Principal of the kura Jade Tapine (middle, back) and students are proud to call the new wharekura their own. Photo / Caitlan Johnston
Principal of the kura Jade Tapine (middle, back) and students are proud to call the new wharekura their own. Photo / Caitlan Johnston
Students and teachers of Te Wharekura o Nga Purapura o Te Aroha welcomed the new school year in by finally moving into their new purpose-built wharekura.
To have their own designated space has been a 14-year dream for the Year 1-13 Te Awamutu-based Maori-medium school.
"We are no longer the kura in the back that no one knows of or has heard of. Being able to achieve these inspirations and dreams for our tamariki has lifted the spirits of our whole kura community," said kura principal Jade Tapine.
The new wharekura features open-plan senior and junior wings, a gymnasium, a food-tech room, a music room, a recording studio, a science lab, an art room, breakout rooms for independent learning, an English learning classroom, a sick bay and an outdoor sports court.
The senior wing inside the new wharekura - The narrative of this space represents the Waikato River and they have incorporated the wooden tables to represent a waka. Photo / Caitlan Johnston BTG
Their old space, a warehouse at the back of the Te Wananga o Aotearoa campus, compromised of only four shared spaces. Here they also shared bathrooms with the tertiary institution and they often had to hire spaces in the community, such as swimming pools and gymnasiums, to ensure their students were not disadvantaged.
"That had been our reality since 2007, and regardless of the barriers we strived to ensure our tamariki did not go without," said Jade.
"Now that we are in our own space we feel the full magnitude of these inequities and can really understand upon reflection, our commitment to achieving what we achieved regardless of our circumstances."
Jade say's the new wharekura reflects a contemporary Wharenui or Whare Tupuna (a traditional meeting house).
"This is where we draw upon the traditional teachings and learnings of our tupuna (ancestors) as the vehicle by which we instil our core values and belief systems. He taonga te tamaiti is our vision statement, which literally means 'A child is precious' but in the deeper sense it represents a commitment to ensuring our children come first," said Jade.
"It is through Te Reo Maori and Tikanga Maori (customary Maori cultural practices) that we connect with our culture, our identity and build character with-in our kura community."
Year 9 students playing touch in the new gymnasium. Photo / Caitlan Johnston
He says that every design and colour within the building serves a purpose, from the plant walls that bring life into the space to the open space narrative that represents the Waikato, Waipa and Puniu Rivers.
"Every aspect of this place has a mauri (intrinsic life force or vitality), even in a spiritual sense to reinforce positivity, relaxation, healing and wellbeing," said Jade.
"Much consideration has gone in to choosing each colour, fabric and hard materials to ensure they are conducive to our narrative and align to studies that promote positive mental health and spiritual wellbeing."
The Ministry of Education invested $10 million into the new wharekura and Livingstone got the build underway in March last year.
It was completed in December. They then had a dawn ceremony and blessing before staff moved in to get the space ready for the new school year.
The students started on February 10th and were welcomed with a powhiri. There are currently 105 students attending the kura, 15 more will transition in over the next five months and they currently have a waiting list of 36 students that is growing by the day.
Year 9 students playing touch in the new gymnasium. Photo / Caitlan Johnston
A stage two build has now been approved to add an extension to the new wharekura. This will hopefully commence next month and be completed by July.
The extension will provide spaces for a hard tech room, more toilets, showers, a digital innovation hub and a playground.
"We haven't had a playground for 14 years so we are definitely welcoming one for our tamariki," said Jade.
Once stage two is completed they plan to have a celebration with fun things for the students to enjoy, such as bouncy castles, entertainment and animals.
Families of students attending the kura, local key stakeholders and those involved in the build will be invited to the celebration.
"To have a celebration with our tamariki is our ultimate dream.
A class in the junior wing of the new wharekura. Photo / Caitlan Johnston
"This kura is what they deserve, especially because they have had to make do for so long," said Jade.
The whole perimeter of the school is also to be fenced and Jade says the Waipa District Council is currently in the process of having a pedestrian crossing installed in front of the Kura on Factory Rd to make coming and going from the kura safer.
Jade says that the success of the kura is due to the contributions of many.
"There is a Maori proverb "Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi, engari he toa takitini" — My strength is not that of a single warrior but that of many'," said Jade.
The new food-tech room. The new wharekura also features a music room, art room and a science lab and will soon also feature a hard-tech room and a digital innovation hub. Photo / Caitlan Johnston
"While we are grateful for what we have accomplished, I cannot help but feel the weight of the past 14 years, where we had to struggle with minimal resources and facilities but still be expected to be on par with all other schools."
Despite the inequities the kura has endured over the past 14 years, its successes include two successful Education Review Office reviews in the past six years, a 100 per cent pass rate for all Year 12 and 13 students in the past three years and all graduates enrolling into tertiary education, with one recently graduation with her Bachelor of Teaching.
