names of 50 fallen Albertians were read aloud, the Ode of Remembrance was read in English and Ma- ori, and a laying of wreaths was performed during the Last Post and Reveille, played by students Oliver Bulman and Willliam Filimoehala from the mezzanine floor, as the school flag was lowered and raised. Albertians then attended a lunch at School House, where manager Mr Geoff Moon welcomed guests and spoke about the role of School House. Headmaster Mr Patrick Drumm gave the main speech, focusing on Service as one of MAGS’ Four Pillars.

THE LION

SCHOOL NEWS

International Food & Culture

A smorgasbord of food and entertainment delighted students, staff, homestay families and guests at the International Food and Culture evening held in the FW Gamble Hall on June 21. Involving most of MAGS’ 185 International students, the evening started with guests mingling and helping themselves to a range of food: Japanese, Vietnamese, Thai, Mexican, Chinese, Middle Eastern and European. MAGS’ Kapa Haka group Te Puna o Wairaka took to the stage first to perform three pieces, finishing off with a fierce haka. They were followed by performances including those by Chinese, Vietnamese (traditional and contemporary), Japanese and Tongan students – all enthusiastically received by the crowd, especially the lovelorn ballad sung by Japanese students that had people waving their hands and mobile phones in the air. International Director Jude Lydia thanked all those involved in providing food and entertainment, with a special mention for International Head Prefects Chris Pham and Nan Huang, who helped to organise and MC the evening.

AIMING HIGH Talented students take advantage of some amazing opportunities.

Miriam Leonhardt

Logan Allomes

Miriam Leonhardt was one of 20 students nationwide to be invited to attend the Elaine P Snowden Astronomy School. The five-day, expenses-paid camp took place during the April School Holidays at University of Canterbury’s Ilam campus in Christchurch and the Mt John Observatory in Tekapo. Year 13 student Miriam said they had mini-lectures on physics and astrophysics covering topics such as spectroscopy, neutrinos and the history of the universe, and spent two days at Mt John using the biggest telescope in the country. Miriam, who has a passion for maths and physics, said it was a fascinating experience and an opportunity to meet like-minded people.

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Around the same time, Logan Allomes attended the Youth EnviroLeaders Forum in Taranaki with 55 other students from around the country. Logan, who is a member of the EnviroClub, said the week-long programme was focused on climate change and environmental leadership. While he is primarily interested in physics, Logan says events such as the forum provide great background knowledge and open up other avenues. The Youth EnviroLeaders Forum is an annual event run in partnership with the Ministry for the Environment and the Sir Peter Blake Trust. It is designed to inspire and build the capability of young environmental leaders so they can effect change.

SCHOOL NEWS

STUDENTS SPEAK UP Strong showing by Te Puna o Wairaka students at regional speech competition. MAGS students competed strongly across all the categories at the Ngā Manu Kōrero ki te Waitematā regional speech competition held on June 8. At the annual regional Māori speech competition held this year at Ngāti Whātua o Ōrakei Marae, students competed in Junior English, Junior Māori, Senior English and Senior Māori. This year, Charlotte Mann (Year 10), Isaiah Nin (Year 9), Richard Mann (Year 12) and Kaharau Mendes (Year 13) came first in MAGS’ competition so represented the school at the regionals. In Junior English, Charlotte placed third overall and won best female speaker for her section. In Junior Māori, Isaiah Nin placed ninth overall. Waimirirangi Paul, HoF Te Puna o Wairaka, said “This was no mean feat as he went up against students from full-immersion schools who are fluent speakers of te reo.”

In Senior English, Richard placed seventh overall, and this was based on both an impromptu speech and a prepared speech. He improved two placings in comparison to last year. In Senior Māori, Kaharau placed fourth overall, and this was also based on both an impromptu speech and a prepared speech. Ms Paul said, “Kaharau’s achievement was of particular significance as he was competing against students from full-immersion schools who are very fluent speakers of te reo Māori and he was only points off third place.” She added that all the students represented MAGS with pride and determination but it would not have been possible without the support of the school.

PEER MEDIATION

SUPPORT LEADERS

The 2018 Peer Mediation team began training with a focus on skills in conflict resolution following on the back of the all-day training in December 2017 with the NZ Peace Foundation. Guidance Counsellor Marianne Wilson said the four afternoon sessions in Term 1 provided an opportunity to work in small groups and hone their skills so that they were ready to begin their first mediations. “This year we have trained 43 Year 13 students and five Year 12 students,” she said. Leadership through Peer Mediation (LtPM) is a peaceful conflict resolution programme that empowers students to become ‘ambassadors of social justice’, student leaders in the school community promoting fairness and respect for all students, watching out for harassment and bullying and helping students to get the support they may need.

Year 13 Peer Support Leaders completed their training early in the year in preparation for the arrival of Year 9s for their first day at school on January 30. Each Year 9 class has three or four Leaders assigned. The Year 13s meet their Year 9 charges on their first day at school to help the classmates get to know each other and show them around the campus. The Peer Support Leaders stay in touch with their class throughout the Year 9s’ first year to ensure they feel safe, happy and confident to ask for help if they need it. Peer Support Leaders help juniors to develop personal skills, including listening and communicating, recognising and combating negative peer pressure, and improving their self-esteem. THE LION

MAGS AMONG TOP SCHOOLS IN NZ AFTER NCEA AND SCHOLARSHIP RESULTS Mount Albert Grammar School is one of the top schools in New Zealand after students attained 82 scholarships, and achieved its highest ever pass rate in NCEA Level 3 following the 2017 examinations. The 82 scholarships included 12 at Outstanding level (the top 1% in each subject), the pinnacle of academic achievement for secondary students. Scholarships were attained across 21 subjects, and were spread among 54 students. Among the highest achievers were our Boy and Girl Dux of 2017, Lucas Peterson and Harshita Nayyar. Lucas earned four Scholarships (including Outstanding in Calculus), and Harshita earned three Scholarships, while Girl Proxime Accessit Yusi Gao earned two Scholarships. There were also five more students who earned three Scholarships: Richard Li (Outstanding in Calculus and Physics),

nine Scholarships, and Biology students gained eight Scholarships. In NCEA, provisional results show 85 per cent of students who sat Level 3 passed, the best ever result by MAGS students. The Level 2 pass rate of 93 per cent was close to the highest pass rate ever from 2016 of 95 per cent, while 83 per cent of Level 1 students passed. Headmaster Patrick Drumm said, “The Level 3 results are the best we have ever had and that is supported by strong results from Level 1 and Level 2. These NCEA results have set the bar high for 2018.” MAGS’ results are above the national average and outrank other Decile 7 schools, and in many cases higher decile schools.

Lucas Peterson

Richard Li

Fraser Eade

Jack Morrow-Zhang

FOUR SCHOLARSHIPS

THREE SCHOLARSHIPS

OUTSTANDING IN CALCULUS

Fraser Eade (Outstanding in Biology), Jack Morrow-Zhang (Outstanding in Physics), Sahil Bhatiani and Merry Wu. Students who receive three or more Scholarships are awarded $2000 per year for up to three years toward their tertiary studies. Outstanding Scholarships were also awarded to Anton Aish (Statistics), Jonathan De Pledge (Calculus), Zi Huang (Calculus), Miriam Leonhardt (Calculus), Gary He (Calculus), Liam Milbank (Statistics) and Beatrice Santos (Biology). Mathematics students shone with 24 Scholarships in Calculus (including six Outstanding) and 12 in Statistics (including two Outstanding). English students received

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OUTSTANDING IN PHYSICS AND CALCULUS

OUTSTANDING IN BIOLOGY

OUTSTANDING IN PHYSICS

Harshita Nayyar

Sahil Bhatiani

Merry Wu

THREE SCHOLARSHIPS

Premier Girls netballer and basketballer Sharne Pupuke-Robati has been named as one of the recipients of the inaugural Tania Dalton Foundation scholarships. Sharne, in Year 13, will receive three years of mentoring and support from The Foundation, which was set up in honour of the late Silver Ferns neballer Tania Dalton to support young women in sport. Sharne is pictured with her scholarship partner, Tim Fitzsimmons, from Goodman. The scholarship programme will provide financial, mentorship and personal development support to Sharne and 10 other young women, helping them to unlock their talent and go on to great things. One of the main goals of the programme is for these young women to then contribute back to their communities and continue Tania Dalton's legacy for future generations.

ACADEMIC NEWS

MORE SCHOLARSHIP SUCCESS

Deputy Head Girl Rosarina Pillissi and fellow Year 13 student Elijah Manu have been awarded scholarships by the Hi Well Charitable Foundation. National MP Melissa Lee (pictured with the pair) nominated them and they were invited to the foundation's annual Lunar New Year event at Takapuna Grammar School. The charity presented Rosarina and Elijah with special scholarships given to worthy students. The Hi-Well Charity award acknowledges academic success, as well as studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; contributions to the wider life of their school.

THE LION

Head Boy Isaac Munro and Head Girl Hannah Houghton led the Scholars’ Assembly ceremony.

Scholars’

ASSEMBLY Some of MAGS’ top Year 13 scholars from 2017 returned to the school for the Scholars’ Assembly in February.

Seven new names have been inscribed on the Honours Board following the Scholars' Assembly held on February 21. Mount Albert Grammar School recognised its top scholars for 2017, many of who returned to the school for a ceremony MC'ed by Head Boy Isaac Munro and Head Girl Hannah Houghton. Among the highest achievers were the Boy and Girl Dux of 2017, Lucas Peterson and Harshita Nayyar. Lucas earned four Scholarships (Outstanding in Calculus), and Harshita earned three Scholarships. They will go onto the school's Honours Board along with five more students who earned three Scholarships: Sahil Bhatiani, Fraser Eade (Outstanding in Biology), Richard Li (Outstanding in Physics and Calculus), Jack Morrow-Zhang (Outstanding in Physics), and Merry Wu. Students who receive three or more Scholarships are awarded $2000 per year for up to three years toward their tertiary studies. Girl Proxime Accessit for 2017 Yusi Gao received the June Gray Charitable Trust Tertiary Education Scholarship (worth $3000 per 18

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Yusi Gao WINNER OF THE JUNE GRAY CHARITABLE TRUST TERTIARY EDUCATION SCHOLARSHIP

Harshita Nayyar, Girl Dux of 2017, is congratulated by Headmaster Patrick Drumm on her three Scholarships.

ACADEMIC NEWS MAGS Boy Dux of 2017 Lucas Peterson, who earned four scholarships, with his proud family.

Headmaster Patrick Drumm with Albertian and Engineering student Kenneth Zhu, who was awarded the Jim Greatbanks Scholarship.

year for three years), while Kenneth Zhu received the Jim Greatbanks Mount Albert Grammar School Engineering Scholarship (worth $4000 for each of four years of study in Engineering). Outstanding Scholarships were also awarded to Anton Aish (Statistics), Jonathan De Pledge (Calculus), Zi Huang (Calculus), Miriam Leonhardt (Calculus), Gary He (Calculus), Liam Milbank (Statistics) and Beatrice Santos (Biology). In total, 82 scholarships were awarded to MAGS' students, including 12 at Outstanding level (the top 1 per cent in each subject), the pinnacle of academic achievement for secondary students. Scholarships were attained across 21 subjects, and were spread among 54 students. The Scholars' Assembly was also an occasion to recognise the school's academic achievers across NCEA Levels 1, 2 & 3 (Endorsed with Excellence), who were awarded Scholar Lions. THE LION

MARKET

forces Business Studies classes have been getting some real world experience with their market days.

