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10/5/2018

Community - 5

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This is my fifth and final instalment on community for now. (I can almost hear the sighs of relief). I think the message has been pretty clear - we do better and are better together.
Community is about finding people and place that make us feel we are at home. By building community we put some order in the fragmented world around us.

Five Reasons why Community is Important.
Community gives courage: 
People who say just the right thing at just the right time give us courage to pursue our dreams, confront our fears and live with less anxiety. A life free from fear is a life that can accomplish anything.
Community gives hope: 
In a painful, uncertain world the understanding and supportive nature of good, honest community can provide the hope necessary to press on and take chances – no matter the challenge.
Community gives options: 
Life without community is lonely; it’s lacking in social events, intimate conversation and deep relationships. A strong network of people grants options for a night out, friends to call in a crisis and someone to share a funny story with.
Community gives constructive feedback: 
No one is perfect. The loving people in our lives know that better than anyone and can be a significant part of our individual growth and change. They can offer constructive feedback about us, our decisions and relationships.
Community gives joy: 
community is shared fun.The shared memories, laughter and times spent with our closest circle of friends provide memories that last for a lifetime.

Having a community around us is important for these and many other reasons. It means that we're not in the world alone, we're not fighting our battles by ourselves. Within a community, we have others we can turn to for help and support - perhaps just to seek advice or at times for more literal support.  We have others to share our lives with, to care for and help in their time of need. 

When we have a stronger sense of community we feel like we’re an important member of a group. That’s why every organisation, team, club, or gang is formed. We’re closest to the that feeling when we’re around people we care about. No sports team or company ever thrived when everyone was in it for themselves. Our lives can be made much easier if we band together with people based on commonality. 

Community is a buzzword, but it’s easier said than done. And often it’s more talked about than it is practiced. Developing community can be awkward. Creating community means pushing ourself beyond our comfort zone, our insecurities and our discouragements.

So how do we improve our community connectedness - a huge challenge for so many of us in a time-poor world?

Invite people into our life, and into our home. Let people see our imperfections. Being open with our imperfect homes and meals, helps others to feel more free to be themselves.

Being a part of a community means taking all of that community on board, in all its beauty and ugliness, and approaching it with kindness and understanding.  Walking in others’ shoes, seeing the world through others’ eyes, and trying to find a way to move forward together.

How does one keep from "growing old inside"? Surely only in community. The only way to make friends with time is to stay friends with people…. Taking community seriously not only gives us the companionship we need, it also relieves us of the notion that we are indispensable. 
-- Robert McAfee Brown

Every two weeks at Western Heights we come together as a full school community for a Full School Assembly we call Whanau Time. This means Family Time, and at the core of community is family. 
Family, community, love - words that I probably overuse and thereby reduce their effectiveness. Still I will risk it one last time in closing this article and series. I love our Western Heights School Whanau. I love our Henderson Heights Community and I love west Auckland. This is my community, this is a spiritual as well as physical home for me and I will continue to work hard with all the wise and wonderful people in our community who share these loves and are putting that love into practice to make this community stronger and more precious than ever.

I’ll conclude with a quote from Tom Vilsack, “People working together in a strong community with a shared goal and a common purpose can make the impossible possible.”

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18/7/2023 09:09:44 pm

I enjoyed this post thanks for sharing

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    Greetings to all the families and friends of Western Heights school.
    I am truly excited at the prospect of coming to work at this wonderful school each day.
    Family:
    My wife Jacqualene is the Principal of Mangere Central. She has outstanding skills and talents in administration, curriculum design and integration of ICT into the teaching and learning programme.
    My son Tiaki is a bright boy, very keen on technology, a bit of a musician, and a very talented footballer and softballer. Tiaki was the youngest footballer to make it into the National Talent Centre, and was MVP at the South Island Softball Champs.
    I also have two adult children and two grandchildren - all in Australia.

    Western Heights school is a wonderful school, staffed with exceptional teachers and support staff; led by an outstanding Board; and supported by an enthusiastic and committed parent community.

    Career:
    I began teaching aged 19, some 41 years ago, and began my 20th year as a principal at this wonderful school in 2014.

