Spectacular Scholarship Results

Jacob Miller, at left, and Samuel Reeves are pictured with Mr Liddell following the assembly.

MAGS celebrated spectacular Scholarship results today with many of its top academics and their families at the Scholars Assembly.
Our students achieved a record 192 Scholarships in 2024 with 16 of these at Outstanding level.
Jacob Miller was named a Premier Scholar, Natasha Deakin (Accounting) and Samuel Reeves (Earth & Space Science) were the Top Scholars in their respective subjects nationwide, and
Samuel Reeves and Ryan Shen were named Outstanding Scholars.
Jacob achieved nine Scholarships with three Outstanding (Physics (O), Calculus (O), Economics (O), Biology, Chemistry, Statistics, Geography, Classical Studies, Earth & Space Science), Samuel also achieved nine (Biology (O), Earth & Space Science (O), English, German, Chemistry, Statistics, Geography, Classical Studies, Health & Physical Education), and Ryan achieved six (Geography (O), English, Biology, Statistics, Media Studies, Religious Studies).

Overall, 20 MAGS students gained Scholarship Awards by passing three or more Scholarship subjects or gaining at least two Outstanding Scholarships. Along with the aforementioned three students, the following students’ names will go up on our Honours Board in the F.W. Gamble Hall: Ryan Antia, Felix Armstrong, Elias Beachman, Quinn Bell-Purchas, Samantha Chase, Catherine Chen, Victor Coen, Sophia DePledge, Owen Frear, Marie Gamage, Ethan Green, Cade Kelly-Watt, Felix McElwee, Gemma McKinney, Jonathan Sawers, Thomas Shaw and Jonathon Yu.
Of those 20, three already have their names on our Honours Board – Jacob Miller, Samuel Reeves and Ryan Shen – having gained Scholarships Awards as Year 12s in 2023. Jacob was also named an Outstanding Scholar that year. Also notable is that Victor Coen, as a Year 12 in 2024, made the Honours Board with five Scholarships, including an Outstanding in Physics.
The assembly also saw the presentation of the June Gray Scholarship to Quinn Bell-Purchas, pictured above with Mr Drumm and Mr Gibbs.
Albertian Chris Liddell was guest speaker at the event. in 1975, his final year at MAGS, Mr Liddell was Dux and Victor Ludorum. He then went on to enjoy a stellar business career at Microsoft and General Motors, before working in the White House.
He spoke to students about the need to continually strive for excellence and encouraged them to  develop skills across many areas but to be world class in one. He also emphasised that being a team player would take you places, and that taking risks was one of the best ways to succeed despite any failures along the way.
Mr Liddell has been a huge supporter of MAGS over the years, including his staff and student scholarships that are given out annually.
You can see more detail about the Scholarship results here and more photos from the assembly here

Upcoming Scholarship Information Evening

Mount Albert Grammar School welcomes all parents and students who may be interested in sitting scholarship exams this year to attend our information evening on Wednesday, 5 March from 6-6.45pm in the F.W. Gamble Hall.
The evening is an opportunity to hear details about the scholarship exam, the process for signing up, and hear from current students who have sat the exam. 
Scholarship exams are a richly rewarding academic challenge for our students and we look forward to seeing you at the information evening.

Relay for LIfe Sign-up Next Monday

MAGS students are encouraged to sign-up for this year's Relay for Life – a fun event to fundraise for the Cancer Society.
Last year, MAGS raised $74,273!
If students can get themselves to the venue on the day and think they can raise at least $100 by the end of March, then they should get along to the meeting next Monday.

No Public Access Through School House Grounds

ATTENTION: MAGS SPORTS STUDENTS AND PARENTS

There is NO PEDESTRIAN OR VEHICLE ACCESS for any students or parents through School House. 
Gate 1, the School House gate, is for boarding students and staff parking at the G.L Weir Carpark only. It is not for pedestrian access, or drop-off and pick-up by parents. 
The hostel is home to the boarding students, and this should be treated with the same respect as a private residence. The School House boarders and staff deserve privacy and should not expect there to be others walking through the grounds or passing dormitory windows. It is also a safety issue because the road is a single lane with no footpath.
Students arriving for early morning trainings, outside of the school day, are able to be dropped off at the front of the school and will need to walk through the school grounds to their training locations.

