Campion College Newsletter

Loving God,

As we celebrate Pentecost, we give thanks for the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Fill our school community with your wisdom, courage, and peace.

Guide our students to use their gifts with confidence and kindness.
Strengthen our staff as they support and encourage others each day.
Help us to be people of compassion, commitment, and community in all that we do.

May the Spirit inspire us to work together with faith, hope, and love, so that Campion College may continue to be a place where every person feels valued, supported, and connected.

We ask this through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Tēnā koutou parents, students, staff, and whānau,

There continues to be a significant amount of discussion nationally around curriculum and assessment changes across secondary education. Over recent weeks there have been a number of announcements made by the Ministry of Education regarding curriculum refresh developments, Reading, Writing, and Mathematics, as well as proposed changes to NCEA and senior secondary pathways.

I would like to reassure our community that Campion College staff are working hard to stay informed and up to date with these changes. As a school, we are carefully considering what these developments mean for our students across Years 7–13 and are working to ensure any transitions are smooth, well planned, and supportive of student learning and wellbeing.

To help keep parents and whānau informed, we will be holding an upcoming parent information evening for families of students in Years 7–10. This session will outline some of the changes being introduced nationally, what they may look like at Campion College, and the impact they may have on student learning moving forward. We encourage families to attend and engage in these important conversations with us.

Outside of the classroom, I have thoroughly enjoyed spending time attending as many school events as possible over recent weeks. It has been wonderful to support our students at netball, football, Smokefreerockquest, and this week’s Gymnastics Festival. The depth of talent across our kura continually astounds me, and I genuinely enjoy being involved in these aspects of school life. Whether on the sports field, on stage, or representing the College in other ways, our students continue to make us incredibly proud.

I also know many of our students are looking forward to Youth Mass and Youth Group this week. These opportunities play an important role in strengthening faith, connection, and belonging within our Catholic community. Thank you to the staff who will be supporting these events and giving their time to help make these experiences possible for our young people.

Next week, I will be attending the Secondary Principals’ Association Conference. There are a number of sessions specifically designed for beginning principals, and I am looking forward to learning alongside both new and experienced principals from across the country. Opportunities such as these are invaluable for professional growth and for ensuring we continue to lead our schools well in a rapidly changing educational landscape.

This weekend the Church celebrates Pentecost — often referred to as the birthday of the Church. Pentecost reminds us of the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples, giving them courage, wisdom, and unity as they went out to serve others. In many ways, Pentecost speaks strongly to life within a school community. Each day we are called to encourage one another, use our gifts in service of others, and work together with compassion and purpose. As a Catholic school, we continue to strive to be a community where faith is lived out not only in prayer and liturgy, but also in the way we learn, lead, support, and care for one another.

Yours in Christ

Karyn Sadler

Principal

We warmly invite parents and caregivers of our Year 9 and 10 students to meet with their child’s teacher on Monday between 3.00pm and 4.15pm. These meetings provide a valuable opportunity to discuss your child’s learning, progress, and engagement at school.

To book an appointment, please contact Christine at the College Office on 06 867 9309 or email office@campioncollege.school.nz.

Please note that opportunities for meetings with teachers for other year levels will also be available later in the year.

Campion College is continuing to review and strengthen our Years 7–10 curriculum in response to ongoing national changes in education, including the refreshed New Zealand Curriculum and the increasing focus on Reading, Writing, and Mathematics.

We warmly invite parents and caregivers of students in Years 7–10 to attend an Information Evening on Wednesday, 3 June at 5.30pm in Marcellin 1 focused on these important changes and what they will look like at Campion College moving forward.

The session will focus on:

• The key changes occurring within the New Zealand Curriculum
• How these changes will be implemented within the Campion College Years 7–10 programme
• The learning progressions, knowledge, and skills students will be developing and working towards

This will be an opportunity for families to gain a clearer understanding of the direction of education in Years 7–10, the increasing expectations around Reading, Writing, and Mathematics, and how we are working to ensure students are well supported for future learning pathways. There will also be an opportunity for questions and discussion. We look forward to seeing you there.