Year 10 Business Studies students were met with a keen and hungry clientele when they opened their food stalls during lunchtime on May 17 & 18. Students flocked to the stalls selling drinks and food such as quesadillas, toasted sandwiches, candy floss, sushi, waffles, nachos, chop suey, doughnuts and muffins. As part of Market Day, the Year 10 Business students formulate, carry out and review a business activity that involves selling sweet or savoury treats. There were 12 market stalls operating during lunchtime in the

Albertian Quad, with groups funding their own start-up costs and sharing profits among business owners. Business Studies teacher Stuart Halstead said that once the frantic activity of Market Day was over, students were encouraged to reflect on where their businesses had succeeded or failed. Market Day is a taster for business activities to follow in years 11, 12 and 13 when business students build on earlier skills to develop more sophisticated products and services.

On June 14, Year 11 Business Studies students were kept busy during the Board Show and Business Market Evening. For these students, selling to parents was a new challenge after selling solely to their peers as Year 10s at last yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Market Day. This project also sees businesses formed, leadership roles taken and business plans developed. Commerce teacher Ratinder Gill said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Such an activity is helping to develop and promote student accountability. Students were well-behaved and friendly and most groups prepared very well for the market evening. All stalls broke even and most business groups made a profit ranging from $5 to $280.â&#x20AC;? Mrs Gill said parents enjoyed being able to come out in the evening and support their children, and loved the festive atmosphere created with art, food and music. 20

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ACADEMIC NEWS

HEALTHY CURIOSITY

The week-long Health Expo held in the school hall in May gave Year 12 Health students a chance to run their own awareness campaigns. Crowds of students packed the hall out during the week, checking out the stalls and collecting freebies. Year 12 Health students had to identify a health issue in the MAGS community, research the topic, develop resources, present their expo and then evaluate the effectiveness of it. This is giving students first-hand experience of how health promotion works.

Some of the health issues covered this year were: how to cope with stress, how to report cyber bullying, nutritional support (e.g. reading labels), self-esteem and selfexpression, peer pressure, bullying, and body image. The students are working towards an achievement standard, which is a health promotion assignment.

SCIENCE BOWL Three teams from Mount Albert Grammar School competed in the 2018 North Island Secondary Schools Science Bowl Tournament held on June 1 at Auckland Grammar School. This was the first time MAGS participated in this event and some great results were obtained. In the senior section, MAGS achieved an amazing second place, with the team being Miriam Leonhardt, Shalin Shah, Lance Martinez and Karen Geng (pictured left to right). After a gruelling round robin phase, the senior team reached the semifinal where they beat AGS to reach the final against ACG. In the final, in a tense and nervewracking round made up of extremely challenging mathematics, chemistry and biology questions, the Senior team were edged by ACG College. In the Junior section, MAGS had two teams: Junior Team 1 – Vaibhav Nayyar,

Giles Paton Simpson, Alexander Pullen and Nikita Privalov; and Junior Team 2 – Rosie Henderson, Ayleigh Loomes, Ruby Maoate and Megan Williams. Junior Team 1 reached the semifinals where they were beaten by the narrowest of margins by AGS. The second Junior team won many of the their round robin qualifying matches but missed out on a place in the semifinal. Aase Diegel, HOF Science, said, “Both the finals and the semifinals were scintillating experiences and the atmosphere was at times charged with tension. Both were a showcase of the remarkable depth of scientific knowledge present and a genuine pleasure to witness.”

The Science Bowl Tournament seeks to provide an engaging event for some of the most intellectual secondary school students in the North Island to come together and compete against one another. Ms Diegel said, “The students that attended represented MAGS admirably. The questions that these students were able to answer and their depth of knowledge about science and mathematics was absolutely astonishing and they certainly did the school proud.”

THE LION

OUTDOOR EDUCATION Students have made the most of the good weather early in the year to take part in water-based activities as well as getting involved in climbing and tramping. During weeks 2 and 3 of Term 1, the Year 13 and Year 11 Outdoor Education classes travelled to Piha Beach to learn how to surf. The classes were led by Rapu New Zealand Surf and Snow Tour instructors with the days consisting of surf lessons, water safety and surfing rules. The conditions were ideal for learning, and resulted in all of the students catching waves, with the majority standing up. In March, the three Year 11 Outdoor Education classes visited Wero Whitewater Park in Manukau to practise their paddling, eddy and rescue skills. They went up the conveyor belt and into the Grade 2 river. In the same week, the eight Year 10 Outdoor Education classes visited Extreme Edge Climbing in Glen Eden. This presented the students with an opportunity to climb a

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higher wall and solidify their belaying and climbing skills. In the last week of term one, the Year 13 Outdoor Education class finally got to canoe the Whanganui River. Unfortunately, the original trip needed to be postponed due to severe storm damage only days before the class were meant to go. Heavy rain caused slips across the access road and river bank, and saw the river rise up to 10 metres. A focus of this trip was for students to manage safety issues through implementing suitable strategies. Once underway, the students enjoyed the extra responsibility of organising the timings, their equipment and their menu. Coming from a large city, they also appreciated the beauty and solitude of remote New Zealand.

In May, the Year 13 Outdoor Education class tramped the Around the Mountain Circuit in Taranaki/Egmont National Park. For this trip, students had to plan their routes, find out about the significance of the location, create a gear list, consider the environment they were entering and how they could care for it, plan their menu and identify the likely risks and how to combat them. As the class was split into small groups and were walking from dawn to dusk carrying 15-20kg packs, they could practise their leadership skills under very testing conditions. The Circuit goes through a landscape of forest, rivers and spectacular alpine scenery. In June, to conclude the Kayaking Unit for Year 10 Outdoor Education, each class visited Wero Whitewater Park in Manukau. This enabled students to practise and develop kayaking skills and reinforce concepts introduced in the classroom. Once geared up in a wetsuit, booties, lifejacket and helmet, the students went through different paddle strokes on the lake, ahead of negotiating eddy lines at the river exit. Then it was time to paddle the Grade 2 Tamariki River. This man-made river is entered from a conveyor belt and includes small drops, waves and plenty of eddies.

ACADEMIC NEWS

Agriculture and Horticulture

Students have embraced opportunities to learn in a hands-on way and cultivate industry contacts Attending the Ballance Farm Environment Awards in April was an inspirational and rewarding experience for four MAGS representatives. Esther Hancock, HoD Agriculture and Horticulture, said she and Year 13 Agribusiness students Hamish Holst and Fatima Imran, as well as her student teacher Madeline Bode, from University of Wisconsin River Falls, were invited to attend the Auckland region awards. Ms Hancock said, "I was lucky enough to be sat next to the eventual winner Steve Dills. "It was very inspirational and we met up with a few old friends and made a few new farming friends.â&#x20AC;? The Ballance Farm Environment Awards are run by the New Zealand Farm Environment Trust and recognise and celebrate good farm practices that promote sustainable land management in 11 regions throughout New Zealand. Five agriculture students spent time in the central North Island in late April finding out about the incredible range of education and job opportunities available to them. Rachel Hatfield, Blake Shepherd, Fatima Imran, Jacob Speight and Kaarthik Dangwal were accompanied by Head of Careers Kubi Witten-Hannah and Head of Agriculture and Horticulture Esther Hancock on visits to the Central North Island Dairy Academy in Reparoa and Massey University in Palmerston North. Ms Hancock said the students learned about courses offered by both institutions and met academics researching topics such as nitrate hungry pasture alternatives,

nitrate leaching, variable irrigation, apple varieties and a new market for bobby calves. Eleven Year 12 Agriculture students visited Taratahi Agricultural Training College in Masterton during May to gain some real farm experience and to learn about different courses available at Taratahi. Over four days, they mustered, drafted and weighed both sheep and cattle, and calculated dressing out percentages and income earned. They got a buzz from learning about bees and had an in-depth anatomy lesson while slaughtering a sheep. In early June, two classes of Year 10 Ag students headed out to the Waitakere Ranges to learn about predators, birdlife and plant species in the natural environment. With Arataki Visitor Centre as their base, the students were taught by Peter King, who was head of science at Green Bay High School for 27 years.

He showed them how to monitor predators using a Black Trakka tunnel and peanut butter. The students learned how to do a five-minute birdsong count, and how to use a quadrat to assess seedling regrowth. In June, Agriculture & Horticulture teacher Richard Fullerton and Environment Club leader Michael Ashby led a team of Year 10 Agriculture students planting trees at Okura. This was the culmination of work by the students under the Trees for Survival programme, where they plant and pot on seedlings at school then ultimately plant the young trees out on farmland. The plantings serve to prevent erosion, trap sediment and prevent run off of phosphorus and E. coli into waterways. They also provide corridors for native birds to travel between one area of bush and another. It is all part of landowners working to preserve New Zealandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s natural environment and crucial green image.

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Visual Arts Among the highlights of a busy first half of the year was the Board Show combined with the Year 11 Business Market Evening on June 14.

All the ingredients came together to make the Board Show a huge success: inspired art works, a great selection of food and drink, a live jazz band and clear weather. Year 11, 12 & 13 Visual Art Students displayed their talents in art, design and photography while Year 11 Business Studies students set up more than 20 stalls in and around E Block selling food and drinks for staff, students, friends and family that flocked to the evening. HoD Visual Arts Bryn Corkery, said, “students took a leadership role in the organisation of the event, which was really encouraging to see. The relaxed and welcoming atmosphere reinforced the positive community spirit that our students have. The show illustrated the depth in creative talent we have at this school. Visitors were impressed by the wide variety of ideas on display.” In May, Student Visual Arts Leaders ran and judged a photography competition for MAGS students. The winners were: Year 13 (Theme: Identity) – Amelia Jack (judged by Visual Art staff); Junior (Theme: Sports) – Paige Tyson-Taylor; Year 11 (Theme: Identity) – Talisa Gan-Setu; Year 12 (Theme: Identity) – Billie Taylor. The students each won a mini printer. On June 6, Year 10 Visual Art students went on the annual trip to the Auckland Art Gallery. Students experienced some of the best art on public display in New Zealand. A highlight for many was seeing the Gottfried Lindauer ‘Maori Portraits’ and the works of international contemporary art. Students engaged with the artworks with enthusiasm and curiosity. Towards the end of June, as part of the

Visual Art Winter Workshops, prominent Pasifika artist Michel Tuffery was busy with art students beautifying the outdoor area beside E3. Mr Tuffery and his eager helpers decorated the concrete plinths with a woven star motif. He said students were being encouraged to experiment with colour and also with the different thicknesses of their paint pen nibs to give the designs a lift. Naomi Lamb (a professional live video artist known as The Wanderer) also visited school and set up a range of high-end live mixing equipment such as cameras, video mixing desks, projectors and computers in the E6 Photography studio. Students from Art Subjects (Drama, Dance, Music and Visual Arts) collaborated with her and each other to create Artistic Moving Image Artworks in real time. The footage was recorded and will be made

accessible to this group to further edit to create videos for display at the 2018 Art Show. Also part of the Winter Workshops, was a presentation by Joon-Hee Park to Senior Painting students. A surrealist artist, she talked about her process of finding and developing a personal style, inspiration for making art works and working as an artist.

Year 10 Art students and Te Puna o Wairaka students have left the school an outstanding legacy in the form of a mural focusing on the Maori legend of Tane, who separated Ranginui (Father Sky) and Papatūanuku (Mother Earth) to create light in the world. Matua Hare Paniora, blessed the mural during an official unveiling early in Term 1, while Te Reo Maori teacher Matua Pete Walters, explained the story behind the artwork and how its allusions to knowledge and enlightenment were a perfect fit for the school environment. Art teacher Ainsley Leonard said a group of about 30 students were involved in coming up with a design approved by the school then implementing it over about two weeks.