    Principal of Tareha School                              - Napier 2 years
    Deputy Principal Prospect School                  - west Auckland 7 years
    Principal Pomaria School                               - west Auckland 7 years
    Principal Te Akau ki Papamoa School           - Bay of Plenty 3 years
    Principal Kaiapoi Borough School                 - Canterbury 8 years

    President of Waitakere Area Principals Association 2003 - 92 schools 
    Apple Distinguished Educator Award - 2009. Sponsored to Apple Headquarters in Cupertino, USA.
    Secretary Auckland Computers in Education Society
    Primary Principals’ Representative - Primary Sector Education Advisory Committee
    Waitakere City Council - Award for Outstanding Contribution to Education, 2003.
    Presenter at UNESCO Conference on Values in Education, 2002.
    Guest speaker - International Principal's Federation Conference, Auckland 2002.
    Ministry contracted trainer - Implementation of New National Administration Guidelines
    First Time Principals’ Mentor for Ministry of Education in Auckland and Christchurch.
    Mentored new principals of four Canterbury schools.
    University of Canterbury School Curriculum Development Facilitator - e- Learning, ICT in 2011 and 2012. Worked with 70 schools.
    Post Grad Studies at Mindlab 2016

    Personal Achievements
    Sportsman of Year - Christchurch College of Education 1978 
    Canterbury Colts Softball representative
    National League football with Woolston FC
    Waimakariri Football Club Junior Coach of the Year - 2011, 2012, 2013

    Philosophy
    I believe passionately in all learners becoming independent.
    My Vision has always been of “Growing Great Kids” who are self managing, self motivating, self moderating, independent leaders of their own learning.
    This has been achieved through “Dream. Grow. Shine. Reflect.” 
         Children choose appropriate goals. 
         They develop an effective action plan to achieve those goals. 
         They identify success criteria - what we can expect to see when success is achieved. 
         They reflect on their goals, their plan and their outcomes and make decisions in light of this.

    We know that positive relationships are the key to success, not just in learning but in all aspects of life. Positive relationships are built on trust, honesty, respect, and genuine concern, and nurtured through active listening and time spent together.
    Whanau (Family) Relationships are the basis for all I do and the way I teach, coach and lead. For this reason, I set great store in being open to and available to children, staff and community.
    As examples of this, we now have a presence on Facebook, a Twitter account, a revamped web site, an Open Door policy for access to me, and my personal email and cell phone number available to you all.

    My door is open, my cell phone switched on and email launched - feel free to contact me any time.

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HENDERSON
​AUCKLAND 0612

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  • Home - Kāinga
  • Enrolment - Whakauranga
    • Enrolment Zone - Whaitua
    • Cohort Entry
    • New Entrant Booklet
    • International Students
    • More Info - Pārongo
  • Information - Pārongo
    • Education Review Office Report
    • Policies Log-In Info
    • WHS Policies
    • Connections
  • Learning - Akoranga
    • Learning through Structured Play
    • Learning through Play the WHS Way
    • Creativity through Play
    • Bush Classroom
    • Learning Philosophy >
      • Four Original Languages
      • People and the Land
    • I C T
    • Kickstart with CPR
    • Learning at WHS
    • Learning @ Home
    • Where We Learn
  • News - Dates - Kawepūrongo
  • Parents - Mātua
    • Parent Info
    • Helping Your Child
    • Seesaw Digital Portfolio
    • Lunch Menu
  • Our People - Tō Tātou Iwi
    • 360º Images
    • Board of Trustees
    • Principal's Page >
      • Mr M's Bio
      • Principal's Appraisals
      • Ash's Blog
    • Deputy Principals
    • Support Staff
    • Teaching Team
    • Job Vacancies
  • Media - Hunga Pāpāho
    • NZ Champions - Rippa
    • You Tube Channel
    • Photos - Ngā Pikitia
    • Book Characters
  • Contacts - Whakapā
  • Strategic Plan - Mahere Rautaki
    • KCs and KTs >
      • Foundation Stones
      • Whakatauki
    • Financial Reports - Mahere Pūtea
  • Porotaka Pounamu
    • WHO
    • WHY
    • HOW
    • WHAT