Father Ritche and Father Alliston warmly invite all parishioners to join us for a special Parish Pentecost Recollection this Saturday at 10:00am at the church.

The reflection, titled “Come, Holy Spirit: The Role of the Holy Spirit in the Life of a Christian,” will be facilitated by Father Alliston Fernandes.

This gathering is an opportunity to pause, reflect, and prepare spiritually for the celebration of Pentecost, often referred to as the birthday of the Church. All are welcome and encouraged to attend. Morning tea will be provided following the recollection.

In the evening, please join us for Youth Mass and Youth Group.

Students are invited to wear either mufti or pyjamas to school on Wednesday, 3 June as part of our Jammies for June fundraiser.

We ask students to please bring either a gold coin donation or a new pair of pyjamas to donate.

All donations will go towards supporting children in our community who may be in need of warm pyjamas this winter. Thank you for helping us support others during the colder months.

At Campion College, we believe sport plays an important role in developing confidence, resilience, teamwork, and a strong sense of belonging. Our students continue to represent the College with pride, commitment, and sportsmanship, both locally and further afield. Campion College is seeking sponsorship support for our Tournament Sports Teams and the Year 8 Ski Trip as they prepare to compete at the New Zealand Secondary Schools Tournament this year and head to the mountain.

These events provide an exciting opportunity for our students to represent both the College and the wider Gisborne community on a national stage. To help make this possible, we are seeking sponsorship assistance to support costs associated with:

• Transport
• Accommodation
• Equipment
• Tournament uniforms and hoodies
• Other team-related expenses

We are proud of the values our students display through sport, including commitment, teamwork, resilience, and community spirit. We would value the opportunity to partner with local businesses and organisations who share these values and who are passionate about supporting young people to succeed.

Sponsorship Tiers

Gold Sponsorship – $1,000+

• Naming recognition associated with the team
• Acknowledgement in newsletters, on the Campion College website, and at sports awards
• Business name featured on tournament hoodies
• Priority sponsorship opportunity for future years

Silver Sponsorship – $500–$1,000

• Acknowledgement in newsletters, website, and sports awards
• Business name featured on tournament hoodies
• Recognition in team communications and results where possible

Bronze Sponsorship – $250

• Business name featured on tournament hoodies
• Acknowledgement in newsletters

We sincerely appreciate the support of our community and local businesses in helping provide opportunities for our students to participate, grow, and represent Campion College with pride.

A huge congratulations to our talented Campion College performers at the Smokefree Rockquest last week. We had outstanding results in the regionals.

Special congratulations to:
🥇 Summa Feterika — 1st Place Solo/Duo
🥈 Rosie Sutherland — 2nd Place Solo/Duo

Congratulations also to our bands who have all progressed through to the next round of the competition:

🎸 Tombstones of Tomorrow — Lukas Padilha, Hunter Toon, Vin Barry, Christ Tester, and Nehoa Katoa
🥁 High on Life — Cillian McGuinness
🎤 Radio Silence — Ciara McGuinness, Ella Aperahama, and Milah Blaker-Kilpatrick

The Regional Finals will be held on Friday 12 June. Well done to all of our performers for representing Campion College with such talent, energy, and pride.

Campion College students achieved outstanding success at this week's Gymnastics Festival, with excellent results across both team and individual events. Our A Grade Competitive Team placed an impressive 2nd overall, with Ayla Jarden also achieving 2nd place overall individually. The success continued in the B Grade division, where the Campion College team also placed 2nd overall. Individually, Annalyse Podjursky achieved 1st equal overall, while Brya Bickford placed 2nd equal overall.

These are fantastic achievements and reflect the dedication, preparation, and teamwork shown by all students involved. Congratulations to everyone who represented Campion College so proudly.

This week in Survival of the Fittest, students were developing fire-lighting skills as part of their survival learning. Students gathered natural materials, built and maintained fires, and worked collaboratively in teams to complete the challenge. The goal was to create a fire strong enough to cook marshmallows for s’mores. Successful groups enjoyed the reward of toasted marshmallows, while other groups reflected on what they could improve next time.