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ACADEMIC NEWS

Cultural INSIGHTS

Eleven senior students from Japanese classes took part in the MAGS Japan Trip from the beginning of December for two weeks. They arrived in Osaka first and home-stayed there for three days while sightseeing. The group was warmly welcomed by Kansai Soka School on the last day in Osaka where the students had a chance to experience life in a Japanese school and interact with Japanese students. After that, the group travelled to Hiroshima, Kyoto and Tokyo by bullet train. Places visited included the World Heritage Itsukushima Shrine, Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and the Atomic Dome in Hiroshima, the Golden Pavilion temple and many other important historical temples and shrines in Kyoto. At Meikei School in Tokyo, the group enjoyed an excellent immersive interactive experience with language exchange between the students. School visits are invaluable learning opportunities that are only available through carefully organised school trips like this. The trip was a huge success and there are plans for another visit next year.

FRENCH CONNECTION Earlier this year, a happy band of travellers returned from Paris after five weeks in France – the third successful French exchange trip. The exchange runs every two years with our Year 11 and 12 French pupils teamed up with similar age pupils from Sainte-Croix high school in Neuilly, in the heart of Paris. For the first two weeks students attended school as well visiting Paris landmarks with teachers. The group then bade farewell to their host families for a week on the road to the south west. Highlights included wine and champagne tasting in Vouvray, a lovely wander through Chenonceaux Castle, and the wonders of Clos Lucé , Leonardo da

Vinci’s last home and where scale models of his incredible inventions have been made. Two days were spent at Nîmes, an ancient town with Roman sites including the nearby Pont du Gard aqueduct and the huge Roan Arena. Back in Paris, everyone joined their host families, with many of our pupils lucky enough to be taken to Italy, Belgium, Spain, Normandy, the south of France, skiing in the French Alps, and one stayed in a family’s private chateau out in the country. The next exchange trip is pencilled in for 2019.

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Relay for Life HITS $100,000 Students achieve magical mark with their fundraising efforts for the Cancer Society.

MAGS Relay for Life team celebrated their amazing fundraising efforts on May 3 with a team photo and were greeted with the news that they had raised more than $100,000 for the Cancer Society. Students took part in the sponsored run at the Millennium Institute on the North Shore on March 10 & 11, with 292 MAGS students running a total of 25,000 laps. Their total raised now hit $100,294.30 and is by far the highest among schools across the country. There were at least four students who ran over 200 laps: Ella Gillooly, Theo Brown, Bailey Bennett and Thomas Brendolise, who ran the most laps with 219, which is more than two marathons. And there were 133 students who ran over a marathon across the night which is equivalent to 105 laps around the track. The Cancer Society has made a promotional video featuring MAGS students to inspire other schools to match their efforts. MAGS’ Relay for Life organiser Alayna Pulham said because of the students’ impressive efforts, 16 chemistry/science students who made an outstanding 26

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MAGS’ Relay for Life organiser and teacher Alayna Pulham, pictured right, joined Headmaster Patrick Drumm and students Sophie Rippon and Oscar Graham to present a cheque to John Loof, second from left, the CEO of the Auckland North Cancer Society.

contribution were taken on a small tour of the cancer research centre to have a look at where some of that fundraising money goes. On March 9, the day before students took part in Relay for Life, the school grounds were a sea of blue, yellow, pink and/or purple as students got behind

the Mufti Day fundraiser for the Cancer Society. The colours are part of the Cancer Society’s awareness programmes for various cancers they are fighting. As part of the day, donations of gold coins (or better) were encouraged to go towards MAGS’ 2018 Relay for Life campaign.

COMMUNITY THE LION

Izzy & Lucia MacKenzie, along with Mr Ashby, were further rewarded for their moth plant eradication efforts when they joined other students for a helicopter ride out to Motutapu Island.

Izzy & Lucia MacKenzie with their haul of 2600 pods.

MOTH PLANT HEROES Helping to rid neighbourhoods of moth plant proved a rewarding exercise for MAGS students in more ways than one.

Students took part in a competition to collect the seed-containing pods of the invasive species, with Izzy and Lucia MacKenzie coming out winners with 2600 pods collected. For their efforts they each received a $500 Prezzy card in a competition funded by Auckland Council and Weedbusters. Alana Kerr came third with 2051 pods and received a $500 Prezzy card, Sophie Thomson fourth (2003 – $300 Prezzy card) and Nicholas James 5th (1894 – $100 Prezzy card). In all, 32,926 pods were removed during the competition. Rebecca Goffin, Sustainable Schools Advisor for Auckland Council said the council was impressed by and grateful for the students’ efforts. Mr Ashby, HOD Physics, is the driving force behind the Moth Plant Pod Competition and hopes it will go from strength to strength and help to eradicate moth plant, which smothers and kills plants up into the canopy, preventing the establishment of native plant species. As a bonus, Auckland Council along with the Motutapu Restoration Trust, arranged for a helicopter ride to Motutapu Island for entrants from the top performing schools in the competition. Izzy and Lucia MacKenzie were picked for the honour along with two students from Marist College and one from Botany Downs. Mr Ashby explains, “The helicopter flight was never part of the ‘official’ prize package to begin with but once Auckland Council found out how successful the competition was, they arranged this as an extra ‘thank you’ to the students.

“They had a guided tour of the island for the day, including a walk through the planted forest, which was really fun as we could see the different ‘ages’ of each area as they were planted in different years, going back to 1994. We also toured the nursery which was really interesting – the scale is huge! We saw lots of birdlife... species that you just don’t see on the mainland.” The students also got a letter of congratulations from Auckland Mayor Phil Goff.

Rebecca Goffin, Sustainable Schools Advisor for Auckland Council, presented, from left to right, Sophie Thomson, Izzy MacKenzie and Alana Kerr with their certificates and prizes for their moth plant pod collecting efforts while a proud Environment Club leader Michael Ashby watched on.

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Painting Mt Albert green. 28

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COMMUNITY

Blood

Donor Day Students and staff flocked to the F.W. Gamble Hall on April 5 in a big show of support for Blood Donor Day.Â School nurse Monica Haworth said there was a maximum of 155 appointment slots for donors available on the day and they were all filled. She said the day is becoming increasingly student-led with the Health Committee involved in organising the event and encouraging students to donate. Ms Haworth said MAGS has one of the best records among schools for its blood donations but what is collected from the school is only enough to keep Auckland Hospital supplied for one day. The blood is used for blood transfusions of whole blood, platelets, Factor VIII clotting, and if any of the wholeÂ blood is not used within its time limit these units would be separated for transfusions of iron, white cells and plasma. Each unit of blood could help at least three patients.

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Restoration CHAMPIONS Students and staff have already participated in two planting days on Motutapu Island to help with revegetation.

In late May, the MAGS Environment Club took part in the first of four planting days for 2018 on Motutapu Island. Thirty students travelled by ferry out to the island with Mr Ashby, Ms Dunham and Ms Slabbert to contribute to the massive restoration project taking place on the island. It is unique for an island of its size in that it is totally free of introduced mammalian pests, making it a true “Treasure Island” in our Hauraki Gulf. In spite of the at-times challenging weather conditions, the students rolled up their sleeves and managed to plant nearly 1000 pioneer species of native plant. As well as being a really enjoyable day in the outdoors playing an active role in nurturing our natural environment, it is an excellent way for students to earn points towards their Service Lion.

In June, a group of 30 Year 13 students travelled by ferry out to Motutapu Island with Mr Ashby, Mr Booker and Mrs Beel. This day was set aside at the request of the Year 13s who wanted to make sure that they contributed to the project before they depart from MAGS at the end of the year. Mr Ashby said, “A special thank you to Catherine Butler who came up with the idea and ensured we had the numbers to make it happen.” Blessed with fine weather for planting (overcast, cool and no wind) the group managed to plant more than 900 pioneer species of native plant. “The rate at which the planting was done was extraordinary... we literally ran out of trees to plant with half an hour to spare.”

LEADING THE WORLD Students taking part in the Model United Nations Assembly had to argue issues from different perspectives. Nine students represented MAGS at the Model United Nations Assembly (MUNA) held in May and three came back with an award. Over two days, the Year 12 and 13 students represented three United Nations delegations for the MUNA, hosted by Auckland Rotary at Auckland Girls Grammar School. Juliette Allen, Simon Percival and Phoebe Sullivan represented Albania;

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Saman Bardi, India Bulman and Alyssa Houma represented Colombia; and Britney Cheng, Fatima Imran and Rachel Simpson represented Iraq. Rachel, Fatima and Britney’s speech that convincingly and eloquently defended Iraq’s position on the protection of women’s rights so impressed the judges they received an award for the ‘Team with the Best Knowledge and Provocative Use of the UN Charter’.

COMMUNITY

PINK SHIRT DAY

Selected students and some staff wore pink clothing on Friday, May 18 to help spread messages about celebrating diversity and encouraging positive relationships. Students were also handing out pink ribbons on Pink Shirt Day, which aims to stop bullying and spread kindness. Celebrated around the globe, Pink Shirt Day began in Canada in 2007 when two students took a stand against homophobic bullying, mobilising their whole school to wear pink, after a peer was hassled for wearing a pink shirt. In New Zealand, Pink Shirt Day has been celebrated since 2009 and is led by the Mental Health Foundation with support from organisations such as The Peace Foundation, RainbowYOUTH, New Zealand Post Primary Teachersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Association (PPTA) and Youthline. The PE and Health department staff came out in full support of Pink Shirt Day as can be seen by the photo (bottom-right). Spoken Word Poetry club was also prominent on Pink Shirt Day with performances focusing on combating bullying. Lucy Zhang is pictured below delivering hers.

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MEGA success

MAGS Megacrew have had an outstanding year, winning the Street Dance New Zealand National Megaschool Championships for the first time and then coming fourth in the open division of the Project Youth Hip Hop Dance Competition. Head of Dance Samantha French said MAGS Megacrew has a strong tradition of placing in the top three in the Megaschool Championships but had never won the competition until April 29 this year at the Vodafone Events Centre in Manukau. Ms French said, “The MAGS Megacrew are outstanding hip hop dancers that are 14 to 17 years old. They’ve been at school every day during the holidays doing eight-hour training days – and early mornings and late evenings since the start of Term 1. They were brilliantly led by Year 13 students Karissa Tapu, Holly and Janelle Kara, and Year 12 student Moanekah Va’ai. These girls also choreographed the entire routine themselves.” Ms French, who manages the team with PE teacher Claudia Goff, says 15 other schools from across New Zealand competed, with Manurewa High School in second and Massey High School third. Following on from that victory, several 32

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MAGS dancers have once again qualified to represent NZ at The World Hip Hop Dance Championship in Arizona next month. Tai Hemana, Remy Sutton, William Tuarae, Faolan Okan, Karissa Tapu and Moanekah Va’ai were members of teams that qualified for the Varsity division, and the above boys plus Sophie Houghton and Amelia Worsley were also members of the NZ champion Megacrew team YUNG ID run by Albertian Josh Cesan that will represent NZ in that division. Director of Arts Co-Curricular Jacqui Cesan said, “Extra congratulations must also go to Faolan Okan, who, around his hectic Hip Hop schedule, also found time to compete in the ACDA National Young Performer Nomination competition for Tap. Faolan not only got the nomination to compete in the National Young Performer of the Year Award, but also got an unprecedented 100 per cent for his performance.” Having won the Schools Division of the Project Youth Hip Hop Dance Competition

three times, the MAGS Dance Megacrew entered the Open Division for an added challenge. Competing over Queen’s Birthday Weekend in Mt Maunganui against some of New Zealand’s largest dance companies, MAGS finished fourth in a close competition – a fantastic result for a school team. Ms Cesan said, “Congratulations to Ms French, leaders Holly and Janelle Kara, Karissa Tapu and Moanekah Va’ai and all the dancers for a great result.” Ms French said the dance competition was a fantastic experience, as was staying at a local marae. “We stayed overnight at Tamapahore Marae. The students really enjoyed the experience and learnt a lot about Tikanga Maori. And a huge thank you to the three other teachers that came with me: Miss Goff, Miss Mackinnon and Miss Bovaird.” Earlier in the year, four MAGS boys featured in the nine-strong Swagganauts hip hop crew that won the Auckland Regionals Varsity division, which featured 17 crews from all over Auckland. Year 12 student Remy Sutton and Year 11 students Tai Hemana, Faolan Okan and William Tuarae feature in the Swagganauts, part of Identity Dance Company directed by Albertian Josh Cesan. Their choreographer and manager – Louis Dan Tyrell and Gabriel Sutton respectively – are also Albertians. In second place in this division was Boys In The Hood, which featured MAGS student Moanekah Va’ai.