25 Years of Girls at MAGS:
Seeking Foundation Girls and Their MAGS Daughters

Mount Albert Grammar School is both proud and excited to be celebrating the milestone of 25 Years of Girls at MAGS, and we are searching for those women within our school community who were Foundation Girls back in 2000. 
We are keen to make contact and reconnect with those ‘girls’ who paved the way and those whom have followed in their footsteps.  Mount Albert Grammar School celebrates both the tradition and change reflected in its history, and trumpets the significance of the introduction of girls and of their contribution to shaping the fabulous school we are today.
We are especially keen to reconnect with Foundation Girls, now mothers, who have also made the choice to send their daughters to MAGS.  
Please reach out to Jo Williams, Associate Principal – [email protected] – or phone 815 4036. 
We would love to hear your stories and hopefully see images that reflect these 25-year journeys. 
We appreciate that the passing of time often stretches both the sense of emotional connection and also inevitably the geographical closeness, and we believe this celebration offers an opportunity for us all to pause and reconnect with those friends, classmates and teachers who played a part in our formative years. 
Our wider MAGS community is encouraged to promote this milestone by sharing any information, this email and/or links to the MAGS website, with friends and family for whom this is relevant. 

Gateway Work Experience Placements Needed 

Do you have a business or workplace that could offer a MAGS student work experience?  
The MAGS Gateway Programme is an employability skills course that supports Year 12 students to gain experience in their chosen career pathway. 
We are looking for businesses willing to take on students for a placement this year,  particularly in the trades. Students commit to one day a week for 5-10 weeks across Terms 2 and  3.   
Other industries we are looking for include retail, beauty and hospitality. Students are trained in health and safety before they start. If you are interested in supporting a fantastic MAGS student with unpaid work experience, please contact Karen Caso, our Gateway Coordinator, at [email protected].

Keep Your Contact Details Current

The School relies on parents and caregivers keeping their contact details up to date on our database for effective and efficient communication.
If you have changed your physical address, email address or phone number, please notify our Enrolment Officer at [email protected] so we can update our records.

Please Install New MAGS App

Our MAGS App has been updated and upgraded in line with our new Kamar Portal.

You will need to delete the old app and reinstall the new one to access the Kamar Portal. When you have done that and opened the portal again, you should see this address at the bottom:
 
https://mtalbertgrammar.school.kiwi/

Parents and students should subscribe to the MAGS App, so they can choose groups about which to receive Alert Notifications. General alerts and notifications are also sent out on the app.
Parents can access Daily Notices, teachers’ contact details, and notify the School if a child is absent. When notifying absences, parents need to load a child’s Student ID Number. This should only need to be done once, and this helps us record absences more easily.
Parents and students can check the School Calendar and sync chosen events with their own Calendar. There are links to Sports, Maps, Newsletters and more …
You can find out more about the MAGS App here

Sports Update

NZ Athletics Selections

Congratulations to Kendra Scally-Tui (Year 12), pictured left, who has been selected for the New Zealand Secondary Schools Athletics team to travel to California in April to compete at various events across the state. 
Maddie Earley (Year 12) has been selected as a non-travelling reserve. 
Our Director of Sport, Mrs Revell, is also travelling with the team as a manager.

Sign Up for Athletics Day

The School Athletics Day will be taking place at Mount Smart Stadium on Thursday, February 27.
Students must be registered on Kindo by Thursday, February 20. There will be NO late registrations. 
MAGS will also be running the following distance events at Lovelock Track:
3000m: Thursday, February 13 at 7:15am
1500m: Monday, February 17 at 7:15am
800m: Friday, February 21 at 7:15am
Students wanting to do the distance events must sign up at least one day before these events take place. They must also be able to get to the Lovelock Track at those times. 
Age Groups:
Juniors: Under 14 at 1^st of January (Born in 2011 or 2012)
Intermediates: Under 16 at 1^st of January (Born in 2009 or 2010)
Seniors: Under 19 at 1^st of January (Born in 2006, 2007 or 2008)
Students in Year 9 and 10 Sports Academy are EXPECTED to register and take part in school athletics. 
Cost: $25
If you have any questions, please contact Mr Crossan on 846 2044 ext. 8136 or email carlin.crossan@mags,school.nz