Tauranga Girls College Pacific Island students off to Pasifika festival. Photo/George Novak
Tauranga Girls College Pacific Island students off to Pasifika festival. Photo/George Novak
In six years, Tauranga Girls' College Pasifika group has grown from just a handful of students to more than 50 members.
Next month the group will perform at the Pasifika by Nature festival in Hamilton for the third time.
The Tauranga Girls' College Pasifika group was formed by Jill Allan in 2011. At that stage there were about 20 girls involved, who met weekly. Jill gave the girls a platform from which to mbrace, share and showcase their individual island cultures.
"We're a school of opportunities," says principal Pauline Cowan, "but the Pasifika girls need their own identity, their own particular passion for performance and for developing who they are within the school.
"We've always had kapa haka and other arts things that they can take part in, but we have a growing number of Pasifika girls in the school," she says.
"Over the last five or six years the numbers have grown and so it's been about that long that we've been calling them together."
In 2013, Jill lost her battle with cancer and the group sang an emotional tribute at her funeral, an acknowledgement of, and testimony to, the love, passion and energy she gave them throughout these foundation years.
Now teachers Kelly Baxter and Kate Gallant run the group, which has evolved and grown as more families move into the district. Kate says the group helps give the Pacific Island students a sense of belonging.
"It's showcasing who they are ... But there's also the academic side of it as well. We go to workshops with all the other teachers in the Bay who run these types of groups, to try and raise achievement, so we are looking at all those things, as well as cultural performance."
Outside the college, the students know each other and their culture. "They all go to church, they all know each other in the wider community. [In school]) they just need somewhere to hang out - they dance, they laugh, they eat, they have a place to belong."
At the festival the group has 20 minutes to give its performances. There will be individual Kiribati, Tongan and Samoan items plus a combined item with Tauranga Boys' College.
Sela Moata'ane with conch shell used as a wind instrument. Photo/George Novak
Some of the older students in the group have been involved from the start. There are also links with Tauranga Intermediate School's Pacific Island students to help with the transition from intermediate school to college.
Students are currently fundraising for their costumes for the festival. Kate says the students are self-managing, motivated and choreographing some stunning items.
"Their progress to date is outstanding. We are very proud of the fact that they have embraced this year like no other and await the event with anticipation."
The group has performed at sports and school assemblies and for parents.
Celebration Pasifika By Nature is a celebration of colour and culture featuring more than 800 secondary school students from the Waikato and Bay of Plenty regions.
The festival encourages preservation of Pacific Island cultures, unity and an opportunity for young people to showcase their talents, celebrate and share their culture with family, friends and the wider community.
The festival takes place at Claudelands Arena, Hamilton. This year's theme 'Giving back is Giving Forward' is based on this year's National Youth Week.