PERFORMING ARTS

FOUR BEST of the

MAGS had four dance items chosen for the annual YouDance youth dance festival held on May 29 & 30 at the Raye Freedman Arts Centre in Epsom.

The festival, now in its eighth year, showcases excellence level performance and choreography from secondary schools and youth groups from all over Auckland. MAGSâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; items were two group dances choreographed by teacher Ms French and excellence choreographies by Karissa Tapu and Maddison Bencich. It is an honour to have work chosen for this event, which is now a highlight of the Auckland Dance calendar. THE LION

DANCE CONCERT

Between the Lines Stories provided the inspiration for the Between the Lines Dance Concert held on April 10 & 11 at Epsom’s Centennial Theatre.

Near-capacity audiences on both nights enjoyed a range of performances, all of which were being assessed for either performance standards or choreography. All year levels presented group dance performances – these ranged in genre from cultural dances such as Sasa and African Gumboot to contemporary, musical theatre and Hip Hop. 34

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Director of Arts Co-curricular Jacqui Cesan said Year 12 and 13 students’ choreographies – all inspired by a story – were of a high standard, and it was gratifying to see the number of junior students in these – a valuable experience for their future in Dance. Ms Cesan said Dance at Mount Albert Grammar continues to grow in popularity both for students and audiences, and the

nearly 200 dancers involved in the concert participated with commitment and energy. At the end of the evening a presentation was made to resigning Deputy Principal Catherine Horne to acknowledge her support for the Arts at MAGS. Ms Cesan said that over the 15 years Ms Horne has been at MAGS she has attended and supported all Arts events and she will be missed by the students.

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PERFORMING ARTS

Students’ seventh place finish in the top division a massive achievement. Mount Albert Grammar School’s Kapa Haka group put in one of their strongest performances on Saturday, March 19 at ASB Polyfest to finish seventh and retain their place in the prestigious first division. Waimirirangi Paul, HoF Te Puna o Wairaka, said it was an impressive performance, given they were up against Maori immersion schools. Weeks of planning, practice and costume-making went into the 30-minute performance. Ms Paul said she was grateful for the support from students, staff, friends and parents on the day and for their positive feedback after the performance on Saturday. This is how the Kapa Haka group ranked in the various categories: Kakahu Tane – 3rd, Wahine Kakahu – 9th, Wahine Leader – 4th, Tane Leader – 11th, Tira – 4th, Mau Rakau – 5th, Eke – 9th, Moteatea – 4th, Waiata a Ringa – 10th, Poi – 6th, Haka – 5th, Watea – 6th, Mita o te reo – 6th. The Kapa Haka group were one of seven MAGS cultural groups competing over the Friday and Saturday.

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PERFORMING ARTS

POLYFEST

PRIDE

Weeks of dedication from students, staff and supporters paid off with stunning performances from MAGS groups at PolyFest. Seven groups – Kapa Haka, Tongan, Samoan, Cook Island, Niuean, Chinese and Indian – comprising 280 students represented MAGS on March 18 & 19. Director of Arts Co-Curricular Jacqui Cesan, said, “Each group did an outstanding job of representing MAGS and their cultures. “The performances were the culmination of over five weeks of intense rehearsals, and every day during this time students, their mentors and tutors could be found working hard in various locations both at school and off-site.” The Niuean group enjoyed the greatest success, winning a number of first places in individual sections and finishing third overall in the Co-Ed schools section. As well, Year 13 student Hosea Tavita won the Niuean senior boys speech section. Ms Cesan said, “This is a special result for this group as this is the first time in over seven years that we have had a Niuean group represent MAGS at Polyfest.” Indian and Chinese groups represented MAGS on the non-competitive Diversity Stage, and the Cook Island group was also in a noncompetitive section, but still received a Merit trophy for the quality of their performance. While MAGS’ Tongan and Samoan groups did not place they were both impressive, with the Samoan group a clear crowd favourite. Ms Cesan said, “Particularly impressive with both these groups was the effort that was put into incorporating MAGS’ colours and Lion into their costuming.” THE LION

YEAR 13 DRAMA PRODUCTION OF

THE VISIT Both nights of the Year 13 Drama production of The Visit had a great turnout on March 28 and 29.

That could have been helped by their guerrilla marketing campaign beforehand to promote the upcoming production of the black comedy. The Drama students dropped in on classes during form time in character to drum up interest in the production prior to it being staged on N Block’s deck. MAGS’ version of the black comedy was set in the fictional North Island town of Gullen, which has fallen on hard times. The Foundry has closed, the Wagonworks have shutdown, the Golden Eagle Pencil Factory is out of business. Luckily, Claire Zachanassian, Gullen’s billionaire citizen, returns to her hometown. If only the townspeople can figure out a way to separate her from her massive wealth. What they soon find out is that she has her own agenda – and that involves revenge. 38

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PERFORMING ARTS Alberton served as a stage as well as inspiration for performances by Year 10 & 11 Drama Academy students. As part of their NCEA assessment, on June 8 students created a performance after researching the history of the historic homestead with a focus on the Kerr-Taylor family. They had visited the site and heard from historians about the stories of the house. Using these stories the students devised a performance as part of their NCEA assessment. Common themes include the status of women, financial hardship, and the impact of World War I. These are then performed at Alberton House. HoD Drama Gerald Urquhart said, “It works well as the students feel a tangible connection to the local history. The idea that they are playing characters who have actually lived in the place they are performing is fascinating for them.” Mr Urquhart added, “The work of the team at Alberton, especially Rendell McIntosh and Jocelyn McQuaid, has been invaluable.”

NEW TAKES ON

SHAKESPEARE MAGS’ participants were praised for creative directing and quality performances at the Sheilah Winn Shakespeare Festival.

Students and teachers took part in the festival’s Auckland Central region show held at Diocesan School for Girls in April. Student-directed scenes included an all-female fight scene from Romeo and Juliet directed by Seamus Stalker, a 1920s inspired take on A Midsummer Night’s Dream directed by Rachel Simpson, and a jazz version of Othello directed by Zoe Holden. There was also an Aussie bogan interpretation of The Mechanicals (from a Midsummer Night’s Dream) directed

by Miss Carmela Hughes in the teacherdirected section. Head of Drama Gerald Urquhart said that the Student Leaders for Sheilah Winn – Alec Ross and Rachel Simpson – did a great job of organising, and the input from the student director assistants was very helpful. He added: “Finally, a large thank you to the friends, family and former students who filled a third of the audience for this multischool festival. It was impressive and your ongoing support is very much appreciated.” THE LION

Moon Stars WIN AGAIN

For the second year running the Moon Stars have won Best Performance of an Original Work at the National Chamber Music Contest. Composer Emma Moon’s Balkan Dance piece was created to complement the skill set of the players in the group, who competed on June 6 at the Raye Freedman Arts Centre in Epsom. It follows on from Emma and the group’s success with Serbian Dance in the same competition last year. The musicians so enjoyed working on that piece last year that they asked her to compose something in a similar style with strong and irregular Balkan rhythms. HoD Music Milica Moon said, “This comes to Emma naturally, since she is ¾ Serbian. She has composed this for the specific skills of the players, and students have enjoyed

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working on this every morning from 7am until beginning of school. “They have become a close group of friends, too. One comment from some musicians in the audience was that they are the only group where everyone looked so happy and unstressed, and that they enjoyed playing music together.” The Moon Stars are: Gary He – 1st violin, Emma Moon – 1st violin, Grace Duan – 2nd violin, Kate Ploeg – viola, Anvilly Huang – cello, Lars Landicho – double bass, Amitai Aharon – percussion, Stefan Moon – percussion. MAGS’ Chamber Orchestra will also perform Balkan Dance at the KBB Music Festival in August.

PERFORMING ARTS

The Wonder Cats’ choice performance The Wonder Cats won the People’s Choice Award at the Auckland Central Finals of the Smokefreerockquest, meaning they can now make a bid for the national finals. On June 9 at Auckland Girls Grammar, the band made up of MAGS students Denzel Kelemete, Billy McColl, Amitai Aharon and Viliami Toafa Moli along with Ethan Broughton (from Auckland Grammar) competed against 14 other acts. They had seven minutes to do two songs maximum but decided to warm the crowd up with a funky James Brown-style intro to their indie rock song Running that segued into a jamming outro. Billy and Denzel said they were blown away by the crowd’s enthusiastic reaction to their performance, especially as the band had only been together for six months. They also won the Fatboy Style Award on the night.

Winning the People’s Choice Award, which is decided by text and online voting, means The Wonder Cats can now submit an entry for the National Final. Denzel said this takes the form of a video of a live performance of four songs that is then judged. These entries from around the country are then whittled down to a Top 30 that is put in front of a judging panel that chooses nine bands and solo/duos to compete in the final. The Top 30 should be announced soon, with the National Final held in Auckland on September 22. PICTURE COURTESY OF SMOKEFREEROCKQUEST

Six MAGS students took part in the National Youth Theatre Company’s production of the musical Cats. The students (seen before and after make-up) are (back row, from left to right) Ophelia Sykes (Yr 11), Rosie Henderson (Yr 11), Emily Jerrom (Yr 13), Allie Hawksworth (Yr 13), Finn de Lange (Yr 9) and (front row, left to right) Jenna Parkin (Yr 10) and Ruby Taylor Sinclair (Yr 11). They were part of four performances at the Aotea Centre from June 21-23. Jenna Parkin played Mr Mistoffelees in some shows and the rest of the students were in the chorus, both singing and dancing.

THE LION

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SPORT THE LION

ATHLETICS Five records fell at the 2018 Athletics Championships held at Mt Smart Stadium on February 22 & 23. Hannah Houghton broke two of them: the Senior Girls 1500m and 3000m. She ran 5:07.33 for the 1500m, and 10:37.26 in the 3000m. The other record-breakers were Max Brooke Cowden – 100m Senior Boys – 10.96s, Malia Seko – Junior Girls Long Jump – 5.20m, Luke Clements – Junior Boys 3000m – 9:55.72. Max’s 100m record is significant in the history of the school as he is the first boy at MAGS to break the 11-second barrier.

This was the biggest Athletics Championships in recent years with 400 students competing over a range of events.

