Principal's Message
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Tēnā koe St Ignatius Community,
As I walk around the school throughout the week, I notice effort and excellence in abundance. This reminds me of the AMDG we ask students to write at the beginning of their work in lessons. AMDG is a powerful call that lies at the heart of our mission, meaning Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam, or in English, For the Greater Glory of God. AMDG points us to a way of life in which we strive for excellence in all that we do, not for our own recognition, but as a reflection of God’s goodness and grace in the world.
Every day within our school community, students and staff are given many opportunities to live out this calling, which I see being taken. In our academic programme, I see students growing in knowledge and skills not simply to achieve good grades, but reflecting to cultivate wisdom that will serve the greater good. In the way students are with others, I see conscience and compassion not for personal gain, but to uplift those in need, finding God in others and allowing others to find God in them. In the many friendships, I see prudence and love, with students recognising the divine in one another, seen through our 485 Award each week.
Living Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam is a way to inspire our whole community, it helps us to look beyond ourselves and to embrace a life of purpose. It calls us to ask, “How can I help others use their gifts and talents to bring light to the world? How can my actions be a testament to the love of Christ?” Whether at home, in the community, or through school, let us always remember that everything we do, no matter how small, can be an offering of love and excellence for God’s greater glory. When we dedicate ourselves fully to this mission, we not only transform our own lives but also inspire others to do the same.
May we continue to walk forward together with faith and a commitment to excellence, always seeking to bring Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam to life in all that we do. We are seeing true transformation every day in our school community through a true commitment to excellence for the right reasons and it is joyful to behold. We are growing into people who will go out to set the world on fire; we are becoming the greater glory of God.
AMDG
Dean Wearmouth |
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In this Sunday’s Gospel, we hear Jesus speaking those famous words, “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who mistreat you.” It is one of Jesus’s more revolutionary teachings and one that anyone wishing to follow him must grapple with. He intended these words to challenge those listening, including us today. Most people have valid reasons for not loving someone who mistreats them. Jesus’s teaching encourages us to forgive as God forgives us, as holding on to the hurt only damages us. However, it is important to distinguish between forgiveness—letting go of the hurt someone has inflicted—and reconciliation, which involves being in the right relationship with the other person. Jesus wants us to forgive in the hope that, if the other party is willing, they will desire reconciliation.
At St. Ignatius of Loyola Catholic College, we are a restorative school. This means that when someone is hurt in our community, we encourage all students and staff to take responsibility for their actions and try to repair the harm caused. In this way, we restore the relationship. This practice aligns well with Jesus’s teaching above, as it is by letting go of our resentment that we commit an act of love. We hope this act will spur the other person into action if they are willing; however, we can only take responsibility for our part and only hope that the other person might change.
So, over the weekend, reflect on who you may need to forgive or ask forgiveness from. You may be the person hurt or the person who afflicted the hurt. The reading is clear: Jesus calls us to love our enemies, and forgiveness is the first step in loving them. |
Curriculum
Itinerant Music
Congratulations to Haeun Park, Klay Dela Pena, Daniel Scott, and Torito Garcia, who all achieved wonderful Distinction and Merit results for their recent Trinity College of London Music Examinations. These four students all learn at school with one of our itinerant music teachers, Sarah McDowall.
Sarah teaches piano, violin, cello, and singing here at our college, and there will be opportunities for students to take lessons (and exams if they are interested) throughout the year ahead.
If you are interested in taking one of these lessons, please collect a sign up form from Student reception.
  Sport
Athletics Day
Athletics Day is the first sporting event for our school year, bringing together our ākonga for a day of competition, participation, and school spirit. A huge thank you to all the staff for their dedication and heart in leading the activities, ensuring our students could enjoy the day to the fullest. From thrilling races to field events, the highlight of the day was the incredible house spirit, with chants roaring through the sprint finals. It was amazing to see students not only competing but also supporting and encouraging one another, making it a truly memorable event.
Some students shared their experience:
On Wednesday we had athletics day. It was a fun experience seeing smiles on peoples faces, people working together, and trying their best for their Houses. It was tuff seeing XB lose, but I know we can get ready for next year. I enjoyed my time at the stadium and would love to do it again.
