Dux of Whanganui Girls’ College for 2023 Piper Kenny shares her thoughts and advice

Piper Kenny, dux of Whanganui Girls College, with her friend Diljeet - creative arts dux and proxime accessit to dux.

Piper Kenny was the dux recipient of Whanganui Girls College (WGC) for 2023, and she has this to say about her schooling: “I attended Whanganui East School for my primary years and coincidentally was also the dux there in my final year, it’s funny how life can come a full circle like that.

“I’ve always worked hard in school, but I wasn’t expecting to be the dux of WGC, I knew that I was quite up there academically, but it would definitely be close between my close friend, Diljeet, and myself.

“She is incredibly capable and talented both academically and creatively, so I was stoked when she received creative arts dux and proxime accessit to dux. I can’t think of anyone more deserving than her.

“Dux wasn’t something that I was working towards directly, I like to focus on doing my personal best rather than being the best. It just turned out that me doing my best was enough for me to get dux which is still quite surreal to me, and I am insanely grateful. My top-tip for students just starting high school would be to focus on doing their personal best rather than focusing on awards.

“School shouldn’t be solely about the awards you can get, you’re there to learn and do your best as you grow into a young adult - while they are something to be thankful for, a certificate and some public validation aren’t a measure of your worth or your personal growth.

“Throughout my high school experience, I met my fair share of people who did things just for awards and leadership titles. I think at the end of the day it is better to put genuine passion and effort into things that you enjoy, rather than trying to do everything because you think it will help you get an award.

“All that will happen is that you end up will feeling disappointed, as if your efforts were useless if you don’t get the award - despite the personal growth and development that is experienced, that ends up being ignored because you don’t get a trophy for it. Doing your personal best will help you grow, which is the best award that you can ask for in life. Be grateful for what you have and how far you have come, not bitter about the trophies you didn’t win.

“It’s quite hard for me to decide on a favourite subject, I feel like they all had their ups and downs. Having danced outside of school for most of my life, I obviously enjoyed dance at school, WGC has amazing facilities and a great teacher for dance, so a lot of learning took place in my 5 years which I am really grateful for.

“Other than that, I liked psychology quite a lot, it was a lot of writing which is something I enjoy. This year I had to do the work out of the timetabled class line, which was great for my personal development, I had to be quite independent and rely on my own motivation to get the work done which are skills that will definitely be helpful in the future.

“Fashion and Design is another passion of mine, and I always loved going into the fashion room to be creative for a few hours a week. Mrs Samantha Overweel, who unfortunately moved away last year, was my fashion teacher for most of my time at WGC and I still consider her to be one of my favourite teachers.

“She just had a neat approach to teaching; she was great at instructing and helping students while still giving us the freedom to create and learn independently. She is always really kind and there to support me, in fact she sent me a message after she found out about me being dux, it was really sweet.

“Miss Jessica Foster, my biology teacher this year, is another one of my favourite teachers, she is just always so kind and makes her classroom such a safe space for her students. She made biology easy to understand and was always willing to help, no question was a dumb question. Both teachers have had a big impact on me and I’m really thankful for the influence that they’ve had on my life.

“This year I will be attending the University of Auckland to study a Bachelor of Dance Studies. It’s quite exciting for me, I’m really looking forward to focusing my studies solely on growing as a dancer.

“I’m not entirely sure what I would like to do in the long term workwise, I’m open to the dance studies course providing me with new opportunities and skills, so I don’t really want to set my mind on anything too specific just yet.

“Life is unpredictable and we can only guess what the future has in store for us, so I am happy to keep my options open and find out when I get there. At the WGC prizegiving, I did jointly receive the Ngaire Craig scholarship which will help immensely with funding the move up to Auckland.

“I’m super grateful for the financial support as I move into the next chapter of my life as well as just the general support from the staff at WGC over the past five years.”