Central/West Zone Athletics Championships At the Central/West Zone Athletics Championships in early March, MAGS students put in 39 qualifying performances for the Auckland Championships. Among MAGS’ strongest performers on the day were Malia Seko (1st in Junior Girls 100m, 200m and Long Jump), Teiere

Manuel-Nathan (1st in Junior Girls Shotput, Discus and Javelin), Latonya Lole (1st in Intermediate Girls 100m and Long Jump, 2nd in 200m and 80m Hurdles), Amelia Caltaux (1st in Intermediate Girls 400m and 800m), Hannah Houghton (1st in Intermediate Girls 1500m and 3000m), Janelle Kara (1st in Senior Girls 100m and Long Jump), Raniera Newport (1st in Junior Boys Long Jump and qualified in 100m and 200m), Luke Clements (1st Junior Boys 1500 and 3000m, 2nd in Triple Jump), and Max Brooke-Cowden (1st in Senior Boys 100m and 200m).

MAGS Athletics Champions for 2018 are (back row, from left to right): Junior Boys Champion Luke Clements, Senior Boys Champion Dylan Moon, Intermediate Boys Champion Sila Esekielu, (front row) Junior Girls Champion Malia Seko, Intermediate Girls Champion Latonya Lole, Senior Girls Champion Janelle Kara.

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AKSS Championships Hannah Houghton, Luke Clements and Max Brooke-Cowden won Gold medals at the College Sport Auckland Athletics Championships held on March 28 at Mt Smart Stadium. The wins came for Hannah in the Senior Girls 3000m, for Luke in the Open Boys 2000m Steeplechase, and for Max in the Senior Boys 200m. All up, MAGS’ 36 athletes and five relay teams won three Gold, six Silver and five Bronze medals, and broke seven school records. New records were set by Dylan Moon (Open Boys 300m Hurdles, Silver medallist), the Senior Girls 4x100m Relay (Silver medallists), the Senior Boys 4x100m Relay (Silver medallists), Luke Clements (Junior Boys 1500m, Silver medallist), Amelia Caltaux (Intermediate Girls 400m & Intermediate Girls 800m) and Hannah Houghton (Senior Girls 1500m). Luke Clements also won Silver in the Triple Jump, and Hannah Adye picked up Silver in the Open Girls Pole Vault. Hannah Houghton, Luke Clements and Hannah Adye were selected to represent Auckland at the North Island Schools Championships held on April 7 & 8 in Whanganui.

NISS Championships Luke Clements won the Junior Boys 1500m and came second in the Junior Boys 3000m at the North Island Secondary Schools Championships at Cooks Gardens, Whanganui. Hannah Houghton claimed a bronze in the Senior Girls 3000m and came 8th in the Senior Girls 1500m.

NZ Championships Hannah Adye and Max Brooke-Cowden enjoyed medal success at the 2018 Athletics New Zealand Championships held at Porritt Stadium in Hamilton in March. Hannah won a silver medal in the U18 Women’s Pole Vault with a best of 3.46m then went on to win silver in the U20 Women’s Pole Vault with a height of 3.57m that broke the MAGS Open Pole Vault Record. Max ran the Under 20 Men’s 200m Final in 22.36s to claim a bronze medal. THE LION

The annual school Cross Country was held over two days in fine conditions in early May. The challenging course around the school and the ASB MAGS Farm was mostly dry but provided some muddy fun across the top of the farm. Seniors can elect to run the Cross Country but the run is compulsory for Year 9 and 10 students. Some staff also took part. The Championship Trophies were won by Molly McGowan (Junior Girls), Luke Clements (Junior Boys), Lulu Grimes (Intermediate Girls), Thomas Brendolise (Intermediate Boys), Hannah Houghton (Senior Girls) and Liam Thompson (Senior Boys). In the week following the school Cross Country, Luke Clements won the Junior Boys division and Hannah Houghton the Senior Girls at the Central/West Zone Cross Country Championships at Moire Park, Massey in May. On June 16 & 17, Luke Clements and Hannah Houghton then went on to compete at the New Zealand Schools Cross Country Individual and Relay Championships at Spa Park, Taupo. Luke ran in the Junior Boys (U16) event and finished 9th out of 156 athletes. Luke was the 4th Auckland athlete across the line. Hannah ran in the Senior Girls (U19) event and finished 32nd out of 132 athletes. Hannah was the 5th Auckland athlete across the line. Following that, Luke and Hannah were selected to run for Auckland in the New Zealand Schools Cross Country Relays. Luke ran in the Junior Boys team that finished 2nd and was just beaten by Canterbury. Hannah ran in the Senior Girls team that finished 4th. 46

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in March at Maraetai Beach, Beachlands. And in the Individual competition James Dennett finished a very credible 4th in the Senior Boys race. MAGS fielded 10 teams and 2 individuals – the biggest team at the Championships – as the interest in Triathlon continues to grow at the school. Unfortunately, the swim leg was cancelled and the Championships were scaled back to a duathlon. The top team placings were: Junior Boys – 2nd (Bowen Crawford, Riley Brewis, Hart Adriano), Intermediate Girls – 3rd (Chloe Innes, Venita Wilson, Anagrace Poching) and Senior Girls – 3rd (Lili Tse, Holly Bannister, Eva Williams).

Duathlon

Teams going from strength to strength in all disciplines. MAGS won three team titles at the Auckland Secondary Schools Aquathon Championships at St Kentigern College in March. Coming in first were the Senior Boys team of James Dennett and Liam Thompson, Senior Girls Ella Speight and Hannah Houghton, and the Intermediate Mixed team of Jess Wanden-Hannay and Adian Price. MAGS also won a silver medal in the Senior Boys with Oliver Ng and Harry Thurman.

MAGS entered 10 teams and three individual athletes, making it the biggest team. The Aquathon involved a swim in the Tamaki River and a run through the streets around St Kentigern College and through its grounds.

Triathlon MAGS’ teams grabbed a second and two third places at the Auckland Secondary Schools Triathlon Championships held

At the Auckland Schools Duathlon Championships held on June 21 at Pukekohe Race Track, MAGS entered nine teams – two more than last year. The results were: Senior Boys: 3rd – Liam Thompson and Connor Roulston, 6th – Harry Thurman and James Dennett, 7th – Hasan Pathan and Lewis Brown. Senior Girls: 6th – Hannah Houghton and Lili Tse, 10th – Milly Bayfield and Jen Blakeley. Intermediate Girls: 2nd – Chloe Innes and Venetia Wilson, 3rd – Jess Wanden-Hannay and Harriet Neradt, 4th – Anagrace Poching and Hannah Adye, 6th – Kaija Thompson and Hana Hilson. The next event will be the New Zealand Schools Duathlon Championships on Sunday, August 19 at Pukekohe.

CHAMPION

PAIR

First-time win for MAGS bowlers. Year 13 students Allie Hawksworth and Emily Jerrom won the Girls Greater Auckland Secondary Schools Pairs Championship, held at Remuera Bowling Club and Carlton Cornwall Bowls in March. It was the first time that MAGS had won the pairs trophy, which has been dominated by St Dominics College in recent years. The duo won the final 8-4 after eight ends.

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Karate

Bronze at Oceania Champs for Brady Henry. Brady Henry won bronze in his division representing New Zealand at the 19th Oceania Karate Championships held in Auckland on May 18-20. Brady, in Year 10, was competing in the Premier Male Kumite - 57kg class at what is an international championship recognised and supported by the World Karate Federation. He has been learning karate since the age of 7, and first represented New Zealand at age 10.

Cricket

Girls return to Premier grade. The Girls Cricket 1st XI will be playing Premier division next season after they won their 1A Final at MAGS on March 28. The Girls dispatched Mount Roskill Grammar in the final in emphatic fashion. Batting first, Mount Roskill were all out for 63 with Emily Thurman taking

Always well-supported when they travel to New Zealand, the Brisbane Broncos delighted fans by staging a light training run at MAGS on April 13. The Broncos went through their drills on the Sir BG Williams Field before their NRL game against the Warriors the following night. One of their biggest fans is our Pasifika Liaison, Mr Apisaloma Taulapiu, pictured with Broncos legend Alan â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Alfieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Langer, who 48

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is now on the coaching staff. After their run, coach Wayne Bennett was interviewed by the assembled media while the Broncos players mingled with fans and signed autographs before heading off for a recovery session at the Aquatic Centre.

2 for 19 and effecting an amazing run-out from the outfield. Hannah Brook took 1 for 3 off her three overs. In reply, MAGS strolled to a 10-wicket victory with Shivani Unka hitting 23 not out. The result bodes well for next season with only two Year 13s in the team this year.

SPORT Three fencers picked for Commonwealth Champs. Three MAGS students will be part of the 21-strong NZ team that travel to Newcastle, England to take part in the Cadet (under-17) & Junior (under-20) Commonwealth Fencing Championship. Amey Smith is one of three fencers to represent NZ in the Girls Cadet Epee individual and team events and will be one of four fencers to represent NZ in the Womens Junior Epee individual and team events. Charlie Bioletti and James Butler make up two of the three NZ Boys Epee Cadets in the individual and team events. Albertian Matthew Valkenberg has been selected as the reserve for the NZ Mens’ Junior Epee individual and team events. He won’t travel unless there is an injury prior to departure. In April, MAGS’ fencers swept the NZ U17 boys division at the National Fencing Competition in Wellington. Charlie Bioletti won the competition, with James Butler 2nd and Gio Aguilar in 3rd place. Amey Smith also won gold – retaining her NZ U17 Girls title. Aidan Meyer won Silver in the NZ U15 Mixed Division, while Lucy Henshaw was the top-placed U15 girl in the U15 Mixed event. MAGS’ Fencing team also returned some solid results from the Northern Region U20 & U23 Epee Championships held at Massey High School. James Butler came third in the U23 division while in the U20 division Charlie Bioletti placed fifth, James Butler sixth, and Gio Aguilar came seventh. At the North Island (open) & NZ U23 event hosted by Fencing North and held at Massey High School, Charlie Bioletti placed 8th in the North Island men’s event, while in the women’s Amy Smith was 7th. In the U23 Nationals, Gio Aguilar finished 6th. The epee events in particular were well attended by the best fencers from around the country. It was a very strong field as open grade fencers were chasing ranking points for the senior Commonwealth Champs later in the year. Charlie and Amey’s results were both excellent, with Amey only 1 point away from beating the No.2 open ranked women fencer, going down 15-14 in a real nail-biter.

MAGS swept the podium in the NZ U17 Boys division at the National Fencing Competition in Wellington. Charlie Bioletti won the competition, with James Butler 2nd and Gio Aguilar in 3rd place. They are pictured with fencing coach Kyle Macdonald.

Amey Smith defended her NZ U17 Girls title.

