Our first ever Pō Whakanui (JMāori celebration night) was a roaring success, with ākonga and their whānau celebrating success on Tuesday 3 December.

Whaea Sydney-Rae Hooper organised and facilitated the evening, which featured waiata, haka, kāi me kōrero.

Matua Jason outlined the many successes of te ao Māori at Horoeka Haemata, including our te reo Māori language programme becoming its own learning area with bilingual Connected classes beginning in 2025, with more expected growth in upcoming years.

Kayshana Rapana (Ngāti Pikiao (Te Arawa), Ngāti Whakaue (Te Arawa), Ngāti Porou) and Merrin Luscombe (Rangitāne, Ngāti Tama, Kāi Tahu) did an incredible job of acknowledging the successes of our ākonga Māori, in the classroom and across the sports arena.

We were delighted by the performances of our kapa haka, who will compete nationally for the first time next year.

Our year 13 Māori learners were acknowledged with gifts and recognition of their haerenga and experiences during their time at our kura. We wish them all the very best.

We enjoyed delicious kai together, a Texas BBQ feast which went down a treat.

As always, we mihi the astonishing efforts of our leaders, Mx Brita Theewis and Matua Jason Keno, supporting kaimahi including Matua Hamish Drummond, Whaea Hazel Connolly, Miss Ashley Johnson (our kī-o-rahi queen), Whaea Sydney-Rae Hooper, Shania Noble and our Pou, Raewyn Hooper. We are so excited to see the te ao Māori programme at Horoeka Haemata continue to grow and flourish!