Reuben 8XB
Yesterday was so much fun. Athletics is hard but exciting, every activity was so good. I liked the high jump, the long jump, and all the other sports. The only bad thing was the rain, but it was not that much. Athletics was amazing!
Delton 8XB
Congratulations to the point winners from each year level:
Year 7 Boys Renzo Johnston
Year 7 Girls Indie Williams
Year 8 Boys Ebenezer Ofori-Anyinam
Year 8 Girls Azariah Stobart (who won every Year 8 Girl event!)
Year 9 Boys Nacho Esquivel Garcia
Year 9 Girls Indiana Falanitule / Sienna Kilburn
Year 10 Boys Douglas Easthope
Year 10 Girls Emereziana Lautua
For a detailed list of event winners and more photographs from the day, please follow the News link at the bottom of this Newsletter.
 Year 9 and 10 Sports Musters
Competition details and registration information is in the following links.
Hockey 5s
Badminton
Cricket
Rugby
Football
Orienteering
Sian Balle, Nacho Esquivel Garcia, Drew Liefting, Layla Mohan, and Clara Wielenga all took part in Round 1 of the Orienteering sprint series on Monday at Papakura High School. Everyone had a fantastic time & are looking forward to round 2 next week.
Round 2: 24th of February at Pukekohe High School
Round 3: 3rd March at Papatoetoe High School, entries close Wednesday 26th February.
 College Sports Aquathon
Annabelle Shields and Elysia Rollo as individual entrants both completed both the swim and run legs of the event. They competed in the U14 category which had the most entrants and placed 6th & 23rd respectively out of 37 athletes.
Saskia Balle and Paikea Maihi competed as a team and in the end it was a great lesson in honesty being the best policy. When they arrived they realised that they had been entered in the U14 category but were too old for this event so were changed to the girls novice section. This meant a longer run and potentially older competitors, however unknowingly to us, they became the only entrants in this category and so on completion they placed first. A win is always a win and it was a nice end to their first aquathon experience.
We look forward to growing this sport, register your aquathon, triathlon or duathlon interest with Miss Knight in the sports office
 Up Coming Events
School Swimming Sports
When: Tuesday 25th February
Where: Jubilee Pool
Time: 9.30am (leave school 9am)
We will be taking a maximum of 100 students to this event.
The correct event registration needs to be completed.
Swimming Registration
Year 7 & 8 Girls Football trials - AIMS games team
Intro to football
Thursday 20th March, 3.30pm - 4.30pm
Trials
Thursday 27th March & 3rd April, 3.30pm-4.30pm
Location - St Ignatius, Fields
AIMS Girls Football registration
Franklin Year 7&8 Ultimate RIP
Trials will take place for Franklin School teams.
Please bring a change of clothes or PE gear.
Franklin schools competition is on Wednesday 26th March
Trials
Thursday 6th March
Location - St Ignatius, Fields
Franklin Ultimate RIP Registration
Netball
Netball is the highest participation sport at St Ignatius and across Aotearoa.
With the preseason sessions now complete please use the link below to register for trials. We need ALL the names of girls wishing to play this season.
Trials will be held 25th February and 3rd of March
Year 7&8 3.30pm-5.00pm
Year 9&10 5.00pm-7.00pm
Location: La Storta, St Ignatius
Netball Registration
Clay Target Shooting
Information went out to all those who registered interest. Practice and introduction to shooting is on Wednesday evenings at Auckland Met Club, Gun Club Road in Pukekohe
Info sheet
   Ākonga Elective
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Attendance
Why does attending school regularly matter?
There’s a clear connection between going to school regularly and doing well in the classroom. Higher levels of educational achievement can mean better health, higher incomes, better job stability, and more participation in communities. This all makes society stronger and more connected. In New Zealand students who were chronically absent (attend less than 70% of the term) are significantly more likely to leave school without qualifications. At age 20, over half (55 percent) of students who are chronically absent have not achieved NCEA Level 2, and almost all (92 percent) have not achieved University Entrance. This leads to having significantly lower rates of employment and income. At age 25, nearly half are not earning any wages or salary (42 percent).