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MAGS’ teams dominated the opposition at the North Harbour tournament. The Netball Premiers were joined by four other MAGS teams as winners at the North Harbour Secondary Schools Tournament on May 22. With North Harbour introducing Seniors and Juniors all playing on the same day, six of MAGS’ top netball teams headed over the bridge for the tournament. The results were: MAGS Premier 1: 4 wins – 1st Premier Grade MAGS Premier 2: 5 wins – 1st Senior A Grade MAGS Year 10 Firebirds: 4 wins – 1st Year 10 A Grade MAGS Year 10 Giants: 5 wins – 1st Year 10 B Grade MAGS Year 9 Mystics: 3 wins/1 draw/1 loss – 2nd Year 9 A Grade MAGS Year 9 Stars: 4 wins – 1st Year 9 B Grade With all teams playing four or five games, this allowed coaches the opportunity to try out new combinations and gave the teams the chance to come together nicely prior to the regular Auckland Netball season. Earlier in the year, Ruby Young, pictured, was named in a 23-strong New Zealand Secondary Schools netball squad that was announced following the National Development Camp in Cambridge. Halaevalu Toutaiolepo has been named as a reserve. NZSS coach Mary-Jane Araroa said a final team would be named after the NZ Age Group Championships in the build-up to matches against the Australian Under-17 squad in Canberra in September. 50

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Boys rule North Island champs. At the NISS Orienteering Championships in May, MAGS came away with the Top School Boys Trophy, which they also won last year. And the team won the Premier Boys Award for total points scored with top 10 finishes by Mitchell Cooper, Daniel Carroll, Liam Thompson and Tom Aish. There were wins by Mariah Bessem in the Long Senior Girls Standard grade and Liam Thompson in the Long Senior Boys Championship Grade. Liam also came second in the Sprints, as did Daniel Carroll in the Intermediate Boys Sprints, Mitchell Cooper in the Long Intermediate Boys Championship Grade, and Molly McGowan in the Long Junior Girls Championship Grade. Anton Aish came third in the Senior Boys Standard grade. The Senior Boys followed up their win at the NISS by taking out the AKSS Relay Championship, with their number two team coming in third. The Intermediate Boys also won their division, and the Intermediate Girls came third.

AKSS Orienteering Sprint Series Mitchell Cooper, pictured right, and Daniel Carroll, at left, finished second and third respectively in the Intermediate Boys division of the AKSS Orienteering Sprint Series Championships held at Macleans College and Unitec. MAGS had many other top 10 finishers in their grades. Junior Girls: Molly McGowan – 9th; Junior Boys: Sam Taylor Sinclair – 5th, Thomas Aish – 6th; Intermediate Girls: Theané van Zyl – 7th; Jydee Leonard – 9th; Intermediate Boys: Aidan Skinner - 7th, Luca Eastwood 9th, Seth Dean - 10th; Senior Boys: Thomas Brendolise – 5th, Adam Bateman – 8th.

Wrestling In March, MAGS had two female wrestlers come out on top of the opposition. Tyra Sharma won both her matches in the Auckland Secondary Schools Novice Wrestling Championship to be crowned champion of the Senior Girls 75kg-plus Division. Tyra was MAGS’ sole representative at the wrestling champs. She also fought a special exhibition match against a heavier male competitor but lost to him. And Year 10 student Tiger Cocker-Lemalie, pictured left, won a gold medal in the 65kg Junior Girls Category at the Auckland Secondary Schools Open Wrestling Championships.

THE LION

ROWING The MAGS Rowing squad competed strongly across all competitions throughout the season.

After winning a silver medal in the Girls U16 Single Sculls at the Maadi Cup at the end of March, Holly Chaafe was named in the North Island v South Island U18 Trials. Holly also teamed up with Hannah Zwalue and came sixth in New Zealand in the U17 Girls Double Sculls at the Maadi Cup, held from March 19-25. In other Maadi Cup results, the Boys U15 Coxed Quad Sculls placed fifth in their A Final, while the Boys U18 Coxed Four placed eighth in their A Final, competing in a blue ribbon event for the Springbok Shield. A huge effort by the Boys U17 Coxed Eight in a very competitive division got them into the A Final where they finished seventh. The

Boys U17 Coxed Four won their B Final, placing them ninth in the country. The U18 Novice Girls Coxed Eight placed fourth in their B final, putting them in the top 12 crews in the country in that division. Hannah Zwalue finished fourth in the B Final of the U17 Girls Single Sculls, also putting her in the top 12 in New Zealand. And the Boys U16 Coxed Eight placed sixth in the B Final.

North Island Secondary Schools Championship MAGS was one of the top 10 rowing schools at the North Island Secondary Schools Championship held at Lake Karapiro in early

MAGSâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; medal-winning rowers from the North Island Secondary School Rowing Championships are (back row, from left): Blake Jowsey, Ethan Welch, Callum Nicholson, Anthony Peters, Max Conder. Front row: Holly Chaafe, Hannah Zwalue.

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March. MAGS rowers brought home two gold medals, one silver and one bronze from the 2018 North Island Secondary Schools Rowing Championships to finish ninth-equal. Holly Chaafe won the Under 16 Girls Single Sculls, came second in the Under 17 Girls Single Sculls, and joined Hannah Zwalue to win the Under 17 Girls Double Sculls. The Under 15 Boys Coxed Quad Sculls crew of Anthony Peters, Callum Nicholson, Ethan Welch, Blake Jowsey and Max Conder, earned a bronze medal. MAGSRow qualified into 13 A finals and seven B finals.

Head of the Harbour regatta Despite foul conditions, MAGS Row crews brought home three gold, five silver and five bronze medals from the Head of the Harbour regatta (Auckland Championships) held on Lake Pupuke in February. Holly Chaafe won gold in the Girls U16 Single Sculls and the Girls U17 Single Sculls, while the Boys U15 Coxed Quad Sculls also came out on top. Silvers were won in the Boys U17 Coxed Eight, Girls U16 Coxed Quad Sculls, Boys U17 Coxed Four, Girls U17 Double Sculls, and Boys U15 Coxed Octuple Sculls. Bronze medals were won by the Boys U15 Double Sculls, Girls U15 Coxed Four, Boys U18 Novice Coxed Eight, Boys U18 Coxed Four, and Girls U16 Coxed Four.

SPORT

A School House team took on visiting Japanese side Sapporo Yamanote. A scratch rugby team from School House made a great comeback but were beaten 19-17 by visiting Sapporo Yamanote High of Japan at MAGS in March. The School House team was coached and organised by the School House prefects and captained by Vaughn Mika. Before the game, all 105 School House students performed the House haka, which was answered by the Japanese team, who were trying to gain experience for the Sanix World Rugby Youth Tournament.

MAGS Girls Rugby 10s team has made a strong debut While the Girls 10s competition has been going for a couple of years, this year is the first time MAGS has entered a team. They started with a big win over Kelston Girls High and have steamrolled most opponents since. Played on Mondays, the Girls 10s is a development competition aimed at encouraging schools to put out a Girls XV, which MAGS might do in the future.

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Softball The Premier Boys Softball team swept all before them in a season that saw them become New Zealand champions for the sixth straight year and claim the Auckland title. They claimed the NZ Secondary Schools title for the sixth straight year after a 3-0 win at Summer Tournament over Hastings Boys High in the final at Fraser Park, Lower Hutt on March 23. Floyd Nola was named Tournament MVP and Ryan Earley named Top Catcher. They were also named in the Tournament Team, as were MAGS’ pitcher Taine Slaughter, in-fielder Brock Evans, out-fielder Isaac Munro, and coach Stu Kinghorn. They were unbeaten at the tournament and beat arch-rivals Hastings Boys High three times on the way to the national secondary schools title. In four of their round robin games, the mercy rule was invoked because MAGS was so far in front. A few days after that win in Wellington, the Premier Boys Softball team wrapped up the Auckland title as well. In the final, they were up 10-0 in the fourth innings against Auckland Grammar School – with four automatic home runs – when the mercy rule was applied. And the NZ Softball National Championships featured a number of MAGS players representing Auckland through the boys grades with some excellent results. U23A – 2nd Place, Max Earley. U23B – Floyd Nola. U19A – 1st Place, Floyd Nola, Taine Slaughter. U19B – 11th Place, Max Earley, Brock Evans. Rest Team: Max Earley. 54

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U17A – 1st Place, Max Earley, Brock Evans, Taine Slaughter. U17B – 5th Place, Ryan Earley, Devon Carr, Oscar Clark, Jack Olson, Liam Jardine-Ngauamo. Tournament Awards: Top Pitcher & MVP: Taine Slaughter. Top Catcher: Max Earley. Tournament Team: Taine Slaughter, Max Earley, Brock Evans. U15A – 3rd Place, Ryan Earley, Cole Joyce, Lucas Craig, Maclain Roberts, Luke Roberts. U15B – 5th Place, Cooper Taylor, Sam Nash, James Dougal, Logan Carr, Liam Baber. Tournament Team: Ryan Earley, Maclain Roberts. Rest Team: Logan Carr.

New Zealand selections The New Zealand U19 Junior Black Sox Softball Team named three MAGS Year 13 boys in the 2018 team: Floyd Nola and Taine Slaughter along with Max Earley, who was a non-travelling reserve. The team travelled to Canada to compete in the Junior Men’s World Series. Max Earley and Brock Evans have been named in the NZ U17 Boys Softball Team. They travel to Queensland to compete against an Australian selection. Beth Reid, Mikayla Cross and Brooklyn Temu made the Emerging Sox NZ Girls Softball team that travelled to Canada. Also, Nerida Elson, who left MAGS last year, was selected in the Junior White Sox to compete in Canada with the Emerging Sox.

SPORT

SWIMMING

Seven records broken at championships. The MAGS Swimming Sports were held at the Mt Albert Aquatic Centre on February 14. More than 100 students entered to compete for the Boys and Girls Junior, Intermediate and Senior school swimming championships. Seven school records were broken, and all our students raced well to produce some good early season results. Brearna Crawford, (shortlisted athlete to represent NZ at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games) won all seven of her entered events and broke five long-standing Intermediate Girls school records. Tony Tua-Tagaloa and Michael Chapman broke a record each in a hotly contested Junior Boys championships. Champions for 2018: Junior Boys Michael Chapman, Junior Girls - Edie Ancell, Intermediate Boys - Justin Hemara, Intermediate Girls - Brearna Crawford, Senior Boys - Bede Aitu, Senior Girls Vasilina Shipilova. The schoolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s swimming champions continued their strong form at at the Central East Zone competition, with Brearna Crawford dominating the Intermediate Girls division with wins in the 50m Butterfly, 50m Backstroke, 50m Breaststroke, and 50m Freestyle. There were more good wins by other MAGS students with Tony Tua-Tagaloa taking out the Junior Boys 50m Backstroke, and relay team wins in the Open Girls 200m Butterfly, Open Girls 200m Backstroke, Junior Girls 200m Freestyle, Intermediate Girls 200m Freestyle, and Junior Girls 200m Medley.

Brearna Crawford has also been selected for the New Zealand team to compete at the Australia State Swimming Championships in Canberra in October. The announcement came after she collected seven golds and broke several records at the National Age Group Swimming Championships held at the Millennium Institute on the North Shore in May.

In the Girls 15 Years division, she set a New Zealand record in the 50m Butterfly, and set three Auckland records (in the 50m Breast Stroke, and the 50m and 100m Butterfly). Her seven Golds came in the 50m Freestyle, Breast Stroke, Butterfly, 100m Breast Stroke, Butterfly, and in the 200m Breast Stroke and Individual Medley. She also picked up a Bronze in the 100m Freestyle.

MAGS Swimming Champions for 2018 are (back row, from left to right): Senior Boys Champion Bede Aitu, 100m Backstroke record-breaker Tony Tua-Tagaloa, Junior Boys Champion Michael Chapman, Intermediate Boys Champion Justin Hemara. Front row: Junior Girls Champion Edie Ancell, Intermediate Girls Champion Brearna Crawford, Senior Girls Champion Vasilina Shipilova.

Water Polo Bronze medal at nationals.