Activities like this provide authentic, hands-on learning opportunities that help students build teamwork, problem-solving, resilience, and practical survival skills. Ben and I feel very fortunate to work with such an enthusiastic and positive class, and it is incredibly rewarding to see students so engaged in their learning.

Congratulations to the following students who were recognised at our recent Kāinga Celebration of Learning for consistently displaying the Campion College values of Commitment, Community, and Compassion — our Three Cs.

• Mia Akbar — Community
• Arabella Venter — Commitment
• Reuben Zwinnen — Commitment
• Mila Langlands — Community
• Giannina Camero — Commitment

These students have demonstrated the positive attitudes, care for others, and dedication to learning that help make our Kāinga and wider College community such a special place. We are very proud of the way they continue to live out our College values each day.

This morning, our Predator Free 2050 class traded the whiteboard for some hands-on conservation work.

To give the students a practical, real-world understanding of how traps are managed, we invited Reuben Coffey from Haumanu tū Ora to lead a field demonstration. Haumanu tū Ora is a council-led organisation that has been doing incredible work managing traps along the Taruheru planting zone for the last couple of years.

The kids rolled up their sleeves and checked four traps with Reuben, getting a firsthand look at the realities of pest management:

• 🦔 Trap 1: Successfully caught one hedgehog.

• ❌ Traps 2–4: Still set, but completely cleared of bait (a classic sign of some clever critters!).

Beyond the traps, the students grilled Reuben with some fantastic, hard-hitting questions about how larger pests like goats and deer are managed in our wider ecosystem.

A massive thank you to Reuben for sharing his expertise, and to our awesome teaching team—Morgan Scott, Jol Sparks, and Jaeda Mapu—for helping facilitate a brilliant morning of outdoor learning!

🏀 Basketball

Friday, 22 May at 4:30 pm - Campion Junior Boys vs GBHS 9 Onyx

Monday, 25 May at 7:30 pm - Campion Senior Boys vs GBHS 16s

Tuesday, 26 May at 5:30 pm - Campion College Girls vs Lytton High School Girls

🏐 Netball

9:00am Campion Gerrard vs GGHS Pink - Court 6

12:00pm Campion Snr A vs Uawa Te Kahui - Court 5

12:00pm Campion Green vs Sonrise Lightning - Court 6

1:00pm Campion Snr B vs Tatapouri Sportsfit Social - Court 11

1:00pm Campion MacKillop vs Ilminstars - Court 7

1:00pm Campion Gregory vs Gis Int Red - Court 1

BYE - Campion Marcellin

⚽Football

Saturday, 23 May - Childers Road Reserve

• 12.30 pm - Campion Marist Shockers vs Versatile Thistle

🏑 Hockey

Monday, 25 May - Harry Barker Reserve

Campion Gold vs GBHS Black at 4:00pm

Campion Green vs Lytton High School at 5:00pm

Tuesday, 26 May - Harry Barker Reserve

Campion Marcellin vs Ilminster Cerise @ 4:40pm

Campion MacKillop vs Manutuke Toa @ 4:40pm

Our dates for when the College is open for instruction in 2026 are:

Term 2

Term 3

Term 4

Teacher Only Days: Please note that there are two further teacher only days. Dates are yet to be finalised.

Keep up to date with all the wonderful things we are doing on our new Campion College Facebook Page. Head over to Facebook to check it out here.

Instagram page is another place you can keep up to date. Find us here,

If you haven't yet downloaded our College App, please do so. It's an easy way to stay on top of school admin.

We love to hear about and celebrate our students' achievements.

Please share info and/or photos with karyn.sadler@campioncollege.school.nz

Our church is St Mary, Star of the Sea. We are fortunate to have our church onsite. Our parish Mass times are:

Tuesday 5.30 pm

Wednesday and Thursday 9.00 am

Friday 12.10 pm,

Saturday 9 am and Vigil Mass 6.00 pm

Sunday 9.00 am

Children’s liturgy at every Sunday 9.00 am