At Saint Ignatius we want all ākonga to achieve their own personal excellence, their own Magis. For this to happen we need all of our ākonga present at school so they can reach their full potential.
International Students Homestay Expressions of Interest
We are looking to host 30 young men from Tokyo City Boys in August this year. They will be staying for two weeks. If any families would be interested in finding out more about the opportunity to host our guests can you please email Mrs Hartland at [email protected] in the next week please.  New Staff
Each week we will introduce you to new members of our school staff. This week we would like to introduce you to Mrs. Michelle Almond, and Mr. Joseph Maratas.
 | | What a blessing it is to join the St Ignatius faculty as a Teacher of English! I am, and always have been, a true lover of literature, a bibliophile and an aspiring writer. This passion led me to a career in marketing and communications, before retraining as a teacher; a vocation I find meaningful and fulfilling. I have been teaching for almost twenty years, most recently at Waiau Pā School. I most look forward to growing and developing as a professional at St Ignatius, and inspiring ākonga to love literature in all its forms as much as I do. I also welcome the opportunity to form new connections with ākonga, staff and the wider school community, as well as looking internally to deepen my spirituality. Fun fact: I have a horse named Willow who can only breathe out of one nostril (a congenital defect), but that doesn’t stop us galloping madly about the place and jumping whatever we can. |
 | | I am excited to join St Ignatius as a Mathematics Teacher. I studied at Auckland University of Technology and gained a Bachelor's Degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering with first class honours. I worked at Fisher and Paykel Healthcare as a Quality Controller and Operations Engineer within the OSA/Airvo business unit. I look forward to working within a school environment enshrined within the Catholic and Ignatian values. The school resonates with my own values and I know that I will be able to continue to grow within the school community as a mathematics teacher. I hope to embed myself in the school community and contribute to its growing culture. I am also an avid Toastmaster and have been part of Papatoetoe Toastmasters for 5 years. I have also been a member of Meadowbank Toastmasters and Manukau Toastmasters. |
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Whānau Smiles Dentist - 24th - 28th February
Visit by Fr Jose Mesa and JACSA Principals from Australia - Monday 24th February
Year 7 and Year 8 Social - Friday February 21st at 6.00pm (TONIGHT)
Dedication Mass - Monday February 24th
House Parades - Monday February 24th
Swimming Sports - Tuesday February 25th
Barbier House Mass - Wednesday 26th February
Immunisation Talks Years 7 and 8 26th February
Pickleball PTA Whānau Social - Friday 28th February
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Annual House Parade
Our much anticipated House Parade competition will take place on Monday 24th of February at 1.30 pm in La Storta.
Due to the popularity of this event, we will require it to be ticketed. There are only 100 tickets available, therefore we can only allow two tickets per family. Please see our website to register your attendance.  Barbier House Mass
All Barbier House parents and caregivers are invited to attend the Barbier House Mass on Wednesday, February 26th, at 2:15 p.m. in the Companions of Jesus Chapel. |
LAST CHANCE TO REGISTER!!
Get Ready to Rally – Pickleball Tournament!
Get ready for a night of fast-paced fun at our first annual Pickleball Tournament! With only 24 team spots available, it’s a race to register—first in, first served! Teams of two must include at least one St Ignatius student—whether it’s a student duo, a student-teacher power pair, or a student-family dream team.
No gear? No problem! All equipment is provided—just bring your energy and competitive spirit! Arrive before 5:45 PM for a quick briefing, then hit the courts at 6:00 PM to dink, rally, and smash your way to victory. Registrations open 14 February and close 21 February, so don’t wait—sign up via the Google link!
Make a night of it! Pack a picnic and your favorite drinks, or grab a snack—refreshments will be available for purchase. Whether you’re playing or cheering, it’s going to be a great night!  |
Athletics Day 19/2/25
Athletics Day is the first sporting event for our school year, bringing together our ākonga for a day of competition, participation, and school spirit. | |  |
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