The MAGS Senior Girls Water Polo team claimed Bronze at the NZ Secondary Schools Tournament held in Rotorua in April. The team only just missed out on playing off for a Gold or Silver after losing to EGGS in a penalty shoot-out in the semi-finals. They had some great wins, 7-4 v John Paul, 5-0 v Takapuna, 5-0 v Cambridge High, and 7-3 v Waikato Dio, along with a 2-2 draw with EGGS and a 6-11 loss to St Margaretâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, who were the overall winners of the tournament. It was a very successful tournament, placing third out of 17 teams in the competition and with Caitlin Mossman being named in the Tournament Team.

THE LION

Parent-Daughter Breakfast On June 21, the school hosted another successful Parent-Daughter Breakfast with former Silver Ferns captain Bernice Mene as guest speaker.

Bernice Mene with Year 9 student Ella Sutton.

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It might have been cold, wet and dark outside but that was overcome by the warmth of Ms Mene’s personality as she entertained guests gathered in the Maurice Hall Atrium with recollections of her time as a schoolgirl, netball player and teacher at MAGS. After a catered breakfast and introductions from Headmaster Patrick Drumm and Head Girl Hannah Houghton, Ms Mene, who taught languages at MAGS and helped to set up the Netball Academy, talked about the importance of family in guiding you through life, being proud of who you are and not being afraid of standing out – something she said she knew a lot about as a 6′ 2″ woman. She threw in lots of humorous anecdotes about her Samoan background, school and family life but her message to the girls assembled was to always try to be bigger and better. After being thanked by Mr Drumm, Ms Mene was presented with a bouquet of flowers by Year 9 students Ella Sutton, Lucy Taylor and Bella Krikorian.

MAGS FOUNDATION

ParentSon Breakfast Entertainer Pio Terei mixed wit and wisdom in a highly entertaining speech at the Inaugural Parent-Son Breakfast for Year 9 & 13 boys and their families held on June 28.

After his speech, Pio Terei was presented with a gift by Year 9 student Jack Millar, who is pictured with his father Ray Millar and Mr Terei.

Mr Terei, who is also a presenter and spokesperson for The Parenting Place, was introduced to the gathering by Headmaster Patrick Drumm and Head Boy Isaac Munro. He spoke to both sons and parents about keeping the channels of communication open and trying to understand each other’s perspective. He emphasised that a rich life did not revolve around material possessions. He also talked about his relationship with his father and his sons, and revealed that he was still dealing with the grief of losing his youngest son Teina to cancer almost two years ago at age 17. Mr Terei advised the boys that their friends were like elevators: they could either take you up or take you down, so they should be chosen wisely. At the conclusion of his speech, Mr Terei was presented with a gift by Year 9 student Jack Millar. The catered event and the previous week’s Parent-Daughter Breakfast were kindly sponsored by Anne Duncan Real Estate.

Adolescent Benefits Cosmetic and Implant Dentistry Emergency Dentistry General Dentistry Oral Hygiene Oral Surgery Periodontal (gum) Treatment Sedation Dentistry

Dr Mike Thompson invites you and all your family members to our practice.

Committed to providing an excellent dental care experience to our patients, we invite you and your family to try our professional dental services.

377 Mt Albert Road, Mt Roskill • INFO@THOMPSONDENTAL.CO.NZ • 09 620 8066 • THOMPSON DENTAL .CO.NZ general and cosmetic dentistry

THE LION

Image: Lisa Grennell – Forget Me Not. Art Show Photography: Bryn Corkery.

A WEEKEND OF ART & ENTERTAINMENT FOR EVERYONE 17th – 19th August 2018 For exhibiting artists’ work visit www.magsartshow.co.nz and follow us for all the latest show posts.

JOIN US FOR THE ANNUAL MOUNT ALBERT GRAMMAR SCHOOL FOUNDATION ART SHOW – SEE A STUNNING SELECTION OF ARTWORKS AND SUPPORT YOUR SCHOOL. Over the past four years the MAGS Art Show has developed a reputation as a well-curated art event showcasing some of the country’s finest painting, photography and sculpture. This year you’ll have the opportunity to view more than 1000 artworks from emerging and established New Zealand artists and from our top MAGS art students. All the artworks featured in the MAGS Art Show are available for purchase so if you see something you love, you’re invited to buy it and take it home at the end of the show. Alternatively, you can cast your best bid for one of the treats in our Silent Auction – including artworks, a $1500 campervan voucher and loads more! A commission from every artwork sold goes to the MAGS Foundation with the profits used to fund new school resources and equipment, and an Artist in Residence programme. Finding a piece of art you love, big or small, can bring you years of pleasure. We hope you’ll join us for one of the highlights of the MAGS calendar.

GALA EVENING

ART WEEKEND

Enjoy a great night out with friends, exhibiting artists and the MAGS community. Secure your ticket to the Gala Evening to be first to view and purchase artworks from this beautifully curated art show.

Art is for everyone and the MAGS Art Show offers a wonderful, free introduction to a wide variety of art and artists in a relaxed atmosphere.

Buy your tickets through our website: www.magsartshow.co.nz

Take a look at the art at your own pace, visit the onsite pop-up café and enjoy a series of performances from MAGS music and performing arts students throughout the weekend. Bring the whole family and show your support for the school and our community of artists.

Numbers are limited so be quick! Due to alcohol service and venue capacity, please note that the Gala evening is adults only.

Don’t forget to vote for your favourite student artwork to help us find the winner of this year’s People’s Choice Award.

Tickets are $50 and include beverages, delicious canapés and entertainment from talented MAGS musicians and artists.

WHEN

FRIDAY 17TH AUGUST 6.30PM – 10PM

WHERE

FW GAMBLE HALL MOUNT ALBERT GRAMMAR SCHOOL

WHEN

SATURDAY 18TH AUGUST 10AM – 6PM SUNDAY 19TH AUGUST 10AM - 3PM

WHERE

FW GAMBLE HALL MOUNT ALBERT GRAMMAR SCHOOL

Sir Bryan officially invested Albertian Sir Bryan Williams was officially invested as a knight by Governor General Dame Patsy Reddy on May 1 at Government House in Auckland.

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Grammar, from teachers who he says prepared him for his career and life after school. Sir Bryan has served MAGS, the community and the country through his career as a player, administrator and tireless volunteer. In 2017, MAGS’ Number 1 rugby ground was named the BG Williams Field in a ceremony attended by a who’s who of New Zealand rugby. It has since been renamed the Sir BG Williams Field.

Following a stellar career with the All Blacks, and qualifying as a lawyer, Sir Bryan served as President of the NZ Rugby Union, led the development of Manu Samoa, was Director of Rugby at MAGS and is still involved with the Ponsonby Rugby Club. Sir Bryan’s sons Gavin and Paul also attended MAGS and each was Head Boy in his final year. He often returns to MAGS for reunions and special events.

PHOTO COURTESY OF BRETT PHIBBS/NZ HERALD

Former All Black Sir Bryan was awarded the New Zealand Order of Merit for his services to rugby in the 2018 New Year's Honours list. The 67-year-old was reported as being "chuffed" with the honour but was not so sure about being called "Sir Bryan". The New Zealand Barbarians held a special luncheon on May 10 at Eden Park to recognise their patron receiving his knighthood. MAGS’ School House boys (pictured) were invited to perform a haka for Sir Bryan at the event, which had speakers such as Eric Rush, Stu Wilson, Greg McGee and Phil Kingsley-Jones. Sir Bryan hung up his All Black boots in 1978 after 113 appearances but continued to play at regional and club levels, before moving into coaching and administration. He attended MAGS from 1963-1967, and was a Prefect and Victor Ludorum in his final year. In addition to starring in the First XV under legendary coach Eugene Cheriton, Sir Bryan also competed in the First XI Cricket team, and in Athletics, where he was a sprint and field champion. He has also spoken of the outstanding education he received at Mount Albert

CORRIDORS Chris Liddell’s rise through the business and political ranks in the United States would come as no surprise to his former schoolmates at MAGS. Mr Liddell (1971-1975), who was appointed a deputy chief of staff in the Trump administration in March, swept MAGS’ major awards in his final year at the school. In 1975 he was Dux, Victor Ludorum, vice captain and best player in the 1st XV Rugby team, most improved oarsman in the Senior VIII, a member of the Senior Athletics and Cross Country teams, played Senior Rugby League and was a member of the Senior Chess team. After leavings MAGS, he gained a Bachelor of Engineering degree with honours from the University of Auckland, and a Master of Philosophy degree from Oxford University. His business career has included executive roles at Carter Holt Harvey, General Motors and Microsoft. His first appointment to the White House staff came about a year ago when he was made assistant to President Donald Trump and Director of Strategic Initiatives. Mr Liddell, who was named Albertian of the Year in 2011, has never forgotten the role MAGS played in his life. He and brother John started the Liddell Scholarships in 2008, and made a $1 million commitment to the MAGS Foundation, which aims to raise $10 million by the school’s centenary in 2022.

Mr Liddell is pictured when he was named Albertian of the Year in 2011.

Jim Lott honoured on Memorial Day The memory of Albertian Jim Lott, who was killed while serving with the US Marines in the Vietnam War, was honoured by MAGS students on Memorial Day. Year 12 History students Daniel Mackay, Sophie Thomson and Kieran Atkinson (pictured left to right) were accompanied by Deputy Principal Tom Murdoch and laid a wreath in honour of Cpl Lott at a service at the Auckland War Memorial Museum. All three students have travelled to Vietnam, and have taken a keen interest in the war. After gaining his School Certificate and UE in the early 1960s, Jim Lott left MAGS after sixth form for teacher’s college, wanting to follow in his mother’s footsteps. Not long before that, when he turned 16, he received a letter from the US Department of Defense telling him he was eligible to join the US military because his father was an American. In 1965, at the age of 18, he decided to enlist and was joined by his younger brother and Albertian Garry, who survived the war. Cpl Lott was killed in a rocket attack on May 8, 1968 at Chu Lai.

THE LION

BOXING: Troy Garton

Albertians in Sport

Albertian Troy Garton won a Bronze medal as part of the New Zealand boxing team for the Commonwealth Games held in April on Australia’s Gold Coast. Troy, who attended MAGS from 2001-05 and was a Premier Girls netballer, was fighting in the Women's 60kg division and was part of an eight-strong boxing team that included three females. Troy, aged 30, started boxing about four years ago – as part of a charity event. But in recent years she has taken on and beaten Australia's best female boxers, and last year became a national champion.

In June, she spoke at a special Junior Girls Assembly about her boxing journey and received her Black Cap from Headmaster Patrick Drumm. She also enjoyed seeing her name up on the school's National Sporting Honours Board. She told the assembly how she had won a Bronze despite having ruptured her knee before fighting at the Games on the Gold Coast this year. Troy is undergoing rehab for the injury but aiming for Gold at the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2020.

RUGBY: Caleb Clarke It’s been a big year so far for Caleb Clarke (2012-16), who was part of the All Black Sevens team that finished third when the World Series concluded in June. The outside back, who played for MAGS' 1st XV from 2014-2016, made his debut for the All Black Sevens in Sydney in January and showed off his try-scoring prowess immediately. Unfortunately, appendix surgery ruled him out of the Commonwealth Games Sevens team that won a Gold medal on the Gold Coast in April. In February, a five-try performance by Caleb saw him named player of the tournament at the Brisbane Global Tens. Caleb, the son of former All Blacks midfielder Eroni Clarke, was top try-scorer, and his efforts helped the Blues into the final, which they won in the last minute. He also returned for a second World Rugby U20 Championship campaign with the New Zealand Under 20s, having lifted the trophy in 2017. He was joined by fellow Albertians Waimana Riedlinger-Kapa (2012-16) and Rob Cobb (2012-16) in the U20 side that travelled to France in May/June. They could not repeat the heroics of 2017, getting knocked out by France in the semis, and losing the 3rd/4th playoff to South Africa.

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CORRIDORS

RUGBY: Jack Goodhue Jack Goodhue (2010-13) made his test debut for the All Blacks on June 23 in the final game of a three-test series against France after being named in the starting line-up in the centres alongside fellow Albertian Sonny Bill Williams. Jack, who was MAGS' 2013 Head Boy, has been on the All Blacks' radar for some time having been named in the team's wider squads before and played for the All Blacks against a French selection in a non-test. Sonny Bill, named Albertian of the Year last year, returned from a knee injury to face France. He played at inside centre with Jack outside him.

FOOTBALL: Nikko Boxall Nikko Boxall (2006-10) made his All Whites debut in June when the team opened their HERO Intercontinental Cup campaign in India with a 2-1 loss to Kenya. The 26-year-old, who is a defender and plays his football for Danish First Division side Viborg FF, was selected for his first All Whites squad in March when the team took on Canada in Spain. He was hoping to get on the pitch that day and play alongside his older brother and Albertian Michael (2002-2006) but it didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t work out that way. Because he has spent most of his professional career playing in Scandinavia, little has been seen of Nikko on this side of the world. He was one of several new faces selected by coach Fritz Schmid for the training camp and behindclosed-doors friendly against Canada in Spain. Sonny Bill Williams.

CRICKET: Katene Clarke Katene Clarke (2013-17) made his debut for the New Zealand U19 team at the U19 World Cup held in New Zealand at the beginning of the year. At the tournament, he scored 60 in his first match â&#x20AC;&#x201C; against England. Katene continued to contribute runs in the middle order but New Zealand were knocked out in the quarter-finals by Afghanistan. At the New Zealand U19 National Cricket Tournament last December, he captained the Northern Districts U19 cricket team and was the top run scorer at the tournament with 383 runs. He has also been a member of the Counties Manukau Cricket senior men's team and is a member of the Pukekohe Metro premier team, which won all four premiership trophies for the 2017/2018 season.

Katene Clarke, at right, during the U19 Cricket World Cup. Photo courtesy of NZ Cricket.

THE LION

Rocky Khan gives back Albertian Rocky Khan (20032008) returned to MAGS to present to the school his jersey from his debut with the All Black Sevens in 2013 at the Wellington Sevens. Mr Khan, who made MAGS' Rugby First XV in Year 11, was twice named Boys Victor Ludorum (best all round sportsman) at MAGS and captained First XI Cricket. According to the New Zealand Rugby Union, Mr Khan was the first player of Asian descent to pull on the black jersey. At a special assembly on May 14, Mr Khan – pictured with Headmaster Patrick Drumm – spoke of his time at MAGS, sitting in assembly and staring at the Honours Boards, dreaming of the day his name would be up there in gold lettering. He also spoke of the challenges of playing rugby at the school, coming up against much bigger opponents. Mr Khan related how he had to work hard for his breakthrough with the All Black Sevens to achieve that dream of getting his name up on the Honours Boards.

Black Cap for Sarpreet Singh Albertian Sarpreet Singh (2013-2015) was awarded his Black Cap on April 13 at a special Football Assembly to celebrate his debut for the All Whites. Sarpreet, pictured with Headmaster Patrick Drumm, plays for the Wellington Phoenix in the A-League, and was the 19th Albertian footballer to win international honours. Being awarded his Black Cap obviously gave Sarpreet a huge boost as he went on to score both goals in the Phoenix’s 2-1 win over Melbourne City in Auckland the next night. Fellow Phoenix footballer and Albertian Oli Sail, pictured right, was also at the presentation, and gave a speech about the importance of resilience. It's a subject Oli knows a lot about, having had to bide his time before making his debut for the Phoenix and the All Whites. He told the Football Assembly that you had to work hard to achieve your dreams but hard work alone was never a guarantee of success. Self-belief and resilience were key assets in sports.

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CORRIDORS

IN MEMORIUM Stuart Callender A loving husband, proud father and grandfather (known as Puku), loyal friend, dedicated lawyer and diehard Mooloo supporter were how many remembered Warkworth lawyer Stuart Callender (1959-63) at a service held at the Matakana Hall on May 7. There was standing room only as hundreds of family, friends and colleagues gathered to pay their respects. The service, conducted by Anglican priest Ann Mellor, included a karakia by his grandchildren, several references to his beloved Red Band gumboots and some quintessential Kiwi music such as 10 Guitars and Poi E. His friend and colleague Bod Eades described Stuart as a rare breed. “He served everyone to the best of his abilities, and with integrity,” Bob said. “He was reliable, steadfast, honest, loyal and direct.” His assistant at Wynyard Wood’s Auckland office for more than 20 years, Trisha Murray also described him as a ‘big softie’. “His loud laugh could be heard throughout the office and when asked how he was, the reply was inevitably, ‘Immaculate!’” Stuart was with the firm for nearly 50 years. Born in Pahiatua, one of five children, Stuart spent his formative years on the family farm at Orini in the Waikato. The farm remained in family ownership until his parents retired. He boarded at Mount Albert Grammar School where he later served as Head

Prefect and played for the First XV. After school, he played for Grammar Schools’ Old Boys’ Rugby Football Club and Auckland University Rugby Football Club, Varsity Lawyers. He was on the MAGS Old Boys’ Association management committee and an active member of Epsom Kiwanis for many years. While at university, he stayed briefly at St Francis House in Grey Lynn, but along with a couple of mates, was asked to leave after contravening the alcohol prohibition rule. Their attempts to blame the smell of the alcohol on a bag of rotting apples were apparently unconvincing. He flatted in Moehau Street, Grafton, with his fellow ‘evacuees’, one of whom became his brother-in-law. He met Rosalind (Roz) Fenton in 1964 and they married in 1967. The couple bought a 40-hectare farm near Orini, at Te Hoe, in 1979 in an attempt to quell Stuart’s frustrated farmer side. They had the farm for 12 years prior to moving to Matakana in 1999, where they ran beef and a few sheep, and provided a home for stray dogs, ducks, pukeko and pheasants. A number of references were made to Stuart’s enjoyment of a beer or two, with his

daughter Rachel observing that his favourite beer was DB Green. “He was possibly the only person who kept it in production,” she said. In recent years, Stuart supported Roz in exploring her whakapapa and encouraged her to develop her artistic talents, particularly in weaving and dying harakeke. Meanwhile, he was a regular on the sidelines of sports fields around Auckland when his grandchildren were playing. He loved being part of the local community and for many years, he and Roz were instrumental in the Warkworth Santa Parade and Wynyard Wood’s pirate ship float. As a proudly fair man, he equally supported local drinking establishments in both Warkworth and Matakana. Stuart died at home surrounded by his family. He is survived by his wife Roz, children Rachel, Fiona, Catherine and Hamish, and seven grandchildren. – Courtesy of Mahurangi Matters

John (Jack) Sinclair Hall of Distinction inductee Professor John (Jack) Sinclair attended MAGS from 1939-1943. Jack (BMedSc, MBChB, MD, FRACP) was inducted into the MAGS Hall of Distinction for services to athletics and medicine in 2004. He was a Prefect in 1943, a member of the Senior athletic team, Rawlings Scholar, John Williamson Scholar, and University Entrance Scholar in 1943. Among his athletic achievements, he was NZ mile champion in 1948 and 1950 and the record-holder. He represented NZ at the 1950 Empire Games. He enjoyed badminton and tennis, and played tennis well into his later years. He studied medicine at Otago University (1947 B Med Sc. 1950 MB ChB. 1955 MD. 1956 MRACP. 1966 FRACP). From 1953-1954 he was a Research Fellow at the NZ Medical Research Council, and became a Research Fellow at the Institute of Chest Diseases,

London 1956-1957. He was also a post-doctoral Fellow, at the Mayo Clinic (USA), and went on to become Physician in Charge of the Physiology Department, Green Lane Hospital 1960-1966. Jack played a big part in setting up the Auckland Medical School, and was a member of the Medical Advisory Committee set up by the University of Auckland in 1964 to plan the establishment of the School. One of his most notable achievements was being Foundation Professor of Physiology at the University of Auckland School of Medicine in 1968. He was also a co-founder of The Physiological Society of New Zealand in 1972. He retired in 1993. He married Pat in 1952 and they had two sons and two daughters – Murray, Margaret, Graham and Penelope.

He had 12 grandchildren and was playing tennis with them right up to the age of 89. Jack died in February aged 90.

THE LION

Major John Liddell, Chairman of the Board of Trustees Mr Greg Moyle, Mr David Griffin, past president of the Albertians Association, BoT member Mr Dale Griffiths, Headmaster Mr Patrick Drumm.

ALBERTIANS' ANZAC LUNCH Albertians and guests gathered for luncheon at School House following the Anzac Day Service held at the school on Thursday, 12 April.

School House Manager Mr Geoff Moon.

MT ALBERT GRAMMAR SCHOOL

Major John Liddell and Professor Russell Stone, author of Tradition and Change: Mount Albert Grammar School: The First Seventy-five Years.

KEY DATES 2018 TERM 3 23 July Monday Start of Term 3 24 July Tuesday Option Booklets distributed for 2018 selection 26 July Wednesday Cultural Concert - rehearsal 27 July Thursday Cultural Concert, Auckland Girls Grammar School 30 July Monday Information Evening for Intermediates 31 July Tuesday Information Evening for Intermediates 1 August Wednesday Winter Sports Photos 2 August Thursday Parent/Teacher Interviews (3.30-7pm)

17-20 September Mon-Thurs Senior Examinations 21 September Friday Staff Only Day, MAGS Annual Dinner / Albertian of the Year 25 September Tuesday Junior Bytes 26 September Wednesday Arts Alive 28 September Friday End of Term 3

TERM 4 15 October Monday Start of Term 4

7 November Wednesday NCEA commences

3 June Monday Queen’s Birthday

19 October Friday Service Lions Ceremony

5 December Wednesday Year 9 Prizegiving, Year 10 Prizegiving

28 October Monday Labour Day

6 December Thursday

2019 SCHOOL HOLIDAYS

22 October Monday Labour Day 25 October Thursday Annual Sports Dinner

7 August Tuesday MAGS Future Pathways – careers and course planning evening

26 October Friday Year 11 Prizegiving

17-19 August Fri-Sun MAGS Fine Art Show

29 October Monday Senior Prizegiving, Leavers’ Dinner

23 August Thursday Final day for return of 2018 Options Forms

Pasifika Dinner

End of Term 4 Please refer to our website www.mags.school.nz for the full Calendar, including all sporting events

2019 PUBLIC HOLIDAYS 28 January Monday Auckland Anniversary Day (observance)

31 October Wednesday Year 8 Girls Testing

6 February Wednesday Waitangi Day (observance)

3-8 September Mon-Sat Winter Tournament Week

1 November Thursday Year 8 Boys Testing

19 April Friday Good Friday

12 September Wednesday Out of zone ballot conducted

2 November Friday Arts Dinner

22 April Monday Easter Monday

12-14 September Wed-Fri Senior Examinations

5-9 November Mon-Fri Junior Examinations

25 April Thursday Anzac Day

TERM 1 29 January Tuesday Year 9 only 30 January Wednesday Full school in to 12 April Friday TERM 2 29 April Monday to 5 July Friday TERM 3 22 July Monday to 27 September Friday TERM 4 14 October Monday to 6 December Friday

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